Simple Skillet Cottage Pie

I love the simplicity of Irish fare – rustic food that is the epitome of hearty and comforting, and prepared with the most basic ingredients.  This Cottage Pie checks all of those boxes, and will be a perfect dish to serve your family on St. Patrick’s Day!

At its heart, Cottage Pie is simply sauteed ground beef and vegetables, topped with fluffy mashed potatoes, and baked until golden brown.  That’s it!  So simple, yet so comforting, which explains why it’s a classic.

You may have heard of Cottage Pie, and assumed it was an actual pie, with a pastry crust, similar to the American classic, Chicken Pot Pie.  However, this traditional Irish dish is prepared as a savory casserole, featuring ground beef and a potato topping. (No pie crust here!)  Fun fact: Essentially the same recipe is called Shepherd’s Pie when ground lamb is used instead of beef! 

In this version, I took a few shortcuts that add great flavor, while saving you time!

Time Saving Tips:

Cottage pie is easy enough to make, but you can simplify your life even further with these shortcuts! 

• Season your beef with onion soup mix – adds the perfect amount of flavor!
• Use a frozen veggie medley – not only are you saving time in chopping, but frozen vegetables are cheaper, and are frozen at peak ripeness – Win-win!
• Buy store-bought mashed potatoes – Homemade mashed potatoes are lovely, but really, who has the time??

Check out the recipe below!

Simple Skillet Cottage Pie

Recipe by Kathy DickenCourse: BeefCuisine: IrishDifficulty: Easy

Servings

6

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

48

minutes

Total time

58

minutes

An Irish classic, this rustic Cottage Pie is a complete meal all in one pan! Simply saute ground beef and vegetables, top with fluffy mashed potatoes, and bake until golden brown!

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 1/4 pound ground beef

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

• 1 large onion – finely diced

• 1 clove garlic – minced

• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

• 2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

• 1 package dry onion soup mix (1.9 oz. – such as Lipton’s)

• 1 cup beef broth (low sodium)

• 2 cups (10 oz.) frozen veggies ( medley of peas, carrots, green beans and corn)

• 1 (24 oz.) package store-bought Mashed Potatoes (such as Bob Evans)

Directions

• Preheat the oven 350 F degrees.
• Prepare the meat mixture: Heat the oil in a large cast iron skillet (or large oven safe skillet) over Medium heat. Add the ground beef to the skillet, season it with the salt and pepper and cook it for about 5 minutes or until it’s no longer pink, breaking it up as you go along.
• Add the onion and garlic and cook for 3 more minutes until the onion softens and becomes translucent. Add the pepper flakes, Worcestershire sauce, onion soup mix, beef broth and stir. Stir in the frozen veggies and cook for a couple more minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Meanwhile, prepare mashed potatoes per package instructions. Then, spread the potatoes over the meat mixture and smooth with a spoon. Take a fork and rough up the top a bit. Bake for 40 minutes until golden brown on top.
• Garnish with chopped parsley and pepper and serve warm.