Shepherds pie with instant mashed potatoes with ground beef and vegetables. Top with a bit of cheese for added deliciousness. A complete meal cooked together in no time.
Ok so I am all about simple dinner ideas, that is where this Shepherd’s pie with instant potatoes recipe came about. Yes you can make it entirely homemade but that is just not me. I mainly made it with leftover mashed potatoes which lead me to this other alternative method. Let me show you how. (affiliate links present)
I did make our Shepherd’s pie with ground beef from scratch once, from then on it was with leftovers after the holidays. Semi homemade was much more my style. I didn’t want to wait until after Easter, Thanksgiving or Christmas though so what would work between those holidays? Bagged taters of course.
There are several brands out there you can buy at the grocery store. I buy mine in bulk online so I always have a few on hand, you can see what they look like here. There is plain, a butter variety and I like the garlic style a lot too. You can leave as is or fold in some shredded cheddar cheese for OH MY…..
Can you make this with a batch of freshly made mashed taters? Of course. If you were going to go thru all that though, just follow our Instant Pot Shepherd’s pie instructions start to finish. This is when you don’t want to mash at all. Using packaged taters means you just need milk or water to make.
Ingredient Notes
A mix of small pieces of frozen vegetables with carrots, peas and green beans in the bag works really well because they cook all at the same rate. If you do use fresh produce just note that it may get softer than the other, not counting carrots which remain decently firm no matter what form they start in.
Your protein could be ground beef, lamb, ground venison or spicy sausage if you wanted some heat in the mix. In any of these cases you need to precook it first with some olive oil, and I would drain the grease if there is a lot or it will make your insides watery.
To make the gravy inside you can either use some tomato paste or tomato soup works too. This will make the insides thicker and with a richer flavor than without it. this will be thinned with beef broth and a splash of worcestershire sauce to give it a wow flavor.
Adding cheese is of course optional, for the top of your potatoes, or folding a bit inside for the filling but a must for our family.
And then you are going to prepare 1 pkg instant mashed potatoes according to the directions on the back. You typically only need water to make these.
Variations
There are lots of choices you can make with the meat you choose. Shepherds Pie with Ground Turkey would be the healthiest of all but a bit more fat = more flavor if you ask me. I like half spicy ground sausage from Jimmy Dean personally for a bit of heat.
If you wanted to thicken the meat mixture you could whisk 2 tbs cornstarch and your broth together and add that. I use a lot of the same ingredients to make shepherds pie Crockpot style too. Love low and slow? Try that one too!
Tips for Success
You could add any sort of vegetables you want. Only one I would suggest that you didn’t use would be broccoli as it cooks much faster than others and will get too soft. I like using diced frozen mixed vegetables because they’re the same size and already prepped.
As for the topping there are tons of ways to mash your own taters, this is just the easiest way of all. You could opt to add a thick layer of cauliflower mash for lower carbs too if you would rather.
You will want to set in on the middle rack to brown the top. If you wanted to add shredded cheese to the top just keep an eye on it so it melts but doesn’t get too brown and begin to burn.
Shepherd’s Pie with Instant Potatoes Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cups frozen vegetables
- 1 small onion, diced, optional
- 1/2 tsp salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 tbsp minced garlic
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1/2 cup cheese, optional, for potatoes
- 1 pkg instant mashed potatoes
Instructions
- Heat a skillet over medium heat and once hot, add the ground beef. Cook until browned and no pink remains, about 5-6 minutes. Remove beef to a clean plate, then add the diced onion (optional) and frozen vegetables to the skillet.
- Cook vegetables until softened, then stir in salt, pepper and garlic. Cook 1 minute. Return the beef to the skillet, then add the tomato paste, green peas, Worcestershire sauce and beef broth.
- Bring to a simmer over medium high heat, then reduce heat to medium until liquid is reduced by half. Remove from heat.
- Prepare instant potatoes according to the directions on the package, can fold in shredded cheddar cheese for added yum.
- Set oven to broil. Scoop the potatoes over the top of the beef mixture and smooth down to create an even layer to cover the skillet. Place the in the oven and broil until the top of the potatoes are slightly browned.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Do you serve Shepherd’s Pie with gravy?
That depends on whom you ask. Yes you could pour bottled or onion gravy over the top but it really isn’t necessary. Cottage pie like this already has so much flavor. Some like a dollop of sour cream on top or in with the meat to add a creaminess.
Can you save Shepherds Pie?
Of course, it actually reheats quite nicely if you store it properly. First wait until it is cool and then transfer it into a sealed container. It can save in the fridge for 3-4 days but ideally I would enjoy it again within 24 hours.
How to save leftovers
To save any of your leftover shepherd’s pie recipe just transfer into a sealable container. It doesn’t really matter if the top and bottom get a bit mixed up. Then seal the lid and store in the fridge.
How do you reheat leftover Shepherd’s Pie?
Transfer it into a microwave safe dish and heat 30 seconds at a time. Stirring occasionally throughout the time so it gets hot all the way thru to the center it makes a great lunch for you the next day too. Add some shredded cheese on the last stint so it melts and that is incredible.
So, my husband “hates” Shepherd’s Pie. I made your version, served it to him (without telling him what it was called) and he went back for THIRDS! I made it again tonight and he ate THREE servings again! I finally told him what it was called and he just shook his head and said, “I love it”! (By the way, I love it, too. Sooo delicious! Thanks so much for this recipe.)
OH yeah for the win!!
Trying for first time and /tweeting/ some. Used vegetable broth and instant potatoes with cheese in it. My British friend said it should be ok😂😂😂Explained the very British way of making Shepard pie with lamb. So, trying . At least something different with ground beef.
Lemme know how it turns out