Shortcut Shepherd's Pie

By kristen66

Quick and easy way to prepare Shepherd's Pie. Brown the meat with seasonings, and use the convenience of frozen vegetables and potatoes for this hearty dinner. Make ahead and pop in the oven when you get home.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, plus more if needed
• 1 1/2 pounds 85 percent lean ground beef
• 1 onion, diced small
• 2 cloves garlic, grated or minced
• 2 fresh thyme sprigs or pinch dried thyme
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 cups beef stock
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 10 ounces frozen mixed peas and carrots
• 1 pound frozen mini or regular potato tots, about 4 cups
• 1/2 cup sharp yellow Cheddar cheese, shredded

Details

Servings 6
Preparation time 10mins
Cooking time 55mins
Adapted from foodnetwork.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat a large skillet over high heat for 2 minutes, then add the oil. (It will shimmer and lightly smoke; that's OK.) When you start to see wisps of smoke, crumble the ground beef evenly into the pan. Let the beef cook undisturbed until browned on one side, 3 minutes, then start breaking it up and turning it to brown any remaining pink spots, about 4 minutes more. Transfer the beef with a slotted spoon to a medium bowl; set aside.

Turn the heat down to medium and discard all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the skillet. Add the onions, garlic and thyme, stir to combine and cook until the onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the flour and tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the cooked beef, beef stock, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, 1 1/4 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce has thickened, about 4 minutes. Remove the thyme sprigs if using. Fold in the peas and carrots.

Transfer the mixture to an 8-inch square casserole pan, and top with the potato tots and Cheddar. Bake until the potato tots are crisp and the meat layer is bubbling up the sides, 20 to 25 minutes.