Make This Easy Shepherd's Pie For a Comforting One-Dish Supper (2024)

FAQs

What was the shepherd's pie created by the housewives trying to do? ›

Shepherd's Pie is believed to have been invented in the early 1800s. During this time, housewives were struggling to find innovative ways to recycle the leftovers that their husbands and kids had turned up their noses at. Back then, the struggle was real just as it is today.

The dish originates from the British Isles, but some might argue that it is an Irish dish by origin. The name "Shepherd's Pie" was first recorded in an 1877 cookbook. In this same cookbook, it was noted that the dish was of Scottish origin. During the period between the 18th and 19th centuries, money was very tight.

Wrap cooled pie in a layer of plastic wrap, followed by a layer of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Label with contents and date; place in freezer. For best quality, serve within 2-3 months; however, shepherd's pie will remain safe indefinitely, stored at 0° F. When ready to eat, thaw for about 24-hours in the refrigerator.

It's called cottage pie in the U.K. because they use beef and in Ireland since the shepherds tend sheep, it's shepherd's pie. No doubt, the English put out an excellent cottage pie, but in Ireland it used to be a delicacy since the Irish couldn't afford beef they repurposed any unused veggies and meat.

According to the Oxford Companion to Food, once upon a time, Scotland made its shepherd's pies with pastry instead of mashed potatoes. Indian cooks once considered shepherd's pie to be a perfect dish for tiffin (a word used to mean a light snack in British India).

Simply put, after making a weekend roast, unused meat was repurposed into a pie using affordable potatoes as a crust. This frugal, albeit clever, meal suggests the name “cottage pie” referred to the consumers of the dish—poor Irish peasants (remember, they lived in cottages).

Store shepherd's pie in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days. Reheat in the oven or microwave until warmed through.

In the fridge Cook up to point 11 in the recipe below and you can keep this recipe in the fridge for 2 days. Then bake as normal. How to freeze this Shepherd's Pie Once your pie is assembled (point 11 in the recipe below) you can chill and then freeze for up to one month.

We recommend that you defrost our ready meals in the fridge overnight or use the 'defrost' setting on your microwave. Microwave reheating: Pierce the film with a fork before reheating your ready meal in the microwave.

Why is my shepherd's pie runny? Generally, this is caused by using too much stock.

Why does my potato sink in shepherds pie? ›

How do you keep potatoes from sinking in shepherd's pie? Let the beef layer cool before you top it with the mashed potatoes. This is the number one way to keep your potatoes from sinking. Another tip is to not make your potatoes too runny because firmer mashed potatoes stay more level while baking.

Shepherd's pie, cottage pie, or in its French version hachis Parmentier, is a savoury dish of cooked minced meat topped with mashed potato and baked, also called Sanders or Saunders.

Most workers ate their meat, potatoes and corn separately but workers of mainly Asian origins, combined their rations to create shepherd's pie, a more communal dish. The French-Canadian railway workers liked this new concoction, adopted the dish, and called it “pâté chinois”, which loosely translates to Chinese pie.

Scott Dunlop is a media, technology and entertainment entrepreneur based in Orange County, California. Dunlop is series Creator and Executive Producer of the series for NBC-Universal/Bravo's "The Real Housewives" franchise.

While Australia certainly claimed ownership of this gastronomic alchemy of meat, gravy and pastry, meat pies have roots to ancient Greece and Rome. There's something to be said about the way our country embraces the meat pie. It's not just a food; it's part of the culture and you can't have one without the other.

From Egypt to Rome via Greece. The Ancient Egyptians were the first to invent a dish close to what we know as a pie today. They had a honey filling covered in a crusty cake made from oats, wheat, rye or barley. A recipe for chicken pie was also discovered on a tablet carved prior to 2000 BC.