Tonight’s supper was Shepherd’s Pie.
Shepherd’s Pie
Ingredients
500g (1 pound) minced Lamb or Beef
1 Handful of Mint, omit if using beef
1 Medium Onion, sliced
6 Medium Potatoes
4 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
4 or 5 Medium Carrots
3 Anchovy Fillets
Salt & Pepper
2 tbsp Butter
1 Egg Yolk
Olive Oil
4 ounces Red Wine
Dried Rosemary
14 ounces Lamb, Beef or Vegetable Stock
2 Large Handfuls of Frozen Peas
Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp Brown Sugar
Fry the sliced onion in olive oil and 1/2 the butter until it starts to brown then add 1 tsp brown sugar and stir.
Add 4 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar and reduce it down until it become thick and syrupy. Add a large pinch of dried rosemary. If you have fresh rosemary, add it later on when you add the mint so it doesn’t loose its fresh flavor.
Once the vinegar has reduced add the 3 anchovies and stir until they have melted into your onion mix.
After the anchovy add the red wine and reduce until thick and syrupy.
Add the minced lamb or beef to your onions. Stir and fry for about 10 min until any water that was in your meat has boiled off, and the meat has browned.
Season with salt and pepper and add 4 or 5 splashes of Worcestershire sauce.
Chop the carrots into 1cm sized pieces and add to your mince and onion mix.
Make up your stock and add half to the meat. Bring to a simmer and leave to reduce for about 10 - 15 minutes. Then add the rest of the stock and reduce for another 10 -
15 minutes, until it looks like thick gravy that’s coating the meat.
While the second amount of stock is reducing, peel and boil your potatoes.
Add your frozen peas and stir. Take the meat mixture off the heat and add your chopped mint if using lamb, omit if using beef.
Taste it and season as needed. Put it into an oven proof dish and pat down (make sure there’s at least a 1 1/2 inch gap between the mixture and the rim of the dish.
Drain your potatoes and then leave them in the pan for 2 min to steam off any excess water, this will make them extra fluffy.
Mash, season, and add the rest of the butter and 1 egg yolk. The egg yolk will give your potatoes a rich creamy taste and help it brown in the oven.
Add the potatoes to the top of the mixture. Use a fork to spread it out. Place in a preheated 220 C oven to brown the potatoes.