Tell me your cottage pie secrets

[anothergilmore]

What are you adding to your cottage pie to make it extra tasty?

I usually just follow a traditional recipe and would love some inspiration!

I like the delia tweak of putting leeks on the top

www.deliaonline.com/recipes/international/european/british/shepherds-pie-with-cheese-crusted-leeks

Cannabis, can't go wrong!

I make mine vegan so would definitely recommend trying a meat free version!

But - adding carrot or sweet potato to the mash on top is a winner for me regardless of the filling.

Can I come to your house for tea Watchme?

I don't think I've ever read a recipe for cottage pie and every time I make mine it's a bit different. I'm
Making one now and I've put carrots and onions and a garlic cube in to soften, I'd use celery if I had any but I don't today. Then brown the mince, add cubed parsnip and turnip some water and some oxo cubes the. cook till its done, add some peas and the top with frozen mash and put in the oven until ready. I might put some cheese on top of I'm feeling adventurous. Or sweet potato mash instead of normal.

Some people put tinned tomatoes in theirs but im not a fan.

red lentils are good for bulking it out and giving it body

I sometime throw a tin of baked beans in to the meat part too...saves dirtying another pan later!

herbs in the mash...or even a colcannon type affair

otherwise use celery (yes...I could not give a bugger if you don't normally like it!) with the onions....sweat them properly until they are on the edge of golden

brown off the meat PROPERLY...don't just warm it through, it wants to be seared and full of tastiness!

de glaze the pan...use stock, wine or water

use decent mince...and not always super low fat...fat has flavour!

Plenty of S&P ...so many folks don't season food properly and that is why it tastes of nothing.

I find tinned tomatoes ruin a cottage pie, it makes the pie bitter

Tomato ketchup.

Gary Rhodes recipe is good. I just think it's a pretty boring dinner though whatever you try to do to it. It's just easy comfort food.

Bovril in the mince and a mix of ordinary and sweet potatoes on top.
Not very exciting but really tasty

Oxtail soup

Could't find a link but someone has posted it on Yahoo. Well, Shepherd's Pie but same thing.

"This is Gary Rhodes version of Sheperd's Pie which I use all the time. Its a bit time consuming, but worth it, in fact I've just made it for dinner.

675g lamb, minced
25g lamb or beef dripping
or 2 tablespoons of cooking oil
knob of butter
3 small onions finely chopped
3 carrots, diced
4 celery sticks, diced
1/2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1/2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp tomato puree
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp tomato ketchup
3 glasses of red wine
25g plain flour
200ml beef/veal jus or chicken stock
900g mashed potatos, made with very little butter or milk.

1. Season the minced lamb, then fry in batches in the dripping or the oil in a very hot pan to just seal and colour the meat, draining each batch in a colander.
2. In a separate pan, over a medium heat, melt the butter. Add the vegetable and herbs, and season with salt, pepper and cinnamon. Cook for 5-6 minutes until starting to soften.
3. Add the lamb, cook for a few minutes, then add the tomato puree, Worcestershire sauce and tomato ketchup and stir. Add half a glass of wine and reduce by three-quarters: repeat this process until all the wine has been used. Add the flour and cook for 2-3 minutes.
4. Add the jus or stock and bring to a gentle simmer, then cook for 1-11/2 hours. If the sauce becomes too thick add a little water, but don't let the sauce become to thin.
5. During the last 1/2 of cooking make the mash. Reduce the amount of butter and milk or cream you would normally use to give a slightly firmer topping.
6. Pre heat the grill. Spoon the mince into an ovenproof dish, then spoon or pipe the mash on top. Brush or dot some butter over the mash and grill until golden."

Ketchup! And nicely salted mash.

Mushroom ketchup.

Soften onions, add carrots etc, add mince. Shake a tablespoon of flour over mix and add about 1/2 pint of water that has had a soup spoonful of mushroom ketchup added.

I sometimes add Worcestershire too, about a teaspoon.

I also mix mince with chopped up Sunday leftover beef. I do that with chilli and spags too. Chunky pieces of leftover beef make an interesting beef mix.

I have been known to add yoghurt, sour cream or creme fraiche to the mash topping too!

Grated carrot in the mince. Makes it juicer and far more tasty. Also cuts down the amount of meat required.

Brown sauce. Lots of it. Makes a really rich and deep flavour.

The Delian recipe linked above is a total winner

Sweet potato for the mash with a bit of cheese grated on top.

1tsp allspice in the mince mix gives a great savoury flavour. Not to be confused with mixed spice as that was just strange

Thanks everyone!

We put sweetcorn in ours. We like corn.

Muddlewitch

I set a place!

The BBC good food recipe is an absolute winner

Mary Berry's version wins in our house. It has cheese in the mash and two tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce in the meat.