Vegetable Recipes – Shepherd’s Pie
The recipe was born in 18th century England and varied significantly from what it is today. The original pie was a layered dish with ground meat at the base, next vegetable topping, followed with a creamy layer of mashed potatoes. The dish was baked till a golden brown crust was formed.
The shepherd’s pie today has 2 variants, the traditional lamb meat and secondly the use of ground beef which come enclosed in a pastry crust.
Other add ons include tomatoes at the base for more gravy. Some US recipes have a layer of corn or baked beans. Similarly, there is a wide range of spice and herbs to pick from.
Ingredients:
Vegetables
2 tbsp – Olive oil
3 cups – Mixed vegetables (onion, carrot, broccoli, mushrooms)
2 No – Garlic cloves chopped
3 tbsp – Butter
1 cup – Vegetable stock
1 tbsp – Parsley/thyme finely chopped
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Sauce
2 tbsp – Butter
1 tbsp – Olive oil
1 No – Onion finely chopped
1/2 cup – Red wine
3 No – Garlic cloves chopped
1 tbsp – Worcestershire sauce
3 cup – Stock
3 tbsp – Flour
1 No – Bay leaf
1 tsp – Tabasco
1 tsp – Tarrago dried
2 tbsp – Parsley finely chopped
1 tsp – Thyme dried
1/2 tsp – Salt
Potato
4 No – Potatoes medium chopped
3 tbsp – Butter
1/2 cup – Fresh cream
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Method:
Vegetables
Bring a pot of water to a boil.
Add salt and parboil the vegetables.
Heat butter and oil in a large casserole dish and add the onions and carrots. Cook for 3-4 mins.
Add the remaining vegetables, herb and garlic and stock (if required add some water).
Cook till the vegetables go tender and then set aside.
Sauce
Heat butter and oil in a pan add onions, thyme bay leaf and salt.
Cook over low heat till onions brown. till soft.
Add the garlic and wine and reduce by half.
Add flour. Cook for 2 mins.
Add the stock and and simmer for approx. 15-20 mins.
Add parsley and check seasoning.
Add this to the vegetables.
Potatoes
Boil and mash the potatoes until soft.
Then add the remaining ingredients and mix well.
Fill this in a pastry bag with a large nozzle.
Assemble
Preheat the oven and ladle the casserole dish with vegetables.
Smoothen and then pipe (spread with a spatual) the potatoes like a blanket over the surface.
Bake until the potatoes are brown and sauce bubbles to the surface.
Serve hot with warm cheese french bread.