Shepherd’s pie is a favorite staple at home for the kids with or without ketchup, depending on taste. Add tomato paste to the mix to add a tangy flavor to avoid needing ketchup.
According to the urban legends, pâté chinois or china pie name comes from Canada / Quebec. It was due to the fact that during the construction of the railroads in the early 19th century, a lot of workers of Asian origin were fed with a mixture of potatoes, beef and corn. The recipe below is an adaptation of the dish to our taste!
I like to make shepherd’s pie with a mix of beef and lamb. Lamb is a bit more gamey and gives the dish more flavor than beef alone. The grated carrots add a bit of sweetness to balance out the meat.
For a rich and salty taste, add parmesan cheese in the mix and on top of the potato puree before cooking to caramelize the top nicely in the oven!
Ingredients
Potato puree
- 3 lb. of potato, peeled and quartered
- 1/2 cup of milk
- 3 tbsp. of butter
- 2 tbsp. of parmesan cheese
- Salt and Pepper
Meat mixture
- 1/2 cup grated carrot
- 1 medium onion, grated
- 2 lb. ground beef
- 1 lb. ground lamb
- 2 tbsp. tomato paste
- 1/2 cup of beef stock
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- Salt and Pepper
- 1 lb. of frozen or canned corn kernels
- Paprika and parmesan to garnish
Instructions
- For the potato puree, Heat up a large pot of water that covers your potatoes with the peeled and cut potatoes to a boil. Cook for 9 minutes.
- Remove from heat, drain in a colander.
- Put the potatoes back in the pan and cover for 3-4 minutes to steam the potatoes. This will remove the additional moisture.
- Add milk, butter, parmesan and nutmeg to the mix. You should have a creamy potato mash at the end.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste
- For the meat mixture, cook in a large pan the onion in the olive oil until softened on medium heat (3-4 minutes)
- Add the meat and cook until browned.
- Add the carrots and tomato paste and cook for another 2 minutes
- Add the broth and let the liquid evaporate on a low simmer.
- Take an oven baking dish and add an even layer of the meat mixture.
- Follow with a layer of corn.
- Finish with the potato puree in an even layer. You can use an icing spatula for best results!
- Do strokes with a fork which will create texture and will grill the bits in the oven.
- Sprinkle paprika and parmesan cheese on the top and put in the oven for 30 minutes at 375F
- Turn the oven to broil for an additional 10 minutes to grill the top.
Notes
Kids usually like this dish with ketchup!
Nutrition Information
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
