What makes Shephards Pie different to....

aliasojo

Dinner's over. I served it up with the anouncement that this was new and different pie and ANYONE who dared to make any mention of mince & tatties was going to be wearing instead of eating. (Said with a smile and a raised eyebrow.):rotfl:

Spendless...I always put carrots and onions in my mince anyway along with an oxo cube and some bisto. (Since I'm in OS should I have have whispered the bisto bit???:rotfl: )

metherer

I've always been a bit confused by the issue. :rolleyes:

I know shepherds pie should be made with lamb, and cottage pie with beef, but my dad is a sheep farmer (shepherd) and my mums sheep herder's pie is always beef!

Metherer
x

RoCas

It's got chopped up shepherds in it? :rolleyes:

piglet6

In our house we only make it with minced beef and its always "cottage pie", but if it has grated cheese melted on the top, it becomes "cottage pie with a thatched roof"!! :rotfl:

Piglet

Lillibet_2

Humm....where I come from (family of Cordon Bleu chefs & Grandad owned a chain of resteruants so like to think I have some knowledge even if I didn't inherit the chef gene!), cottage pie is made out of ANY leftover roast meat which has been minced & shepherds pie is made from ANY fresh mince. SO there:D

BUT.............

Hubby swears blind that cottage pie has to have a mashed potato top (so it looks like a cottage:rotfl:) & shepherds pie has a sliced potato top (not sure on the relevence of this:p) (And his mum, who told him this, is a !!!!!! cook anyway:eek:)

And then there's my best friend who is also a chef, says that shepherds pie is lamb mince, cottage pie is beef mince & any other mince is meat pie:rolleyes:

pavlovs_dog

RoCas wrote:

It's got chopped up shepherds in it? :rolleyes:

yes :T

you get them from the same place that sells fresh tartares for tartare sauce, and 'real' lemons for making lemonade with (as opposed to those horrible nasty 'fake' lemons they try and palm you off with in the supermarket )


:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Mr_Proctalgia

Whilst on the subject which bit of a chicken provides the "Nugget" is it the "Nuge" from a small chook or a cut down bit of a larger portion we know not anything about???

Confusion reigns............

aliasojo

Mr_Proctalgia wrote:

Whilst on the subject .........

Confusion reigns............

I'm not surprised....we were talking about pies.....not chickens.

:rotfl:

aimeelister

Ive just had everyone in the office staring at me as i laughed so much reading this!!!!!!

snax

Having cooked for a living for longer than I care to remember I thought I would add my 2p worth.

Shepherds Pie
.... The origins of this would suggest that it was made up from leftover cooked 'mutton' with whatever seasonal farm vegetables were available [turnip, swede, carrot, onion] and topped with a layer of mash [or 'champit' where I come from].
Sticking with tradition nowadays would appear to have minced lamb as the base with onion, carrot, swede [or turnip], stock [or cube] and tomato puree with the thickening of your choice - again all topped with a layer of mash.
* chef tip - Let the mince/meat part of the dish 'set' or cool off and solidify for a while [ideally make it the day before] ..... then add the freshly made mash ..... makes it a lot easier to spread .....and you shouldn't have the meat bubbling up the side of the dish when it cooks. Also don't overcook the thing in the oven in an attempt to get it all nice and brown on top - brush the top with melted butter, cook until hot in the middle and then brown under the grill.

Cottage Pie
..... Again traditionally made-up with chopped meat 'scraps' left over [or saved!] from previous meals with vegetables to spread the portions a bit further. Can really be any 'dark meats' - so no poultry. Same method and means as above for shepherds pie.
Nowadays, most would use minced beef and do exactly the same as for shepherds pie above.

Romantic nostalgia about shepherds and country cooking are by and large just stories, the realities would have been somewhat harsher and making filling and nourishing meals from limited access to supplies would have procluded a fondness for over fancy tastes or recipies.

**Hacienda Pie**
For a change how about making a chilli with your mince [any - it doesn't matter - I've used pork,turkey,beef&lamb] -as hot as you like - and make a cheese and pepper mash to go on top.
cook and mash potatoes as normal .....
then add diced peppers* and onions fried in a little butter till soft and grated cheese .....
mix into mash and finish with some sour cream [or creme fraiche]..... spread on top of the set chilli [or make the day before] .....
sprinkle with some more cheese and 'dust' with paprika**.....
then bake and brown as normal.
Serve with tortilla chips, salsa and salad.

* substitute chillies or jalepenoes if you want it really hot!
** or chilli powder or chilli flakes - depends how much spice is to your taste.

lastly - do not over mix or beat your mash as starch does not like to be agitated and you will end up with a gloopy texture. Use the right type of potato - King Edwards, Maris Piper or Desirée are best, nice and floury.
Also heated or hot milk and melted butter or marg will help the consistency by not bringing down the temperature as you add them to the potatoes and thus affecting the starch content
For lump free mash use a ricer or a moulii - makes all the difference.

1. is no good for mash - guaranteed lumps.....
http://www.surlatable.com/common/products/product_details.cfm?dmode=browse&StartRow=1&CRPCGNBR=28&CGRFNBR=256&PRRFNBR=6019
2. avoid - rubbish design - only good at making a mess .....
http://www.surlatable.com/common/products/product_details.cfm?dmode=browse&StartRow=1&CRPCGNBR=28&CGRFNBR=256&PRRFNBR=3633

3. better - will get there in th end - 1 spud at a time ....
http://www.surlatable.com/common/products/product_details.cfm?dmode=browse&StartRow=1&CRPCGNBR=28&CGRFNBR=256&PRRFNBR=487

4. best option - should give pefect results every time .....
http://www.surlatable.com/common/products/product_details.cfm?dmode=browse&StartRow=1&CRPCGNBR=28&CGRFNBR=256&PRRFNBR=488

Regards
S.