Easy Cottage Pie Recipe

Our Easy Cottage Pie Recipe is loaded with ground beef and vegetables, topped off with parmesan mashed potatoes, and baked until golden brown. This is one stick-to-your-ribs flavorful meal.

During the winter months, I always crave super hearty and filling meals. With this Easy Cottage Pie Recipe, you get just that, an extremely flavorful meal that you will keep making again and again.

Cottage Pie or Shepherd’s Pie, whatever you call it, is just flat-out delicious. It’s also very easy to customize to your tastes! 

My family asks for this recipe a lot because it always goes over so well, and it makes a hefty portion, so we have leftovers. I love making it for them because it’s easy while also being an all-around delicious meal.

What’s not to love? Seasoned ground beef filling loaded with veggies and all topped with parmesan mashed potatoes? Ummm, yum!

I love how the top of the mashed potatoes gets all golden brown. It’s truly a satisfying bite.

Every chance I get to make my Easy Cottage Pie Recipe, I do, and once you try that first bite, it will soon be in your weekly meal rotation as well.

Some of our other favorite ground beef recipes that we have on our site include: Thai Beef Bowls, Easy Meatloaf, and Enchilada Stuffed Zucchini.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:

1. A hearty and comforting meal makes this a family favorite.
2. Lots of customizable options to make it fit your taste.
3. You can use up leftovers to come together quickly.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED (FULL RECIPE BELOW):

• Russet potatoes
• Salted butter
• Whole milk
• Parmesan cheese
• Kosher salt
• Black pepper
• Unsalted butter
• Lean ground beef
• Sweet onion
• Garlic
• Garlic powder
• Onion powder
• Kosher salt
• Black pepper
• All-purpose flour
• Beef stock
• Worcestershire sauce
• Mixed frozen veggies
• Parsley 

HOW TO MAKE EASY COTTAGE PIE RECIPE:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Add the diced potatoes to a large pot and cover them plus two inches with cold water. Cover, bring to a boil, and boil for about 15 minutes or until the potatoes are fork-tender.
2. Drain the potatoes and let them sit in the cooking pot uncovered for 10 minutes to allow excess steam to escape. Add the butter, milk, cheese, salt, and pepper. Mash until smooth.
3. While the potatoes are cooking, make the filling. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter, then brown the ground beef, breaking it up into crumbles until there is no pink left. 10 minutes.
4. Add the onions and continue to cook until softened and translucent, occasionally stirring for 10 minutes. 
5. Add the garlic, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Stir everything together and cook for 30 seconds. Add the flour, stir and cook for 1 minute.
6. Add the stock and Worcestershire sauce, and stir to combine. Add the frozen veggies and mix them in. Bring the mixture to a simmer, then take off the heat.
7. Add the filling to a 9×13 baking dish in an even layer. Top with the mashed potatoes and smooth out the top.
8. Bake for 40-45 minutes until dark golden brown on top and bubbly. Let cool for 15 minutes, then serve with parsley if using.

DO I HAVE TO MAKE THE MASHED POTATOES FROM SCRATCH?

Not at all. If you are in a pinch, you can use store-bought mashed potatoes and use them as the topping. You can even still stir in the parmesan cheese in the recipe, so you get that extra yummy kick to them.

Just make sure you heat up the potatoes per the directions on the package. You want them to be hot, so they are easily spreadable on top of the filling.

WHAT ARE SOME CUSTOMIZABLE OPTIONS?

For the filling, you can use any ground meat you like, such as ground pork, ground chicken, ground turkey, or go the traditional route with ground lamb.

Use any leftover veggies you might have and put them right into the filling to use them up. This is a great recipe just to throw things in, and it always comes out delicious.

Add more veggies like zucchini, baby spinach, or mushrooms, etc., literally, any vegetable goes well in this.

Also, add fresh herbs to the filling would be amazing, such as a tablespoon of chopped Italian parsley, tarragon, rosemary, thyme, or chives.

For the mashed potatoes, you can use Yukon Gold potatoes or Idaho potatoes instead of Russet potatoes.

In place of parmesan cheese in the potatoes, you can use shredded Gruyere, white cheddar, sharp cheddar, mozzarella, Swiss, fontina, smoked gouda, or even pepper jack.

Instead of mashed potatoes, use a sweet potato mash that is on the savory side. I highly recommend our Savory Mashed Sweet Potatoes.

WHAT TO SERVE WITH COTTAGE PIE?

This recipe is a meal in itself, but now and then, you might want to add a side or two to go with it. Especially if you are having company over and you need to stretch it a bit, here are some options:

• A light side salad
• Roasted Mushrooms
• Crescent Rolls
• Even a fun appetizer such as Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip or Onion Tarts

HOW TO STORE:

Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. 

Reheat leftovers in the oven covered with foil or in the microwave until warmed.

Freeze leftovers in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. To thaw, place it in the fridge overnight.

TIPS AND TRICKS:

• This makes a large batch, but you can easily double it to feed more or halve the recipe as needed.
• Tons of custom options, see my tips above on that.
• Store-bought mashed potatoes can be used in place of homemade.
• Use up any leftover veggies in the filling for a fridge cleanout meal.
• Instead of ground beef, use ground chicken, turkey, pork, or lamb.
• Add fresh herbs of your choice.

This is truly a meal every family will love, so if you are ready to please, make this Easy Cottage Pie Recipe tonight!

If you like this recipe, you might also like:

• • • • • • Creamy Mashed Potatoes
          • Mexican Rice Casserole
          • Frito Chili Pie Casserole

If you’ve tried this EASY COTTAGE PIE RECIPE, let me know how it turned out in the comments! You can follow me over on PINTEREST, INSTAGRAM OR FACEBOOK to find some more of our mouthwatering recipes!