Healthy Shepherds Pie Recipe

My homemade shepherds pie recipe is a really popular healthy easy meal. An ideal healthy dinner for kids, you can hide the vegetables in the beef mince mixture

Made with lean healthy mince beef, onions, carrots, topped with mash potatoes and a wee bit of grated half fat mature cheddar for a little extra flavour. If you don’t want to use cheese the shepherds pie is tasty enough without.

Before we start, here’s a few tips about Ingredients.



Ingredient Tips for Shepherds Pie Recipe...

Best meats for making shepherds pie.

Lean, low fat beef is the best for making shepherds pie. It may be a bit more expensive but trust me, you get more meat for your money and very little fat.

You can substitute with mince lamb, which is absolutely delicious but is higher in fat.

Stock - beef stock is best for adding flavour, try to use a low salt version.

Potatoes, red skinned potatoes are the best for making creany mash.

Okay, lets get cooking!...

How to make a healthy shepherds pie recipe...

Serves 6

Ingredients for healthy shepherds pie

  • 1 pound of lean mince beef or lamb
  • 2 medium onions chopped finely
  • 3-4 carrots cut in small chuncks
  • 1 ½ pints of beef stock
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • pinch of salt and pepper

Ingredients for Healthy Mash Potato

  • 6 medium potatoes peeled and chopped small pieces
  • 1/4 pint low fat milk
  • 2 medium onions
  • 1 tbsp low fat spread - optional
  • pinch of salt and pepper



1. Preparing the Potatoes

Boil half a large pot of water while you peel and cut the potatoes.

Cut the potatoes into small chunks about inch in size.

Add to the boiling water, partly cover with a lid.

Cook until just softened. You can prick with a fork to test.

Drain through a sieve over the sink and put the potatoes back into the pot. Leave to cool while you make the mince beef filling.

2 Make the Shepherds Pie Mince Mix

Place the mince beef in a medium sized pot.

Mix and brake the mince up.

Cover and cook for 10 minutes until brown, stir occasionally to brake up any lumps.

Transfer the cooked mince beef into a sieve placed over a large bowl to drain any fat and meat juices.

Cover the mince while you prepare the onions.

Wipe the inside for the pot with kitchen towel to remove any fat

Add 2 tbsp olive oil to the pot and heat on low.

Meanwhile, finely chop the onions.

Add chopped onions to the pot and stir to coat with oil.

Pop the lid. Cook for 5 minutes until the onions start to soften.

Meanwhile cut the carrots into small chunks or you can grate them, watch your fingers!... Oooch!!

Add the carrots to the pot and stir to mix with the onions and oil.

Pop the lid on again and sauté the carrots for a few minutes.

Tip… Sauteing the carrots releases the flavour more.

Add the mince back into the pot.

Mix well with the other ingredients.

Add enough stock to the mince mixture so there is about 1 inch of stock above the meat.

Tip… The extra stock helps cook the vegetables quicker and it will reduce when everthing is fully cooked.

At this stage turn your oven on at 180c

Meanwhile make the mash potatoes...

3 Make the Mash Potato

While the mince is finishing off, you can quickly make the mash.

Add a tblsp of spread to the potatoes - if using, and start by adding half the milk, as you need a firm mash. If its too soft it will sink into the mince mixture instead of sitting on top.

Mash until creamy and thick. if the mash is too dry add just a little more milk.

How to put your shepherds pie recipe together...

Pour the mince mixture into a large casserole dish.

Spread equally across the dish

Starting around the edge of the casserole dish, scoop up a tablespoon of mash at a time and place around the four sides of the dish, close together.

Work your way into the centre of the dis using the same method until all the potato is used. Don't worry if there isn't quite enough to cover the centre. You can always pick up a little from elsewhere and place it into the centre.

Now use a fork to close any gaps. Run the fork across the top to create thin lines. Doing this will brown the top of the lines.

If your adding cheese, now is the time to sprinkle the cheese over evenly across the mash.

Place the casserole dish in the oven and cook until the top turns golden brown.






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