Cottage Pie
Savory ground beef and vegetables in a rich gravy, topped with a golden, buttery mashed potato crust. Cold-weather comfort at its most straightforward.
Ingredients
- 2 lbground beef(80/20 preferred)
- 1 largeonion(finely diced)
- 2carrots(peeled and finely diced)
- 2celery stalks(finely diced)
- 3 clovesgarlic(minced)
- 2 tbsptomato paste
- 1 tbspWorcestershire sauce
- 2 tbspall-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cupsbeef stock
- 1 cupfrozen peas
- 1 tspfresh thyme leaves(or 0.5 tsp dried)
- 1 tspsalt(plus more to taste)
- ½ tspblack pepper
- 2 lbrusset potatoes(peeled and cut into chunks)
- 4 tbspunsalted butter
- ½ cupwhole milk(warmed)
- ½ cupgrated cheddar(optional, for topping)
Method
- 01
Preheat the oven to 400 °F (200 °C).
- 02
Place the 2 lb russet potatoes in a large pot, cover with cold salted water, and bring to a boil. Cook for 15–18 minutes until completely tender when pierced with a knife.
- 03
Drain the potatoes thoroughly, then mash with the 4 tbsp unsalted butter and ½ cup warmed whole milk until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, cover, and set aside.
- 04
While the potatoes cook, heat a large oven-safe skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the 2 lb ground beef and cook, breaking it up, for 6–8 minutes until browned. Drain off excess fat, leaving about 1 tbsp in the pan.
- 05
Reduce heat to medium. Add the 1 large onion, 2 carrots, and 2 celery stalks to the beef and cook for 5–6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened.
- 06
Add the 3 cloves garlic and 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
- 07
Stir in the 2 tbsp tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes, letting it caramelize slightly against the bottom of the pan.
- 08
Sprinkle the 2 tbsp all-purpose flour over the meat mixture and stir well to coat everything evenly.
- 09
Pour in the 1 ½ cups beef stock and add the 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes until the gravy thickens.
- 10
Stir in the 1 cup frozen peas, then season the filling with the 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper. Taste and adjust.
- 11
Spoon the mashed potato over the filling in an even layer, starting from the edges and working inward to seal the filling. Use a fork to rough up the surface — the ridges will brown and crisp in the oven.
- 12
Scatter the ½ cup grated cheddar over the top if using.
- 13
Bake for 25–30 minutes until the potato crust is golden and the filling is bubbling at the edges. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Adapted from public domain & community sources