Shepherd's Pie: Mutton and Potato Pie
Copyright: Traditional Recipes

Shepherd's Pie: Mutton and Potato Pie

Published: - Last updated:
Author: Piotr Półtorak
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What traditional Shepherd's Pie was like

Older shepherd's pie was much simpler than many versions made today. It was a practical dish of cooked meat covered with mashed potatoes and baked until hot and browned. Mutton was commonly used, although older recipes did not always make the strict distinction between shepherd's pie and cottage pie that is familiar today.

The dish belongs to an older British tradition of turning leftover cooked meat into another meal. The meat was chopped or minced, mixed with some gravy or cooking liquid and seasoned simply before being covered with mashed potatoes. A recipe published by W. B. Tegetmeier in 1876, for example, calls for scraps of cold meat, seasoning, fine herbs, a little water and mashed potatoes. It contains no carrots, peas, tomato paste or Worcestershire sauce.

A dish made from leftover roast

This kind of pie made good use of meat left from a roast. The cooked meat could be chopped into small pieces and mixed with gravy before being placed in a pie dish. The potatoes went over the top and were baked until the surface was browned.

Earlier recipes for related dishes show that the terminology was not always consistent. Maria Rundell's A New System of Domestic Cookery, published in 1806, gives a dish called Sanders made from minced beef or mutton, onion and gravy, covered with mashed potato and baked. The name shepherd's pie became established later in the nineteenth century.

The traditional filling

There is no need for a long list of vegetables or a heavily seasoned sauce. Use cooked mutton, a little onion, gravy or stock, salt, pepper and perhaps a few fine herbs. The filling should be moist but not swimming in liquid.

The potato topping

Boil the potatoes until tender, drain them well and mash them with butter and a little milk. Spread the potatoes generously over the meat and roughen the surface with a fork. Those ridges brown nicely in the oven.

Baking the pie

The assembled pie is baked until thoroughly hot and the potato crust has taken on a good golden colour. It is best served straight from the oven as a simple, filling main meal.

Expert tips:

Use leftover roast mutton

This recipe is particularly good when made with leftover roast mutton. Chop the meat by hand rather than turning it into a completely smooth mince.

Keep the gravy simple

You do not need tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce or a long list of vegetables for this old-fashioned version. Good gravy from the roast gives the filling most of its flavour.

Do not make the filling watery

Add only enough gravy to moisten the meat. Too much liquid will make the potato topping sink and leave the bottom of the dish watery.

Make a rough potato crust

Run a fork across the mashed potatoes before baking. The raised ridges brown better than a completely smooth surface.

Use dripping when available

A little mutton dripping gives the filling a more old-fashioned flavour. Butter is an easy alternative.

Storage:

How to store

Cool leftover shepherd's pie, cover it and refrigerate it promptly.

Shelf life

Eat refrigerated leftovers within 3 days.

Freezing instructions

The assembled pie can be frozen before baking. Cool the filling and potatoes completely, cover tightly and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before baking.

Recipe information:

timer

Preparation

0.33 hours
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Total

1.16 hours
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Yield

4 to 6 servings
4.3 (3)
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Mutton Filling

Potato Topping

Substitutions for ingredients:

  • Cooked mutton - Cooked lamb can be used when mutton is unavailable. This gives a milder modern version while keeping the basic character of the dish.
  • Mutton gravy - Use beef gravy or a simple meat stock thickened lightly with flour.
  • Mutton dripping - Butter can be used for cooking the onion and moistening the filling.
  • Whole milk - Use a little of the potato cooking water if you want a simpler dairy-free mash.

Prepare the potatoes

1. Boil the potatoes

Peel the potatoes and cut them into evenly sized pieces. Put them into a saucepan of cold salted water and bring to a boil. Cook for about 0.25 hours, or until completely tender.

2. Make the mash

Drain the potatoes thoroughly and leave them in the hot pan for a short while so excess moisture can escape. Mash with the butter and milk. Season with salt and black pepper and set aside.

Prepare the mutton

1. Chop the cooked meat

Remove any large pieces of fat or gristle from the cooked mutton. Chop the meat finely with a knife. It does not need to be as fine as modern minced meat.

2. Cook the onion

Melt the butter or dripping in a deep pan over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and cook for about 0.08 hours, until softened but not deeply browned.

3. Make the filling

Add the chopped mutton, gravy and herbs. Stir everything together and season with salt and pepper. If the mixture looks dry, add a little water or stock. It should be moist but not runny.

4. Warm the meat

Cook the mixture gently for about 0.17 hours, stirring occasionally. Do not boil it hard or the meat may become dry.

Assemble and bake

1. Fill the dish

Transfer the mutton mixture to a deep ovenproof baking dish and spread it into an even layer.

2. Cover with potatoes

Spoon the mashed potatoes over the meat and spread them right to the edges. Use a fork to make rough ridges across the surface.

3. Bake until browned

Bake in a preheated oven at 190°C for about 0.42 hours, until the filling is thoroughly hot and the potato topping is golden brown. Let it stand for about 0.08 hours before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ):

What meat was traditionally used in Shepherd's Pie?

Mutton was an important traditional choice, but older recipes were not as strict about the type of meat as modern definitions are. Nineteenth-century recipes could call for cold cooked meat of different kinds.

Was traditional Shepherd's Pie made with minced meat?

Not always. Older recipes often used leftover cooked meat chopped into small pieces. Some recipes used minced meat, while others specifically called for scraps of cold roast meat.

Did traditional Shepherd's Pie contain peas and carrots?

They are common in modern versions, but they are not essential to the older form. A 1876 recipe for Shepherd's Pie uses leftover meat, herbs, a little liquid and mashed potatoes without peas or carrots.

Did traditional Shepherd's Pie contain Worcestershire sauce?

No. Worcestershire sauce is a later addition and should not be treated as an essential ingredient in a historical version of the dish.

Did traditional Shepherd's Pie contain tomato paste?

No. Tomato paste is common in modern recipes but is not part of the simple nineteenth-century versions of the dish.

What is the difference between Shepherd's Pie and Cottage Pie?

The modern British distinction is that Shepherd's Pie uses lamb or mutton and Cottage Pie uses beef. Historically, however, the names were used less consistently and the distinction was not always strict.

Was Shepherd's Pie originally made from leftover roast meat?

Using leftover cooked meat is strongly supported by nineteenth-century recipes and fits the practical character of the dish. It is safer to describe this as an important traditional method rather than claim that it was the single origin of the dish.

When does the name Shepherd's Pie first appear?

The name appears in nineteenth-century sources. A recipe published in Edinburgh in 1849 is among the early printed examples, although related meat-and-potato pies were already being described under other names decades earlier.