Eps 1: You, Me And Cottage Pie: The Truth

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Dianne Douglas

Dianne Douglas

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Long story short, there is this Cottage Pie recipe that uses very thinly sliced potatoes as a filling rather than a mashed version...and although I am arguably the biggest mashed potato fan in the world, I do like a recipe that calls for Cottage Pie. Cottage Pie is fairly easy and simple to make, but takes some time, so is perfect for a weekend lunch, or Sunday dinner, with leftovers to enjoy for days afterwards.
True Cottage Pie, as this is called when made with beef rather than lamb, has potatoes without any milk at the top. The direct difference between a Shepherds Pie and a Cottage Pie is that the former is made with lamb, whereas the latter is made with beef and/or other ground meat. That is, if forced, I would hold the view that the most traditional Irish meal is a lamb-based dish known as a shepherds pie, whereas the British version is a beef-based cottage pie.
While many of us do the Cottage Pie with minced beef and call it shepherds pie, a truly classic shepherds pie is made with minced lamb, while a Cottage Pie is made with minced beef or other type of ground meat. Traditionally in Britain, a cottage pie means the beef layer is covered in slices of potatoes while Shepherds Pie means the Lamb layer is covered with the stuffing. A traditional Cottage Pie is made of a rich meaty stuffing as a base layer, with vegetables on top , and the bottom being crushed potatoes.
A common casserole dish originating from England, the Shepherds Pie is that one-pot dish, which includes a generously-seasoned beef, vegetables, and a nice, light potato mash topping. Both cottage pie and shepherds pie are British dishes in which the beef and vegetables are cooked in a flavorful gravy, then topped with mashed potatoes. Generally speaking, a meat pie with mash potatoes and a mix of vegetables is still a meat pie, but variations confuse the matter.
Since the original meat pie with a potato topping was first named in the late 1790s, around the time potatoes were introduced in Ireland, and workers lived in cottages, the lines are blurred. In more recent times, distinctions have been blurred somewhat, whereby the huts and the herders merely distinguished if the meat was beef or lamb, without any distinction as to what kind of potatoes were used on top. Since the Irish, back then, generally could not afford beef, I suspect that early forms of the Cottage Pie contained meat from mutton, as meat was a cheaper, flavorier substitute for either beef or lamb.
In 1589, Sir Walter Raleigh introduced potatoes to the Emerald Isle, and as time went on, potatoes gained acceptance in Ireland as an edible, cheap food, especially for the poor. At the time Shepherds Pie was invented, given the socio-political backdrop in Britain and Ireland, it seems likely that Irish people were among, if not predominantly, the people that would have sought to make such use of their surpluses in this inventive manner. Once upon a time, a shepherds pie was probably simply a casserole of leftovers--the yesterdays potato casserole, peas, carrots, and roasted meat, rearranged in a delicious baked mixture.
Shepherds Pie is a rich dish originating from Britain and the Emerald Isle, made of shredded meat cooked in gravy, onions, carrots, celery, and a crust made from potato mashed up .
Underneath, is a meaty, meaty gravy made from either ground lamb or ground beef , or some combination of both, which is packed with peas, carrots, and layer upon layer of flavour. Lean ground beef is browned with vegetables such as peas, carrots, onions, and spices, to accentuate all of the flavors.
If using ground turkey or chicken, we like to add additional seasoning, or even beef bouillon, to give it some extra flavour. If you are watching red meat consumption, you could substitute ground turkey, ground chicken, or even ground pork instead of lamb or beef.
If you cannot get hold of some good quality beef gravy granules , you can mix some flour in with the beef before adding stock. After that, add in your beef stock, some quality beef gravy granules, Worcestershire sauce, tomatoes puree, thyme, rosemary, bay leaves, salt and pepper to taste, and let it cook over low-low heat for a good 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cook onions for an additional 5-7 minutes, stirring regularly to break up meat.
While the meat mixture is cooking, you are going to put the peeled potatoes in a pan with the salted water and bring it to the boil. Bake for 25 minutes, until that mixture starts bubbling, and 3 Russet potatoes are turning browned in spots. Microwave 3 Russet potatoes until they are soft all over, peel and then put into bowl with butter, half-and-half, and salt.
Place the baking dish into the oven and roast for about 30 minutes, until the baking tray is cooked through and the tops of the mashed potatoes begin to turn golden. The stuffing and the mashed potatoes are prepared separately, so that baking just heats the dish and browned the top before serving.
Once the potatoes are strained, add a bit of the melted butter, milk, and some white pepper, and mix well until smooth and creamy. Place the sieve on top of the bowl, and press the potatoes through the sieve using a spatula or the base of a measuring cup.
My wife hates both these vegetables, so when I am making cottage pie at home, I typically eliminate frozen peas and throw in mushrooms, sometimes cooked chopped spinach or broccoli rabe into the mix.