An easy cottage pie recipe made with minced beef (ground beef) in a thick rich gravy, topped with creamy mashed potato. Bake in the oven until golden and bubbling!
Proper hearty warming comfort food for chilly days! You might also like my simple savoury mince too!
This is a basic (but still very flavourful) cottage pie to serve 4 people, made with simple, frugal ingredients including 500g of minced beef!
It's without a doubt my family's favourite comfort food dinner, along with sausage casserole, slow cooker macaroni cheese, and slow cooker chilli con carne!
Assemble the cottage pie ahead of time, and it becomes a really quick weeknight dinner too!
👩🍳 Love comfort food? Try my chicken and vegetable stew next!
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✔️ Why you'll love this recipe!
Here's why this is the best cottage pie recipe!
- A British comfort food classic.
- Great for cold winter nights.
- Kid friendly meal.
- Old-fashioned recipe with no weird ingredients.
- Freezer-friendly.
- Recipe easily doubled to feed a crowd.
🛒 Ingredient notes
- Minced Beef - 500g of lean minced beef. You could also use leftover roast beef.
- Olive Oil - for frying.
- Onion - one large onion finely chopped.
- Carrot - one carrot, peeled and diced.
- Flour - plain flour is used to thicken the gravy.
- Thyme - use dried thyme or fresh thyme leaves.
- Tomato Puree - adds richness to the gravy.
- Red Wine - leave it out if you prefer, but it does add a depth of flavour to the cottage pie.
- Beef Stock - made with a stock cube or stock pot. Use homemade beef stock if you have it to hand.
- Worcestershire Sauce - adds a delicious savoury flavour to the mince.
- Salt & Pepper - for seasoning.
- Potatoes - white potatoes such as Maris Piper or King Edward varieties are best for mash.
- Butter - use unsalted butter.
- Milk - for creaminess and a smooth textured mashed potato!
🔪 How to make old-fashioned cottage pie for 4 people
The recipe card with ingredient quantities and detailed instructions can be found at the bottom of the post
One: To make the mashed potato, place the peeled and diced potatoes into a large pan of salted water. Bring to the boil on the hob, then reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
Two: Drain the mashed potatoes and return to the pan over a low heat for 1 minute to allow any moisture to evaporate. Mash with a potato masher then add the cubed butter and mash until incorporated. Finally, beat in the milk with a wooden spoon.
Three: For the mince, heat the oil in a shallow casserole or frying pan and cook the onion and carrot until soft. This should take about 4 minutes.
Four: Stir in the flour, tomato puree, and thyme.
Five: Turn up the heat and add the minced beef. Stir with a wooden spoon until brown.
Six: Pour in the wine and allow it to evaporate.
Seven: Add the beef stock and simmer on a low heat for 30 minutes until the sauce has thickened. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce.
Eight: Spoon the minced beef and gravy into a baking dish. Allow it to cool before topping with the mashed potato.
Nine: Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes until golden and bubbling.
💭 Expert tip
- If your beef gravy is still a little runny after 30 minutes of simmering, add a tablespoon of beef gravy granules to quickly thicken it up.
- Use leftover roast beef in place of the minced beef.
- For an extra crispy top, place the pie under the grill for a few minutes before serving.
🍴 What to serve with cottage pie
Here are some vegetable side dishes that go perfectly with cottage pie!
- Air Fryer Broccoli Parmesan
- Roasted Swede
- Honey Roasted Carrots & Parsnips
- Pan-Fried Brussels Sprouts
- Peas
- Sweetcorn
- Cabbage
- Air Fryer Green Beans
- Slow Cooker Red Cabbage
Crusty bread or focaccia is good for mopping up the delicious rich beef gravy!
📖 Variations
- Add peas or sweetcorn to the minced beef.
- Add a frozen vegetable mix into the beef gravy. It's a great way of sneaking extra veggies into kids.
- Garlic and a diced celery stalk will add lots of flavour.
- Sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese or cheddar cheese over the mash before baking.
- Swap Worcestershire sauce for soy sauce, or a tablespoon of brown sauce.
- Make a slow cooker cottage pie in your crockpot.
- Make four individual cottage pies rather than one large one.
- Bulk the mince out with red lentils or oats. You'll need to increase the amount of stock too!
🥡 Storage
Store: The cottage pie can be made up to the point of baking and stored in the fridge for up to 2 days. Cooked leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheat: Leftover cottage pie can be reheated in the microwave or oven (180c) until piping hot.
Freeze: Wrap the cottage pie (baked or unbaked) in two layers of foil and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge before baking or reheating.
❓ Frequently asked questions
Very simply, cottage pie is made with minced beef, and shepherd's pie is made with minced lamb! Traditionally cottage pie was topped with sliced potatoes (recreating roof slates on a cottage) and shepherd's pie was topped with mash. Nowadays, both are usually topped with mashed potatoes.
Cottage pie is made up of two layers;
Beef layer – made with minced beef, and vegetables in a rich thick gravy.
Potato layer – creamy mashed potato spread on top of the beef.
To stop the mash from sinking into the minced beef filling, allow the meat to cool fully before topping with the mashed potato.
😋 More comfort food recipes
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Recipe
Easy Cottage Pie Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
For the mash
- 1 kg White Potatoes peeled and diced into small cubes
- 100 g Butter cubed
- 100 ml Milk
- ½ teaspoon Salt
For the beef layer
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
- 1 Onion peeled and finely chopped
- 1 Carrot peeled and diced
- 1 tablespoon Plain Flour
- 1 tablespoon Tomato Puree
- 1 teaspoon Thyme
- 500 g Minced Beef
- 60 ml Red Wine
- 350 ml Beef Stock
- ¼ teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°c (180 fan/ Gas 6/ 400F)
- To make the mashed potato, place the peeled and diced potato into a large pan of salted water. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.1 kg White Potatoes
- Drain the mashed potatoes and return to the pan over a low heat for 1 minute to allow any moisture to evaporate. Mash with a potato masher then add the cubed butter and mash until incorporated. Finally, beat in the milk and salt with a wooden spoon.100 g Butter, 100 ml Milk, ½ teaspoon Salt
- For the beef layer, heat the oil in a shallow casserole or frying pan and cook the onion and carrot until soft. This should take about 4 minutes.1 tablespoon Olive Oil, 1 Onion, 1 Carrot
- Stir in the flour, tomato puree, and thyme.1 tablespoon Plain Flour, 1 tablespoon Tomato Puree, 1 teaspoon Thyme
- Turn up the heat and add the minced beef. Stir with a wooden spoon until brown.500 g Minced Beef
- Pour in the wine and allow it to evaporate.60 ml Red Wine
- Add the beef stock and simmer on a low heat for 30 minutes until the sauce has thickened. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper.350 ml Beef Stock, ¼ teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce, ½ teaspoon Salt, ¼ teaspoon Pepper
- Spoon the minced beef into a baking dish and allow to cool slightly. Top with the mashed potato.
- Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes until golden and bubbling.
Notes
- If your beef gravy is still a little runny after 30 minutes of simmering, add a tablespoon of beef gravy granules to quickly thicken it up.
- Use leftover roast beef in place of the minced beef.
- For an extra crispy top, place the pie under the grill for a few minutes before serving.
- Add peas or sweetcorn to the minced beef.
- Add a frozen vegetable mix into the beef gravy. It's a great way of sneaking extra veggies into kids.
- Add a clove of garlic and diced celery stalk (not for the purists amongst you!).
- Sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese or cheddar cheese over the mash before baking.
- Swap Worcestershire sauce for soy sauce, or a tablespoon of brown sauce.
- Make a slow cooker cottage pie in your crockpot.
- Make four individual cottage pies rather than one large one.
kushigalu
What a delicious recipe to try. Love the combination of ingredients in this pie. Thanks for sharing
Tayler
I've been craving all the comfort food, and this cottage pie is totally calling my name! Can't wait to have it for dinner tonight!
Stephanie
Comfort food at it's finest! I added some mixed vegetables to it and it was amazing!
Kim
I love this recipe! So warm and filling. It's a great dish to enjoy on a chilly evening.
Anjali
This looks so hearty and delicious, and perfect for the cooler months we have coming up!
Kay
This Cottage Pie Recipe brought back so many childhood memories for me; it was delicious, the perfect comfort food for a winter warmer 🙂