Shepherd’s pie is classic comfort food. What’s not to love about the layer of veggies, meat sauce, and luscious mashed potatoes? SO delicious! I added a Greek twist by swapping out the classic carrots, peas, and corn (actually, I kept the corn) with Briam, Greek Ratatouille. I also added some feta cheese and we fell in love with this dish. Gone in minutes! Follow my easy tutorial and I highly recommend that you make a double batch for the freezer.
Watch the Video Tutorial Here:
At first, I dreamt about creating a “moussaka” version of shepherd’s pie with layers of eggplant, zucchini, and potatoes. Then, I quickly realized that everyone in my house doesn’t love eggplant as much as I do and the effort would be wasted. But, guess what? I still snuck that eggplant in there. haha! Into the meat sauce, it went, completely undetected.
I love sneaking as many vegetables as possible into recipes. Sometimes it’s the only way to get them into my kids. Who can relate?
We all love Briam, the Greek version of Ratatouille. Hence, this Greekified shepherd’s pie was born.
The only thing that I would maybe do differently next time is to use ground lamb instead of the beef. It was impossible to find this time around. Lamb has so much more flavor but, ground beef, chicken, or even turkey would be great in this recipe.
The Ingredients:
As usual, these are pretty basic staples. Feel free to substitute any of the veggies for your faves.
- The Meat Sauce: ground beef (or your favorite meat), eggplant, tomatoes
- Mashed Potatoes
- Feta cheese
- Briam Layer: zucchini, onions, bell peppers, spinach, and corn
- Olive oil
- Parmesan Cheese
This dish can easily go vegetarian by substituting the meat sauce with my Vegetarian Bolognese Sauce. Click here.
About the Mashed Potatoes:
The recipe might seem a bit complicated and I don’t want to scare you away. So, feel free to make them thicker from the beginning. Let me explain. At first, I was contemplating creating a bechamel layer instead of the mashed potatoes. Then, I thought, why not create potato bechamel sauce? Both would not create the classic flavor that I was going for.
Instead, I opted for a thinner, creamier mashed potato topping. In order to do this, I added more milk to the potatoes and then cooked them down. Like I said before, this step can be skipped and just add less milk until the desired mashed potato consistency is achieved. However, if you have a few extra minutes, give it a try and let me know what you think.
Can Shepherd’s Pie be Frozen?
Yes ma’am! You know how much I love dishes that can be doubled and frozen! And, this right here is one of those. It keeps fresh up to 3 months.
If you like to meal prep, you can even store it in smaller individual-size containers. Perfect for taking to work or sending with the kids in their lunchbox.
You can bake it straight away out of the freezer. If you choose to do it this way, cover the pie with parchment and then with foil and bake at 400 °F for 30 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake until golden and bubbly.
Or, you can thaw it in the refrigerator overnight and then bake as per the recipe instructions.
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Here are some more delicious comfort food recipes:
I hope that you give this recipe a try and let me know what you think. I love to see your recreations so, please share pictures with me on Facebook and Instagram.
Greek-Style Shepherd's Pie w/Briam
Shepherd's pie is classic comfort food. What's not to love about the layer of veggies, meat sauce, and luscious mashed potatoes? SO delicious! I added a Greek twist by swapping out the classic carrots, peas, and corn (actually, I kept the corn) with Briam, Greek Ratatouille. I also added some feta cheese and we fell in love with this dish. Gone in minutes! Follow my easy tutorial and I highly recommend that you make a double batch for the freezer.
Ingredients
- For the mashed potatoes:
- • 2 and ½ lbs. potatoes, peeled and cubed
- • 1 and ½ cups whole milk, lukewarm
- • 4 tablespoons butter
- • 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- • Salt and black pepper, to taste
- For the meat sauce:
- • 2 pounds ground meat (beef, chicken, lamb)
- • 1 eggplant, peeled and diced and seasoned with salt
- • 1 small onion, finely chopped
- • ¼ cup olive oil
- • 6 garlic cloves, grated
- • 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes, pureed
- • Salt and black pepper, to taste
- • Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
- • 1-2 tablespoons of fresh chopped parsley
- For the Vegetable (Briam) Layer:
- • 1 zucchini, diced
- • 1 small onion, thinly sliced
- • 1 bell pepper, diced
- • 2 garlic cloves, grated
- • 1 cup canned tomatoes, pureed
- • 5 ounces (142 g) spinach, roughly chopped
- • Salt and pepper, to taste
- • Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
- • Pinch of sugar, if needed
- • 1-2 cups frozen or canned corn
- • 1 teaspoon dried crushed oregano
- • 4 ounces (113 g) feta cheese, crumbled
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 °F, 220 °C.
- Make the Mashed Potatoes:
- Place potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Season with 1-2 teaspoons of salt and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and cook until fork-tender. Drain the water and mash the potatoes.
- Add the butter and mash until it is absorbed. Then slowly add the milk. Mix until smooth.
- Season with salt and black pepper.
- Note: You can make the mashed potatoes 2 ways: add just enough milk until they are at the consistency that you like. Or, add all of the milk and then cook the mixture over medium heat until thickened (bechamel sauce texture). It’s up to you.
- Add the parmesan cheese and mix it all together then, set it aside.
- Make the meat filling:
- Cook the onions with the olive oil over medium heat until soft and golden. About 8 minutes. Add the garlic and warm through about 20 seconds.
- Add the ground meat and cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Pat the eggplant pieces dry and add to the meat.
- Add the seasonings and the pureed tomatoes. Cook over medium heat until the eggplant is soft and mushy, and the sauce is thick. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Garnish with parsley and set aside.
- Make the Vegetable (Briam) Layer:
- Cook the onions with olive oil over medium heat until soft. About 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic, bell peppers, and zucchini.
- Season lightly with salt and pepper. Cook for 5 more minutes.
- Add the tomato puree and cook until the vegetables are soft, and the sauce thickens.
- Add the spinach and cook until wilted.
- Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Add sugar if the sauce is too acidic.
- Assemble the Shepherd’s Pie:
- Place the Briam (vegetable) layer in the bottom of a 9 by 13 by a 3-inch baking pan. Add some corn, if desired. Crumble some feta cheese on top.
- Spread the meat sauce over the vegetables and feta cheese.
- Top with the mashed potatoes and spread.
- Bake on the center rack of your preheated oven for 30 minutes or until the top is golden.
- You may turn the broiler element on for 4-5 minutes. Keep a close eye on it so that it does not burn.
- Set aside and allow it to set for at least 30 minutes.
- Serve!
Notes
Freezer Notes: Once the Shepherd’s Pie is assembled it can be stored in the freezer for up to 2 months. Make sure it cools completely, then, wrap it in plastic and freeze. When ready to bake, thaw overnight in the refrigerator then bake in a preheated 425 °F oven until the top is golden.
Shepherd’s pie is a classic dish, but the flavors aren’t very Greek. This dish is a nice adaptation of the classic, and it is sort of a combination between pastitso and a traditional shepherd’s pie.
Exactly! Thanks for that, Nick 🙂 Hope you enjoy it.