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Home / One Pot Meals

Ultimate Beef Shepherd’s Pie

4.90
/5
55 minutes minutes
66 Comments
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By: The Chunky Chefpublished: 11/05/2017

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

Rich and flavorful beef shepherd’s pie recipe, made easy in one skillet! Ground beef, tender vegetables, and fluffy mashed potatoes… what could be better!

Classic comfort food, made with readily available ground beef, sautéed mushrooms and vegetables, and a rich savory gravy sauce, all topped with fluffy mashed potatoes.  No oven safe skillet?  No worries, I’ve got that covered!

Rich and flavorful ground beef and vegetable gravy is topped with fluffy mashed potatoes and baked, all in ONE pan!  Technically cottage pie (made with beef), this version will be a family favorite dinner recipe! #shepherdspie #groundbeef #beef #cottagepie #dinner #easyrecipe #onepan #onepot #mashedpotatoes

It’s officially comfort food season… complete with chilis, casseroles, stews/soups, and great one pot/skillet meals!  

Here in the Chunky Chef household, we love our one pot meals. There’s something really awesome about a meal that tastes amazing, and there’s not a TON of dishes to wash afterwards.

Overhead photo of shepherd's pie in cast iron skillet

Some of you may be questioning the name here… after all, a shepherd’s pie is not traditionally made with ground beef, but rather made of ground lamb or mutton.

My family is not a fan of the taste of lamb/mutton, so I always make ours with ground beef.  Plus, here in the Midwest, ground beef is much more readily available.  So technically, it’s called a Cottage Pie, but I say you can call it whatever you’d like.

Picture of a big serving spoonful of shepherd's pie

For this recipe, I usually use leftover mashed potatoes, but in the recipe notes section (directly following the recipe below) I’ve detailed other potato options, as everyone has their favorites.

Let’s talk about this fantastic filling!  I kept my filling to onion, carrots and mushrooms, but below are some options for some other add-ins.

  • Add frozen peas
  • Add frozen corn
  • Add some frozen green beans

Closeup of spoonful of beef shepherd's pie

The next time you’re craving something ultra comforting, I hope you give this One Skillet Beef Shepherd’s Pie Recipe a try!!

Looking for other comfort food classics?

  • Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
  • One Pot Pepperoni Pizza Pasta
  • Homestyle Chicken and Biscuits
  • One Pot Chicken and Dirty Rice

HELPFUL TOOLS:

  • Cast Iron Skillet – the most used pan in my kitchen… I love the sear it gives!

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!

One Skillet Beef Shepherd's Pie Recipe

4.90 from 29 votes
Author: The Chunky Chef
Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes minutes
Calories: 507
Servings: 8 - 10 servings
(hover over # to adjust)
Print Rate Pin
Rich and flavorful beef shepherd's pie recipe, made easy in one skillet! Ground beef, tender vegetables, and fluffy mashed potatoes... what could be better!

Ingredients

  • 3 Tbsp olive oil
  • 2 lbs ground beef (I usually use 85/15)
  • 3 Tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1 large yellow onion, diced
  • 2 - 3 carrots, peeled and diced
  • 12 - 16 oz cremini (baby portobello) mushrooms, cleaned and quartered
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 Tbsp kosher salt , divided
  • 3 - 6 Tbsp tomato paste (I normally use around 4)
  • 1/2 - 1 cup beef stock
  • 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper, more or less to taste
  • 3 - 4 cups mashed potatoes
  • 1/3 cup grated/shredded Parmesan cheese
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp butter, cut into small pieces
  • minced fresh parsley, for garnish

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 375 F degrees.  Heat a BIG oven safe skillet over MED heat.  Add oil and ground beef and cook about 4 minutes, or until cooked through, breaking it up into small crumbles as it cooks. Once browned, transfer to a plate.  If needed, drain excess grease before adding the beef to a plate.  
  • Add butter to same skillet. Once melted, add onion, carrots, mushrooms, garlic, dried oregano, and 1/2 the salt.  Cook, stirring occasionally, about 8-10 minutes.  
  • Add in tomato paste, stirring to combine, and cook 5-7 minutes, until tomato paste is a dark, brick red color (this really brings out the tomato flavor).  
  • Return cooked ground beef to the skillet, then stir in beef stock, Worcestershire sauce remaining salt, and black pepper.  Simmer for a few minutes, until mixture is slightly thickened.
  • Top with mashed potatoes (see recipe notes section), and Parmesan cheese.  Use a fork to rough up the top of the potatoes, then dot with the butter pieces.
  • Bake 40-45 minutes, until bubbly and potatoes are browned.  Let cool 5-10 minutes before serving.  Sprinkle with minced fresh parsley and enjoy!

Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!

Chef Tips

Mashed Potato Options:
  1. Use leftover mashed potatoes (these horseradish mashed potatoes work perfectly!).
  2. Use your slow cooker to make the mashed potatoes (like this version).
  3. Use pre-made or instant potatoes - not the best option, but works in a pinch.
  4. Alternately, in a separate pot, make your own traditional mashed potatoes:
  • 5-6 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 4 Tbsp softened butter
  • 1/2 cup milk (possibly slightly more, depending on your tastes)
  • Sprinkle of Parmesan cheese
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • Boil potatoes 15 minutes, or until fork tender, then drain.  Return to hot pot, add butter and mash.  Add milk and cheese, stirring/mashing to combine.  Season to taste, then let cool before topping the shepherd's pie.
*** If you don't have an oven safe skillet, complete recipe through step 4, then transfer to a greased 3 qt baking dish, then continue with recipe, starting at step 5.

Nutrition Disclaimer

The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.

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Rich and flavorful ground beef and vegetable gravy is topped with fluffy mashed potatoes and baked, all in ONE pan!  Technically cottage pie (made with beef), this version will be a family favorite dinner recipe! #shepherdspie #groundbeef #beef #cottagepie #dinner #easyrecipe #onepan #onepot #mashedpotatoes

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Meet The Chunky Chef

Hey there! I'm Amanda. Wife, mother, photography nerd, and bacon lover! I believe that delicious meals should be easy to make. Now that you’re here, stay a bit, browse a few recipes, and let’s get cookin’!

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4.90 from 29 votes

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Recipe Rating




  1. Tracee says

    Posted on 1/23 at 4:34 pm

    This is a wonderful recipe, (except for the mushrooms LOL).
    Deep flavors and it allows you to be creative with flavor combinations! Well done Amanda.

    Reply
  2. Gwen says

    Posted on 1/11 at 9:50 am

    This was great! Delicious and makes the ingredients shine. The timing is perfect and the top crisped up beautifully, thanks to the combination of the mashed potatoes and the parmesan!

    Reply
    • Joe says

      Posted on 10/14 at 9:31 am

      Is a 12 inch cast iron pan big enough?

      Reply
      • The Chunky Chef says

        Posted on 10/14 at 9:35 am

        Yes, that will work perfectly 🙂

        Reply
  3. Darina says

    Posted on 1/3 at 5:19 am

    The only problem I have with this recipe is that Google does not give it enough love and I always struggle to find it. The struggle is worth it, because it is the most delicious Shepard’s pie ever. I just don’t recommend using fresh warm mashed potatoes, because they become too runny, make sure it has at least cooled before topping it.

    Reply
  4. Dianne Corso says

    Posted on 9/9 at 9:07 pm

    Delicious easy to make my family really enjoyed it!

    Reply
  5. Kathleen Rebosky says

    Posted on 8/18 at 10:41 pm

    Made it, love it, the tomato paste gives it that little extra rich flavor that really stands out.

    Reply
  6. Susan Gilmore says

    Posted on 5/6 at 10:55 pm

    Absolutely superb! Rich and satisfying–the ultimate comfort food. I substituted “Beyond Beef” for half the beef and added some thyme. So good! Going to try your loaded breakfast casserole next.
    Thank you so much!

    Reply
  7. Venus says

    Posted on 2/25 at 1:35 pm

    Would the frozen medly vegetable mix work, ie cauliflower, broccoli and carrots???

    Reply
    • Amanda says

      Posted on 2/25 at 3:24 pm

      Yes, you can substitute with any veggies you like most 🙂

      Reply
  8. Bethany Alzanadi says

    Posted on 2/23 at 8:17 pm

    Super yummy! I make shepherd’s pie all the time but this was by far my fav! I used fresh carrots, left out the mushrooms cuz I didn’t have them but added cabbage and canned peas right before throwing it in the oven…I upped the worcestershire too. Fantastic!

    Reply
  9. Carrie says

    Posted on 1/25 at 7:06 pm

    Best Sheppard’s pie, my kids and I tore it up!
    Thank you, I will definitely be making it again 😁👍

    Reply
  10. Pam says

    Posted on 1/11 at 9:13 pm

    I only have salted butter on hand would that work?

    Reply
    • The Chunky Chef says

      Posted on 1/11 at 9:26 pm

      Yep 🙂 Just cut back a little on the kosher salt.

      Reply
  11. Angela Wallace says

    Posted on 12/14 at 11:00 am

    Hi , just wondering if I use the horse radish mashed potatoes do I still use parmesan?

    Reply
    • The Chunky Chef says

      Posted on 12/14 at 9:21 pm

      I would, because I love Parmesan lol, but you could omit it if you’d like 🙂

      Reply
  12. Mike says

    Posted on 12/13 at 10:32 pm

    I tried this out tonight for dinner and wow was it good. I used 3# of ground beef instead of 2 and added frozen peas. This has a lot of flavor and doesn’t need anything offer baking. Thanks for the recipe!

    Reply
    • Kellbell says

      Posted on 2/16 at 10:22 am

      I’ve made many of your dishes and these are some of the BEST recipes I’ve ever made, only 1 out of 20 i didn’t like and I likely did something wrong. This is the BEST I’ve ever tasted seriously it’s amazing. Thank you for sharing your food with the world

      Reply
  13. Donna says

    Posted on 11/12 at 7:19 pm

    This was a total hit and a perfect fall dish to make!

    Reply
  14. Jordan B says

    Posted on 7/5 at 10:45 pm

    I’ve made this recipe 4 times now, each time a little different and each time a huge hit with my family! My kids (and wife) don’t like mushrooms so we go off course for the vegetables each time. We use 2-3 carrots as per recipe, but I add 2/3 cups each of corn and peas instead. I also use a minimum of 1 cup beef broth and simmer longer if I get carried away.

    The biggest innovation was tonight’s meal for company. I used 2 lbs. of stewing beef that I painstakingly cubed into 1/4″ pieces, rather than good ‘ol ground beef. The chunks of beef were such satisfying morsels, I am definitely going to repeat next time around. Word to the wise though, add another 30 mins prep time if you go with my little cubes. I had the beef cut up ahead of time and waiting in the fridge overnight. I’m not a speedy sous-chef I guess.

    Bottom line, this is easily the best and probably the simplest cottage pie recipe I’ve ever had! Thank you!!

    Reply
  15. Anesha Grant says

    Posted on 6/24 at 12:29 pm

    Would love to make this! Is there a substitute I can use for the tomato paste?

    Reply
    • The Chunky Chef says

      Posted on 6/24 at 10:07 pm

      I’ve only used tomato paste, as I love the concentrated flavor, but I think you could use 1/2 – 3/4 cup tomato sauce in place of it. You may have to simmer the whole mixture a bit longer to get it to thicken up, since you’ll have more liquid.

      Reply
  16. Sarah says

    Posted on 6/2 at 1:45 pm

    Turned out GREAT! This was my first go at making Shepherds Pie and I would definitely recommend this recipe to anyone. I substituted the carrots for two cups frozen, mixed veggies and it tasted excellent! 

    Reply
  17. Cathy R says

    Posted on 5/14 at 6:59 am

    Made it last night and it is a very tasty, savory dinner. I baked it in a casserole dish vs using a skillet. My only comment about the recipe is that if I made it again, I would add the whole cup of broth. Despite cooking it less time that recommended, the meat mixture came out a bit dry.

    Reply
  18. Jennifer says

    Posted on 4/22 at 8:17 pm

    Made this for the first time tonight. It was delicious. One of the best I have had.

    Reply
  19. Shellie Mercier says

    Posted on 4/16 at 7:58 pm

    I was surprised at how long it took me to get this together, bake it and let it sit. Otherwise I am pleased with the recipe, I made two types of potatoes due to diet restrictions and that was super easy to manage as well.

    Reply
  20. George Angelidis says

    Posted on 4/4 at 8:55 am

    I believe the picture shows peas and yet they aren’t on the ingredients list??

    Reply
    • The Chunky Chef says

      Posted on 4/5 at 8:47 pm

      Nope, no peas in the photos or recipe 🙂

      Reply
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