The Best Shepherd's Pie Recipe

Shepherd's pie is one of those dishes that's known for its comforting rustic heartiness, as it incorporates meat, potatoes, vegetables, and savory herbs and seasonings in one satisfying dish. In recipe developer Katie Rosenhouse's best shepherd's pie recipe, she elevates the humble dish with impressive elegance that makes it suitable for a festive meal. Her definitive and positively cozy take on the classic dish features a lamb and veggie-infused filling, warmly flavored from red wine and Worcestershire sauce, that's beautifully adorned with piped mashed potatoes on top. Thanks to the decorative piping of the potatoes, the presentation of this shepherd's pie is simply striking, though something tells us that it'll be the ultra-savory, rich flavor that has your guests talking.

As it turns out, the piped mashed potatoes not only look good, but they happen to be Rosenhouse's favorite aspect of the dish. "I absolutely adore the potato topping of this shepherd's pie," she says. "Not only is it creamy and velvety in the middle, but it has a subtle crispy edge and holds its shape so beautifully after piping." Of course, we can't overlook all of that meaty filling underneath the potatoes, which provides the perfect contrast to the rich spuds on top. Easy enough to whip up on a weeknight but elegant enough for a dinner party, this is the absolute best shepherd's pie recipe to keep in your pocket.

You'll kick off this shepherd's pie recipe by making the mashed potatoes, which consist of russet potatoes, salt, unsalted butter, eggs, heavy cream (or half-and-half), and grated Parmesan cheese. Next up is the filling, for which you'll need olive oil, carrots, celery, onion, salt, pepper, ground lamb, garlic, tomato paste, red wine, Worcestershire sauce, all-purpose flour, chicken or beef broth, frozen peas, and parsley. Finally, to garnish the entire pie, you'll want fresh chopped chives.

Peel and chop the russet potatoes into 1-inch chunks.

Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot with 1 tablespoon salt, then add potatoes.

Cook until potatoes are fall-apart tender.

Drain and heat the potatoes in the pot for an additional minute to reduce excess moisture.

Use a potato masher or ricer to mash the potatoes until smooth.

Gently fold in 6 tablespoons of melted butter.

In a cup, whisk to combine the eggs and heavy cream.

Fold the cream into the potato mixture, along with the Parmesan cheese. Season with salt to taste.

Place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the potato mixture, and set it aside.

Preheat the oven to 425 F.

In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat.

Add the carrots, celery, and onion, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and just beginning to brown.

Season with 1 teaspoon salt and ground pepper.

Add the lamb and garlic to the pan, and stir, crumbling, until the meat is cooked through.

Stir in the tomato paste and cook for an additional minute.

Add the wine and Worcestershire sauce, and cook, stirring, until mostly reduced.

Stir in the flour to coat; cook for about a minute until thickened.

Add the broth and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is slightly thickened.

Stir in the peas and parsley. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.

Pour the mixture into a 2.4-quart baking dish.

Transfer the potato mixture to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip.

Pipe the potatoes decoratively over the meat mixture.

Drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of melted butter.

Place over a baking sheet to catch any drips, and bake for 20-25 minutes until the topping is golden brown and the filling is bubbling.

Let stand 5-10 minutes.

Garnish with chives and serve.

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Shepherd's pie is a classic dish that's been around for quite some time, and the recipe hasn't changed too much over the years. Likely originating in the British Isles (with some debate that it may have a specifically Irish origin), shepherd's pie is a casserole-like dish that was born out of frugality and necessity. Classic iterations of the dish often relied on leftovers to make the meaty magic happen, but nowadays (and as proven by this recipe), shepherd's pie can be downright elegant and refined.

When looking up shepherd's pie recipes, there's a good chance you'll also come across cottage pie recipes as well. "Cottage pie and shepherd's pie are often used interchangeably, but what makes them different is the type of meat used," Rosenhouse explains. Shepherd's pie traditionally uses ground lamb as the meat of choice, as this recipe does, while cottage pies feature ground beef. Otherwise, the two oft-interchanged dishes are quite similar, offering up that familiar savory pie formula of a meaty stew base with potatoes on top. Shepherd's pie may also sometimes feature a layer of cheese on top of the potatoes, but in Rosenhouse's recipe, she opted to mix the cheese into the potatoes for a more even distribution of savory Parmesan goodness.

Though this shepherd's pie recipe isn't a particularly complex or difficult one to follow, it does require a decent amount of time in the kitchen. Luckily, you can prepare the entire dish ahead of time and save the baking for the following day, should you want to get a head start on dinner or prep in advance for a holiday gathering. 

To do so, Rosenhouse recommends preparing the dish exactly as written, all the way up to piping the potatoes onto the filling. Then, carefully but tightly cover the entire dish with foil and pop it into the fridge for up to two days. When you're ready to bake, let the dish sit at room temperature while the oven preheats, then drizzle the melted butter on top of the potatoes. Bake as directed until the potatoes are browned and the filling is nice and bubbly. "Add a few extra minutes to the baking time and tent with foil if needed to prevent excess browning," Rosenhouse advises.

And, in case you follow the recipe from start to finish in one go but end up with some leftovers, you're in luck there as well. Either tightly wrap any leftovers in the original baking dish or transfer them to an airtight container. You can enjoy the leftovers for up to four days, and the best way to reheat them is covered in a 350 F oven until completely heated through.

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