Traditional British Cottage Pie Recipe
A traditional British cottage pies contain minced beef and root vegetables in a gravy and they are then topped with mashed potatoes before being baked until they are crispy.
Servings 2 Servings
Calories 1087kcal
Ingredients
- 1 Small Onion 75g
- 1 Small Carrot 75g
- 1 Stick Celery 50g
- 1 tablespoon Cooking Oil
- 300 g Minced Beef 10oz
- 250 ml Beer 1 Cup (I use Newcastle Brown Ale)
- 1 tablespoon Tomato Puree
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
- 200 g Tin of Tomatoes 7oz
- ¼ teaspoon Dark Brown Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Dried Thyme
- ½ teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 OXO Beef Stock Cube *See note in frequently asked questions*
- 400 g Floury Potatoes 3 Cups
- 75 ml Milk ⅓ Cup
- 75 g Butter 5 tablespoon
Instructions
- Cut the carrot and celery into a 3-4mm (just under ¼") dice.
- Peel the onion and cut it to the same size as the carrots and celery.
- Heat the oil in a 17-18cm (7") saucepan and fry the onion, celery and carrot over a medium heat for 5-10 minutes to soften.
- Turn the heat up to high and add the minced beef, and cook until brown all over.
- Pour in the beer and allow it to reduce by 75%; this will take around 10 minutes.
- Add the Worcestershire sauce and the tomato puree and stir for 1 minute.
- Pour in the tinned tomatoes and add the sugar, thyme, pepper and crush the stock cube into the pot and stir until the stock cube is completely dissolved.
- Reduce the heat to low, add a lid and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Peel the potatoes and cut them into 35mm cubes (1½"). Then boil them in a 20cm (8") saucepan generously salted (1 teaspoon for every 2 litres of water), boiling water for 20-25 minutes or until they are cooked.
- When the beef has had its cooking time, transfer it to two baking bowls. The bowls that I use hold around 375ml (1½-1⅔ cups) of water, and they are 12.5cm in diameter and 5cm deep (5" by 2").
- Just before the potatoes are ready, heat the milk in a small saucepan 15cm (6"); it does not need to boil it just needs to be hot (50-60°C or around 125°F).
- Drain the potatoes and mash them with the butter, then add enough milk to get the texture that you like. I like to use a potato ricer for mashed potatoes, and I then stir through the butter and finally add the milk.
- Top the beef mixture with the mashed potato. I like to use a piping bag with a star nozzle. But you can spread it with a spoon and then rough it up with a fork.
- Finally, bake them in an oven at 180°C or 350°F for 30-35 minutes or until the potato topping is crisp and the gravy is bubbling.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 1087kcal | Carbohydrates: 67g | Protein: 52g | Fat: 65g | Saturated Fat: 30g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 28g | Trans Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 217mg | Sodium: 1000mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 14g
