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Donal Skehan
Roast Garlic Shepherd’s Pie | DonalSkehan.com, Classic & delicious weekday dinner.
  • main-meals

Roast Garlic Shepherd’s Pie

December 08

I was never really a big fan of shepherd’s pie growing up, mainly because it was churned out most weeks (sorry mom!) so we became far too used to it, which realistically is a terribly ungrateful complaint, but it’s only in the last few years I have fallen in love with this classic little dish all over again. I make mine with a twist by stirring mashed roast garlic through the potato, to be honest I normally make it with two bulbs of garlic because I’m a bit of a garlic fiend, but if you are pushed for time skip the garlic and just make the mash, it will taste just a good. Another handy tip to remember is that once you have assembled the shepherd’s pie to the point just before you put it in the oven you can actually freeze the pie and cook from frozen if you fancy prepping a few in advance!

 

 

  • serves Serves 4
  • time 90 mins

Method

  1. 1. First things first, get the garlic in the oven! Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6.
  2. 2. Slice the top off the garlic bulb just enough so that each of the cloves is exposed and place on a roasting tray. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with a some sea salt. Place in the oven to roast for 40 minutes or until soft and tender. When the garlic is cooked, remove the roast cloves from their skins and mash with the back of a fork.
  3. 3. While garlic is roasting, add the potato chunks to a pot of cold water, cover, place over a high heat and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the potato is tender when pierced with a fork. When the potatoes are cooked, remove from the heat, drain into a colander, then add back into the pot with the butter and milk. Using a potato masher, mash the potatoes until smooth and creamy. You may want to add a little bit more or less milk and butter, it is up to you! Add in the mashed garlic and season with sea salt and ground black pepper, stirring to combine.
  4. 4. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium frying pan over a medium heat and soften the onion and carrots for 5-6 minutes. Turn up the heat and allow the pan to get hot before you add the minced lamb. Using the a fork break up the meat and allow to brown and cook through for 3-4 minutes. Stir through the tomato purée and Worcestershire sauce until combined and then pour over the beef stock. Bring to a steady simmer, then partially cover and cook for 45 mins.
  5. 5. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. When the lamb is ready, season with sea salt and ground black pepper and transfer to an ovenproof baking dish and top with the roast garlic mash, using a fork to make a nice topping. Give the topping an extra sprinkle of ground black pepper and bake in the oven for 25 mins until the top is starting to brown and the mince is bubbling up around the edges.
  6. 6. Serve straight away for a delicious and comforting supper!

Ingredients

1 garlic bulb

2 tbsp of olive oil

1 tbsp sunflower oil

1 large onion , chopped

2-3 medium carrots , chopped

500g pack minced lamb

2 tbsp tomato purée

2 tsp of Worcestershire sauce

400ml beef stock

800g potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

75g butter

50ml milk

Sea salt and ground black pepper to season

You'll Need

Roasting tray

Pot

Frying pan

Ovenproof baking dish