I’ve perfected my cottage pie recipe by stirring one key ingredient into the mince filling – it makes for a richer cottage pie filling and provides a fantastic depth of flavour.
I by no means make cottage pie with out including 1 easy ingredient that makes it tastier (Picture: Angela Patrone)
To not be confused with shepherd’s pie, cottage pie is a meat and potato dish that is baked in a single oven dish, that includes a wealthy beef mince and vegetable sauce beneath a layer of mashed potatoes, cooked till piping sizzling and effervescent. This meal is not simply tasty – a lot of the components wanted to make cottage pie sometimes discover their method into my weekly store. It is merely a type of dependable midweek suppers that ensures everybody will really feel pleasantly full.
Worcestershire sauce stands as one of many important components in cottage pie recipes, alongside the maybe much less apparent gravy granules. Gravy granules not solely help with thickening but additionally rework the mince filling right into a splendidly wealthy gravy. Do you have to wrestle to supply high quality beef gravy granules (M&S beef gravy is my private favorite), you possibly can alternatively combine flour into the meat earlier than introducing the inventory. It will assist obtain the specified thickness, although you will sacrifice that further depth of flavour.
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I then add within the gravy granules earlier than pouring within the chopped tomatoes (Picture: Angela Patrone)
A lot of the time, I am going to current cottage pie by itself, however after I do put together an accompaniment, it tends to be roasted tenderstem broccoli or some sautéed inexperienced beans.
Components
For the filling
- Two tablespoons of olive oil
- Two carrots, finely chopped
- Two celery stalks, finely chopped
- One giant onion, finely chopped
- 500g of beef mince
- 400g of chopped tomatoes
- 450ml of beef inventory
- Two teaspoons of Worchestershire sauce
- Two tablespoons of beef gravy granules
For the mash
In a big saucepan, start by warming the oil, introducing the onion and frying it for 5 minutes, stirring regularly, till softened.
Then incorporate the carrots and celery into the pan with the lid positioned on high, permitting them to cook dinner and soften for roughly quarter-hour.
Subsequent, add the meat mince to the pan and fry off the meat till browned throughout, breaking apart any lumps with the again of a spoon because it cooks.
Stir within the gravy granules earlier than pouring within the chopped tomatoes, inventory and Worcestershire sauce.
Deliver the combination to the boil, then lowered the warmth to low and left it to simmer for roughly 45 minutes, stirring often all through.
The meat filling wants 45 minutes to cook dinner (Picture: Angela Patrone)
After assembling the cottage pie I bake it within the oven for 20 to half-hour (Picture: Angela Patrone)
Bake till the floor turns a wealthy golden-brown (Picture: Angela Patrone)
For the mash, boil the potatoes till tender, drain totally and go away to steam for a couple of minutes. Add the milk and butter, then mash till completely clean, seasoning generously with salt and pepper earlier than masking with a lid to retain the warmth.
Because the meat sauce nears the tip of its cooking time, preheat a fan oven to 180°C.
To assemble the cottage pie, pour the meat combination into a big ovenproof dish and unfold the mashed potato evenly throughout the highest. Clean the floor and run a fork throughout it to create ridges, which is able to flip deliciously crispy within the oven.
Bake till the floor turns a wealthy golden-brown, which usually takes between 20 and half-hour. For the ultimate 10 minutes, crank the temperature as much as 200°C to attain an excellent crispier end on high.
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