The Favorite Cottage Pie Recipe
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Indulge in the ultimate comfort food classic with our favorite Cottage Pie recipe. This hearty dish, brimming with flavorful beef and topped with creamy mashed potatoes, is a go-to for satisfying meals. In this guide, we delve into what makes the Cottage Pie Recipe a cherished comfort food, uncovering the secrets to perfecting the beefy goodness.
What Makes Cottage Pie Recipe a Comfort Food Classic?
Cottage Pie has earned its status as a comfort food classic due to its rich and hearty nature. The combination of savory minced beef, vegetables, and a luscious gravy, all crowned with a blanket of creamy mashed potatoes, creates a symphony of flavors and textures. It’s a nostalgic dish that warms the soul and brings a sense of home to every bite.
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The Secret to Perfect Beef in Cottage Pie
At the heart of a fantastic Cottage Pie is perfectly cooked beef. The key lies in selecting high-quality minced beef with the right fat content for flavor and juiciness. A medley of aromatic herbs and spices enhances the beef, creating a savory profile that permeates the entire dish. Cooking the beef until it’s beautifully browned ensures a depth of flavor that elevates the overall experience.
Crafting Creamy Mashed Potatoes
The crowning glory of Cottage Pie is the creamy mashed potatoes that top the savory filling. Achieving the ideal texture involves boiling the potatoes until fork-tender, then mashing them with butter, cream, and seasoning. The result is a cloud-like layer that not only complements the beef but also adds a luxurious touch to each bite.
Baking for Perfection
Once the layers of savory beef and velvety mashed potatoes are assembled, it’s time to bake the Cottage Pie to perfection. The oven transforms the ingredients into a cohesive and bubbling masterpiece. The top layer of mashed potatoes develops a golden crust, while the flavors meld together, creating a harmonious dish that’s ready to be enjoyed.
Cottage Pie Recipe
Ingredients
Cottage Pie Ingredients
- 1 kg mince beef
- 1 brown onion-diced
- 2 garlic – chopped
- 2 tablespoon flour
- 2 bay leaves
- 5 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 1 cup diced carrots
- 4 tablespoon Worchestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoon salt or to taste
- freshly ground black pepper.
Ingredients for mashed potatoes
- 1 kg potatoes
- 125 ml milk
- 25 g butter
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg.
Instructions
How to cook cottage pie.
- Pre heat oven to 180C (fan)
- Heat up frying pan with 2 tablespoon of olive oil.
- Brown minced beef, by batches.
- Transfer browned minced beef to another container.
- Using the same pan, add another 2 tablespoon olive oil
- Saute onion until translucent, about 3 minutes.
- Add chopped garlic.
- Add plain flour.
- Stir to thoroughly cook the flour.
- Add water to the pan
- Keep stirring so that the flour will not stick to the pan.
- Add tomato paste and bay leaves.
- Stir for 2 minutes.
- Add frozen peas and diced carrots.
- Stir again to mix thoroughly.
- Return browned minced beef back to the pan.
- Stir to mix thoroughly
- Add salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Remove from heat.
- Transfer the meat to an ovenproof dish.
- Spread the cooked beef evenly.
- Top with mashed potato
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes.
Mashed potato for topping
- Wash, peel and cut potatoes into chunk
- Fill up pot with water.
- Add cut up potatoes and 2 tablespoon salt into the pot.
- Bring water to boil for 7 minutes.
- Turn off the heat, cover the pot and set aside for at least 10 minutes.
- The potato is ready to be mashed once it is soft.
- Drain off the water.
- Using potato masher, mash the potatoes.
- Add butter and nutmeg.
- Add milk (and cheese -optional)
- salt to taste
- Spread the mash potato on top of the cooked beef layer
Notes
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