I wanted to make corned beef and cabbage for St. Patrick’s Day 2021. My family had different plans though so I ended up making a crock pot shepherd’s pie recipe instead.
Don’t worry if you don’t have a slow cooker. I included the instructions for how to make shepherd’s pie in the oven in my How to Make An Easy Shepherd’s Pie Recipe post.
The recipe is basically the same. My family likes both versions. I do think that the slow cooker version is a bit more flavorful though. This beef shepherd’s pie includes peas and carrots with mashed potatoes as the pie crust. I also include a cheddar cheese topping.
Easy Crock Pot Shepherd’s Pie Recipe
Crock Pot Shepherd’s Pie
Serving Size: 4 -6
Ingredients
- 2 cups mashed potatoes
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup carrots, diced
- 1 pound ground beef
- Seasoned salt, freshly ground black pepper (and your other desired beef seasonings)
- 1/2 cup frozen peas
- 2 splashes Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup beef broth
- Optional: grated cheddar cheese and 2 tbsp minced fresh parsley to sprinkle on top
Instructions
- In a large frying pan, cook the onions and carrots together over low heat until they are softened (approximately 3 – 5 minutes). Put the vegetables aside in a large bowl.
- Then, use the frying pan to brown the ground beef over medium heat until it is no longer pink. (I use seasoned salt, freshly ground black pepper, onion powder and garlic powder to season my ground beef.) Drain the extra liquid from the beef.
- Add the onions and carrots back to the frying pan with the beef. Next, add the peas and mix everything together well. Then, add the Worcestershire sauce and beef broth to the mixture along with another light sprinkling of salt and pepper. Place everything together in a crock pot/slow cooker that has been sprayed with a cooking spray.
- Cover the beef and veggies with an even coat of the mashed potatoes. Be sure to touch all of the edges of the dish with the potatoes.
- Cover and allow the dish to simmer in the crock pot for 6 hours on a low setting.
- Uncover the dish and sprinkle the top with grated cheese if desired.
- Cover and cook the dish in the crock pot for an additional 15 minutes (or until the cheese melts) on a high setting. Sprinkle with parsley right before serving.
Recipe Notes
*You can double the amount of beef broth if you like. Personally, I prefer a drier beef.
*I don’t use any type of butter or oil to cook the vegetables or ground beef. They make their own “juice”.
*You can serve the dish as soon as it finishes cooking. It tastes better if you let it cool to room temperature in my opinion though.
This is a delicious dish that your family can enjoy eating on March 17th – or any day. It allows you to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with no green food coloring required!
If you found this recipe helpful, please share it. Thanks!
