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A photo of potato and sweet potato shepherds pie served in a pie dish.

Shepherd's pie with potato and sweet potato mash

Shepherd's pie with a bit of a twist on the mash. 

Course Comfort Food, Main Course
Cuisine England
Keyword potato and sweet potato mash, shepherd's pie recipe, sweet potato shepherd's pie
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Servings 6 people
Calories 538 kcal
Author Nicolas

Ingredients

Base filling

  • 500 g of lamb mince
  • 50 g of breadcrumbs
  • 2 small carrots or 1 large washed and finely diced
  • 1 onion finely diced
  • 1 stick of celery finely diced
  • 2 cloves of garlic chopped fine
  • 1 tablespoon of tomato puree
  • 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
  • A few sprigs of rosemary chopped fine
  • A few sprigs of thyme
  • A heaped tablespoon of cornflour
  • 75 ml of red wine
  • 2 cups of beef stock
  • Salt and pepper for seasoning

Potato and sweet potato mash

  • 1 kg of potatoes peeled
  • 500 g of sweet potatoes peeled
  • 50 g of butter
  • 150 mls of milk
  • A pinch of nutmeg
  • Salt and pepper for seasoning

Instructions

Lamb filling

  1. Use you clean hands to mix the lamb mince, breadcrumbs and a pinch of salt and pepper together in a bowl.
  2. Pre-heat a pot or a large pan, get it nice and hot so you can brown the meat nicely. Add a glug of olive oil then add your lamb mince. Use your spoon to break the mince up so you don't end up with meatballs. Once the mince is browned off, transfer it to a bowl.
  3. Turn the heat down to about medium heat, then add your onion, celery and carrots then sweat off in the pot/pan for about 3-4 minutes. Next, add in you garlic, thyme and rosemary and keep frying for another 1-2 minutes.
  4. Put your lamb mince back into the pot, then add the cornflour and stir through.
  5. Add your red wine, beef stock, Worcestershire sauce and tomato puree. Stir through, bring to the boil and then turn the heat down to a gentle simmer. Leave to simmer for about 20-25 minutes stirring occasionally so that the mixture doesn't stick to the bottom. Finally, season to taste with salt and pepper, then set aside.

Potato and sweet potato mash

  1. Get a pot of salted water, add your diced potato, then bring to the boil. Once the potato is slightly cooked, add your sweet potato. Once the potato and sweet potato are both cooked through, drain and then add back in the pot on low heat.
  2. Add your butter, nutmeg, milk, a generous pinch of salt and a generous pinch of pepper. Use a potato masher to mash until smooth, then turn the heat off and set aside.

Assembly

  1. Pre-heat your oven to 190 degrees Celsius.
  2. Fill a pie dish with the mince filling (make sure you leave some space for the mash). You can then either spoon the mash potato mixture over the top and smoothen it out, then perhaps put some fork marks in the potato to give a nice appearance once browned. Or, you can do what I did and pipe the mash potato on top using a star nozzle.
  3. Finally, put the pie in the oven for about 30 minutes to brown on top. Afterwards, you can finish it under a hot grill for a minute or two if you wish.

Recipe Notes

  • Remember, if you don't have a piping bag, no big deal. Spoon the mash on top and use the forks to leave marks in the mash. That will also make the dish look presentable. 
Nutrition Facts
Shepherd's pie with potato and sweet potato mash
Amount Per Serving
Calories 538 Calories from Fat 180
% Daily Value*
Fat 20g31%
Saturated Fat 9.4g59%
Cholesterol 20mg7%
Sodium 470mg20%
Potassium 1563mg45%
Carbohydrates 63.6g21%
Fiber 9.2g38%
Sugar 6.9g8%
Protein 25.4g51%
Calcium 90mg9%
Iron 3.2mg18%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.