March is finally here, and it’s a month we associate with St. Patrick’s Day and Irish heritage. Chicago has a strong history of both, so Chef Susan from BlueStar picked the perfect recipe: shepherd’s pie. She described it perfectly:
“It’s a traditional Irish dish with lots of variations. If you look it up online, you’d probably come up with tons of different recipes. That’s because it started as kind of a ‘clean out your fridge’ dish. You can use different potatoes and veggies than what we’re using here to make yours!”
Chef Susan also mentioned that this dish is traditionally made with lamb, though lamb can be hard to find in some neighborhoods and grocery stores. That’s why she picked out a mix of ground beef and ground lamb for her recipe.
Finally, she had a guest helping her to take care of prepping this meal this time. This video features Larry Rivlin in HVAC and appliance sales. He’s an amateur chef at home, and he loves making some of his own favorites like empanadas. Susan had him peeling and mashing potatoes while she had ingredients sizzling in a Le Creuset Dutch Oven. Having an Abt employee as a sous chef seemed like a lot of fun, and definitely necessary to make this kind of dish quickly.
This all went down in the BlueStar kitchen at Abt: right now, the brand is launching its dual fuel range for the best of both worlds: a gas cooktop and electric oven. And when you choose BlueStar ranges at Abt, you could get free colorful knobs of your choice. Ask your Abt representative today to learn more.
The Cookware You’ll Need
To make shepherd’s pie in your kitchen, you will need the following cookware (psst, we sell almost all of it in our Gourmet Shop):
- Medium bowl
- Medium saucepan
- Masher or wooden spoon
- 12-inch skillet
- Oven-safe casserole dish
- Sheet tray
Check out Susan’s tips below, as well as the recipe, the walk-through video and more! Our next recipe one on the calendar is corned beef hash on Wednesday, March 15. The live stream on our YouTube channel begins at 4 p.m. for anyone who can’t make it into the store! Until then, explore our other recipes on the blog!
Chef Susan’s Tips
- Tenderize your meat, no matter what. It takes just a few minutes and you get a much better meal that’s super tender and tastes great. Use baking soda and water for a quick soak and a better meal.
- When slicing up bacon, you might find that your knife isn’t always as sharp as you’d hope. Toss your bacon in the freezer for a bit until it stiffens up, and you’ll have an easier time slicing it!
- When dicing vegetables, make sure they sit flat on the cutting board so they don’t roll. You can do that by cutting off a side and letting them rest there as you slice.
- Make sure you cook your roux all the way through so that there’s no flour taste.
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Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and set an oven rack in the middle position.
Combine the lamb, beef, baking soda, 1 tsp. of the salt, and 1 Tbsp. of water in a medium bowl. Mash with your hand to combine. Set aside for 20 minutes.
While the meat tenderizes, place the potatoes in a medium saucepan and add just enough cold water to cover them. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until the potatoes are soft and fork-tender, 8-10 minutes. Drain the potatoes and return to the pan. Place the pan over medium heat and stir potatoes with a wooden spoon or masher until dry and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and add the sour cream, butter, half and half, parmesan cheese and the remaining teaspoon of salt. Mash until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Set aside.
Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring frequently, until crisp, 6 to 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels, leaving the fat in the pan. Add the onions and carrots to the bacon fat and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and starting to brown for 6 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Add the wine and increase the heat to high, bring to a boil, scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the pan, until the liquid is reduced by about half. Add the flour and stir until dissolved. Add the reserved ground beef mixture, tomato paste, and Worcestershire sauce; continue cooking on high heat, breaking the meat apart with a spoon, until the meat is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth; bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and cook, scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the pan, until thickened about 2 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Move to oven safe casserole.
Dollop the mashed potatoes evenly over the filling. Use a rubber spatula or offset to spread the potatoes evenly all the way to the edges. Drag a fork across to make ridges. Place in oven on sheet tray in case it bubbles over and bake until top is lightly browned, and edges are bubbly. About 30 minutes. Sprinkle with chives and serve.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and set an oven rack in the middle position.
Combine the lamb, beef, baking soda, 1 tsp. of the salt, and 1 Tbsp. of water in a medium bowl. Mash with your hand to combine. Set aside for 20 minutes.
While the meat tenderizes, place the potatoes in a medium saucepan and add just enough cold water to cover them. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until the potatoes are soft and fork-tender, 8-10 minutes. Drain the potatoes and return to the pan. Place the pan over medium heat and stir potatoes with a wooden spoon or masher until dry and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and add the sour cream, butter, half and half, parmesan cheese and the remaining teaspoon of salt. Mash until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Set aside.
Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring frequently, until crisp, 6 to 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels, leaving the fat in the pan. Add the onions and carrots to the bacon fat and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and starting to brown for 6 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Add the wine and increase the heat to high, bring to a boil, scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the pan, until the liquid is reduced by about half. Add the flour and stir until dissolved. Add the reserved ground beef mixture, tomato paste, and Worcestershire sauce; continue cooking on high heat, breaking the meat apart with a spoon, until the meat is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth; bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and cook, scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the pan, until thickened about 2 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Move to oven safe casserole.
Dollop the mashed potatoes evenly over the filling. Use a rubber spatula or offset to spread the potatoes evenly all the way to the edges. Drag a fork across to make ridges. Place in oven on sheet tray in case it bubbles over and bake until top is lightly browned, and edges are bubbly. About 30 minutes. Sprinkle with chives and serve.
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