Does anyone else add baked beans to cottage pie mince?

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I've always made cottage pie by adding a tin of baked beans into the beef mince mix. I was looking through recipes recently and none mentioned baked beans, so I now feel like some sort of heathen. What do you include? 😬

yes I do! And a squirt of tomato ketchup

People add kidney beans so it makes sense- to be honest I’m so intrigued!!!!!

My mum (now 88) used to do this and I always hated it as a child. I now make cottage pie (without the beans) and it’s fabulous!! 🤣

I put leeks in mine by the way and it’s great - oh and, my mum loves it! Which makes me giggle every time…. But absolutely NO BEANS! Yay! 😁

I sometimes throw in some finely-chopped celery. You have to go easy on it though and not use loads, as it can be a bit overpowering otherwise. Baked beans would be okay, but I'd lose the bean juice.

Funnily enough I'll be making a big cottage pie on Sunday instead of a roast, so I shall come back with a report on what I chucked in.

Oh that’s interesting.
Beans have to be Branston.
Wont eat them unless they have been “through Malcolm”

I put leeks and cheese with the potato in the topping 😀

Don't be so snobby, I am far from poor and always put baked beans in my cottage pie.

I wouldn't mix them into the mince, but I have once or twice added them as a layer (under the potato, above the mince) which works well, they keep somewhat distinct. I always serve cottage/shepherds pie with baked beans for family.

As a layer in the bottom. I had it out in the Lake District while out walking. It was on the menu as Cumberland pie (or maybe Ramblers pie, it was some time ago).

No.

Why would you ruin a cottage pie like that?

No, but I do make mine with lentils and harissa as well

I was coming to say this!

Cottage pie is mince with onion, potato and grated cheese on top.

Cowboy pie is as above with a layer of beans on top of mince today.

No! Not on the side either.

500g mince
Onion, medium
3 to 4 carrots
Small box mushrooms
Heaped dsp flour
good beef stock pot
Good shake of worcester sauce
Dollop of horseradish (now dc are grown up)

Serve with peas, brocolli and yorkshires.

You are a heathen! But if you’re a happy heathen…..

I add red lentils. Sometimes I leave out the meat and just use red lentils. You need to turn up the seasoning though.

That sounds gross sorry

No, in our case, it’s a familial high cholesterol thing! I put red lentils in with mince (or baked beans occasionally) to increase the weekly intake of pulses, which are supposed to lower cholesterol. DH and DD tend to look askance at dinners, where pulses are THE source of protein! (She has learning disabilities, so getting her to eat what is good for her, takes some doing!)

🤢

No baked beans but not opposed to the idea.
I bung in frozen mixed veg.

I’m a bit nostalgic about this, since we were served it at a freezing cold team building event - known as trash cottage pie here - most times I would make CP normally with mince and veg, but occasionally we have the trash version, and it’s lovely.

Back in the 60s, my aunt used to get calls from other kids’ mums asking for her cowboy stew recipe… She then had to explain it was basically mine and onions with a tin of beans thrown in, with mash. She said it was cheap and filling, calling it cowboy stew made it sound exciting.

Never in it but sometimes on the side.

Do you just literally drain a tin of lentils and mix it in with the mince before you put it in the oven?
I might try this to bulk out.

I don’t add baked beans but always serve them as a side with shepherds / cottage pie, along with Branston pickle or brown sauce. I also have macaroni cheese with ketchup. I’m actually not a bad cook, though you wouldn’t think it. 😆

I add dried red lentils to tomato based mince dishes and tinned brown lentils sometimes to cottage pie. I might add a tin of beans to something like cowboy stew, or a chilli if there are some bean left overs in fridge I'd chuck them in .