Last updated on May 30th, 2018 at 03:42 am
This Skillet Shepherd’s Pie is loaded with flavorful beef and veggies then topped with fluffy and creamy mashed potatoes, then baked to perfection!
Shepherd’s pie is the epitome of simple and homely comfort food. It’s an easy and quite basic dish to put together, that’s been around for a very long time and there are probably hundreds of variations of it.
Shepherd’s pie is also commonly referred to as cottage pie and there is a difference. Cottage pie is usually made with beef and Shepherd’s pie is usually made with lamb. I know, you’re probably wondering why I’m calling this Shepherd’s pie when it should be called cottage pie. It’s because I’ve always known it as Shepherd’s pie, and whenever I’ve made it that’s what I’ve called it, so I’m going with it.
Another interesting fact to note about Shepherd’s pie is that Scotland usually makes these pies with a pastry instead of mashed potatoes, which actually sounds great and I will definitely have to try this soon.
But let’s talk about my recipe for a bit because the best compliment a cook gets is when the food is gone quickly and that’s what happened when we made this. It was gone within minutes. As mentioned, I used ground beef for the pie and lots of frozen veggies. I decided to go with a mix here of peas, carrots, green beans, and corn. You can actually find this mix in the frozen food section. I then flavored this with Worcestershire sauce, a package of dry onion soup mix and beef broth. The end result was incredibly tasty and flavorful, just make sure you don’t add too much salt as the onion soup mix already has some sodium in it.
After the meat mixture is done, all you have to do is make this easy, creamy and fluffy mashed potatoes, top your pie with the potatoes, then bake this for about 40 minutes. The smell in your home will be incredible and you’ll have a hard time waiting to get this out of the oven and sink your teeth in it. Trust me, it’s good!
If you love one-skillet recipes, try these out!
If you guys love this recipe, and most importantly make it yourselves, please let us know. Take a picture and tag it #jocooks on Instagram so we can see it. I always love to see what you guys come up with!
This Skillet Shepherd's Pie is loaded with flavorful beef and veggies then topped with fluffy and creamy mashed potatoes, then baked to perfection!
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 1/4 lb ground beef lean
- 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
- 1/2 tsp pepper or to taste
- 1 large onion chopped
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1.9 oz onion soup mix I used Knorr, 55g pkg
- 1 cup beef broth
- 2 cups frozen veggies I used mix of peas, carrots, green beans and corn
- 6 large potatoes peeled and cut into cubes
- 4 tbsp butter softened
- 2/3 cup milk
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
- 1/2 tsp white pepper or to taste
- 1 tbsp parsley fresh, for garnish
Boil the potatoes: Start by first cooking the potatoes in boiling water for about 15 minutes or until fork tender. While the potatoes are cooking, you can prepare the meat mixture.
- Prepare the meat mixture: Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef to the skillet, season it with the salt and pepper and cook it for abut 5 minutes or until it's no longer pink, breaking it up as you go along.
- Add the onion and garlic and cook for 3 more minutes until the onion softens and becomes translucent. Add the pepper flakes, Worcestershire sauce, onion soup mix, beef broth and stir. Stir in the frozen veggies and cook for a couple more minutes. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven 350 F degrees.
Prepare the mashed potatoes: Drain the potatoes then add them to a large bowl. Add in the butter and using a potato masher, mash until smooth. Add the milk, Parmesan cheese, salt pepper and mash a bit a more until smooth.
Finish assembling the shepherd's pie: Spread the potatoes over the meat and smooth with a spoon. Take a fork and rough up the top a bit and garnish with a bit of parsley.
Bake: Place the skillet on a baking sheet, then place it in the oven and bake for 40 minutes until golden brown on top.
- Garnish with more parsley and pepper and serve warm.
Recipe Video
How do I store leftovers: Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours of cooking, cover the pie with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Can I freeze this: Yes you can! After baking, let the skillet cool to room temperature. Transfer the shepherd's pie to an airtight container and place in the freezer for up to 2 months. You can also cover the skillet tightly with foil, or plastic wrap, just make sure it's tightly covered.
Can I use store bought mashed potatoes: Yes, you can. Store bought mashed potatoes can be used or leftover mashed potatoes.
Can I use fresh veggies: Yes, of course. I used frozen veggies to save time, but feel free to use fresh veggies, such as carrots, peas and corn.
I don't have onion soup mix, what can I use instead: You can make your own onion soup mix by combining: 3 tbsp minced onion flakes, 2 tbsp beef bouillon powder, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1/4 tsp parsley flakes, 1/8 tsp ground celery seeds, 1/2 tsp sweet paprika, salt and pepper to taste.
Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
★ Did you make this recipe? Don't forget to give it a star rating below!
My husband and I love this Shepherd’s pie! I stopped using any other recipe. This is fantastic!!
So happy to hear this!
Can’t wait to try this recipe. Do you drain the fat from the hamburg before continuing?
Usually I don’t because I buy the extra lean ground beef, but yes, if your ground beef is quite fatty, I would drain it.
Made this tonight it was very flavorful. My family loved it. Its a keeper.
This is the best shepherd’s pie I’ve ever made. I used a Lodge #10 skillet, and I made a smaller batch to accommodate my skillet size. 2 big russet potatoes were enough to completely cover the beef mixture.
Yes! That’s what I love to hear. 🙂
I love this recipe! It’s my go to when I want my son to eat! I replace the beef with lamb, use the beefy onion soup mix, and add a handful of raisins! Some of my family don’t like to eat spicy so I sometimes serve the pepper flakes on the side.
Lamb would be great in this recipe! So glad you and your family love the recipe.
My favorite Shep Pie recipe! I have made it several times now. Love it! I usually sub out potatoes and use mashed cauliflower on top and turns out just as good!
That sounds fantastic, I’m glad you love it!
I’m not one to usually leave a review, but in this case I just had to let everyone know that this Shepherd’s Pie was SO delicious and easy to make…..and even looked as good as the pictures in the recipe. This is a keeper for sure….thank you!
Thank you so much! We’re thrilled that you love the recipe 🙂
I loved the recipe; the dish was really good but I hate having to scroll for screen after screen to get to it. Some bloggers now offer a link at the beginning to go directly to the directions
Hi Corliss, we are some of those bloggers! At the beginning of each post you’ll see two buttons that say “Jump to Recipe” or “Print Recipe”.
This was the most flavorful, wonderful Shepard’s Pie I’ve ever made. My grandson says it’s his most favorite meal ever, so I make it every time he comes to visit. This recipe is a keeper. It might be a little more hands on for a week night meal but the raves at the dinner table make all the work worth while.
Love your recipes! This is easy and delicious and a family favourite.
Thank you, Heather!
Thankyou for this recipe! I have tried several recipes for shepards pie and this one is the best!! The only change I made was I left out the chopped onion (not a fan) because the soup mix was just enough for flavor. The next time I am invited to a pot luck, I am definitely bringing this dish!
So glad you liked it, Donna!
1st time I made Shepard’s Pie in many years and this was really good we definitely make again
Excellent pie. I substituted using seafood and it came out great.
This was amazing. I did substitute the beef broth for veggie broth as that is what I had on hand but wow my husband and I loved this.
Will for make this again.
So happy you liked this!
I have added this recipe to my monthly rotation. My husband and I love it. Just wondering though, How did you figure the nutritional information? Did you use my fitness pal by chance?
No I don’t, the recipe plugin I have comes with a nutrition calculator. That’s why I say nutritional information is a rough estimate because I’m sure if you plug in the same ingredients in 5 different nutritional calculators you’ll probably get 5 different results. I do believe this one is pretty good though, but just keep that in mind.
My husband and I LOVE this recipe. Because there are only two of us, I halved it and put it in a loaf pan to bake. It was the BEST we’ve ever had!
Looks delicious! I would love to try this. But I don’t have a cast iron skillet 😢
You can make this in any skillet, and if it isn’t oven safe, just transfer it to a casserole dish before putting the mashed potatoes on top.
What size is the cast iron skillet you used for this?
Mine’s 10 1/4 inches in diameter.
What size baking dish would you recommend?
If you were to bake this I’d do it in a 9×13 baking dish.