cottage pie

Louisepp

I always add a tsp or 2 of cinnamon too:j

flyer

Well, everyone ate it and it was clean plates all round. The carrots could have been done longer though.

winthropwoman

D&DD wrote: »

Now see I love beans so does OH but the boys won't touch them...I usually hide whizzed/dried veggies in mine but do you think I would get away with pureeing some beans for a change??? I don't think they'd taste them and the colour wouldn't alter,just wondered has anyone pureed them before?

Good idea! Might try that myself next time.

sooz

My OH was home ill today, & was [STRIKE]'helping' me cook dinner[/STRIKE] pottering. I was making cottage pie, in exactly the same way as I have done for the last 10 years, when he looked at me as if I was mad.

I fry an onion & mince, whilst boiling potatoes, add a big tin of veggie soup to the mince, let it simmer whilst I make the mash.

Top with cheese (once layered up) then grill.

He thought I was insane...and muttered something about ovens & stock.

Have I been doing it wrong?

balmaiden

No right or wrong way, I would say. There are loads of different ways to make cottage pie. If it's worked and he has eaten it for ten years I think you must be doing something right.

cherie1122

Why don't you ask OH to make it next time using his method? (that'll give you a break from cooking one evening :rotfl:)

That sounds a lovely quick and easy way to make it and I'm going to try that next time.

foreversomeday

I wouldn't say it's wrong - it's preference!

I brown mince, and add onions, then drain off excess fat and add garlic and a knorr beef stock cube crumbled over the lot. At the same time I boil potatoes for mashing and slice carrots into round slices, which go in the microwave in a bowl of water for a couple of minutes to soften them. The part boiled carrots and some frozen peas then get added into the mince mixture, while I mash the potatoes with plenty of butter.

Then I put the mince in a dish, top with potatoes, dot with butter, and put into the oven until the potatoes are crispy.

I don't use the grill simply because it wouldn't fit! But I imagine it would probably crisp up a lot better under there.

betterlife

sounds lovely, we all make it to our own recipe, heres mine.
mince my own beef, fry with tinsy bit of oil along with diced onion, chopped mushroom and sometimes chopped carrots, mix in some homemade gravy. top with creamy mash pots and sometimes add grated cheese. then i pop in oven. sometimes i serve with baked beans and bread, mostly i serve with roast pots as oh not great on mash, fresh garden veg and gravy, yum its making me hungry for some x.

Steve-o

sooz wrote: »

Have I been doing it wrong?

Does it taste nice? If so, you've been doing it right.

Stephen_Leak

cherie1122 wrote: »

Why don't you ask OH to make it next time using his method? (that'll give you a break from cooking one evening :rotfl:).

If he needs a "bloke-proof" recipe, print this out for him. That'll teach him to say anything in future.

COTTAGE or SHEPHERD’S PIE (and vegetarian version)

Serves 2

INGREDIENTS

375g of old potatoes*
1 onion
1 carrot
250ml of water
¼ of a teaspoon of salt
½ a tablespoon of butter
½ a tablespoon of milk
Ground pepper to taste
½ a tablespoon of sunflower oil
250g of minced meat (Use minced beef for a cottage pie. Use minced lamb for a shepherd’s pie.)
125ml of water
1 stock cube (Use a beef stock cube for a cottage pie. Use a lamb stock cube for a shepherd’s pie.)

METHOD

Peel the potatoes and chop into quarters. Peel the onion and chop it into tiny pieces. Cut both ends off the carrot, peel it and then grate it.

Put the 250ml of water and salt into a saucepan on a medium heat. Add the potatoes. Bring to the boil, then turn down the heat until it is just boiling (simmering). Put the lid on the saucepan and cook for 20 to 25 minutes until soft. Check the water level from time to time and top up if it starts to dry out.

While the potatoes are cooking, put the oil in a frying pan on a medium heat. Fry the onion for a couple of minutes. Stir frequently to stop it sticking. Add the meat and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the carrot. Crumble the stock cube into the 125ml of water and pour it into the frying pan. Cook for another 5 minutes until most of the water has boiled off.

Drain the potatoes and mash with the butter and milk until it is smooth and lump free. Season with the pepper.

Put the meat mixture into an ovenproof dish. Level off the surface. Put the mashed potato on top. Spread to cover the meat mixture. Make artistic swirls in the mashed potato. This increases the surface area and makes the top crisper.

Cook in a preheated oven at 180°C, 350°F, gas mark 4 for 20 to 30 minutes until golden on top.

ADDITIONS & ALTERNATIVES

Use minced pork, but then it ought to be called a swineherd’s pie. Use minced turkey, but then it ought to be called a poultryman’s pie.

The vegetarian version is made by substituting the meat for 75g (½ a 150g packet) of soya mince or Protoveg Burgamix, made up according to the instructions on the packet. You can even use 250g of broken up vegetarian hamburgers. Substitute the stock cube for a vegetable one.

Grated carrot was the traditional farmer's wife's method of making meat go further without anyone realising, so I’ve included some to honour that tradition. You can omit it. However, if you need to make the meat go even further, add some more.

Add 100g of chopped mushrooms to the meat. Sprinkle 50g of grated Cheddar cheese on top of the potato, or even into it as it being mashed.

* New potatoes make rubbish mashed potato. Use old ones like King Edward’s or Desiree Reds.