Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie

4.89 from 17 votes

This lightened up version of classic shepherd's pie features a delicious, savory filling made with lean ground beef and plenty of veggies. It's topped off with a pillowy cloud of mashed sweet potatoes. This skillet shepherd's pie is healthy, hearty comfort food at its best. Your family will love it!

Prep Time20

Cook Time45

Total Time1 5

Course: Entree, Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 393kcal

Author: Dr. Sonali Ruder

Equipment

Ingredients

Filling:

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1.25 pounds 93% lean ground beef (can use ground lamb or turkey)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons dried parsley (or 2 tablespoons fresh)
1 teaspoon dried thyme (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
1 teaspoon dried rosemary (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
¼ cup tomato paste
1 ½ tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (substitute gluten-free flour to keep this recipe gluten free)
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup unsalted beef stock or broth
2 cups frozen peas and carrots

Sweet Potato Topping:

2.5 pounds sweet potatoes, scrubbed clean (about 4 large potatoes)
4 tablespoons 2% milk
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
¼ teaspoon kosher salt

Optional garnishes: flaky sea salt, fresh herbs

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375°F.
To make the filling, heat the oil in a 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, mushrooms, and garlic and cook until slightly softened 5-6 minutes.
Add the ground beef and cook, breaking it up with a spoon, until it is browned. Add the salt, pepper, parsley, thyme, rosemary, tomato paste, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine well.
Stir the flour and beef stock together in a small bowl. Pour the mixture into the skillet. Cook a couple of minutes until the sauce thickens. Stir in the frozen peas and carrots and cook another few minutes. Taste the filling and adjust seasoning as needed.
To make the sweet potato topping, pierce the sweet potatoes all over with a fork. Place them on a plate and microwave 8-10 minutes until soft, turning them over halfway through. Let the potatoes cool slightly.
Cut the potatoes in half and scoop out the flesh. Place the flesh in a food processor with the butter, milk, and salt. Purée until smooth. Alternatively, you can mash it all together in a bowl with a potato masher or fork.
Spread the sweet potato topping evenly over the filling, covering the entire surface all the way to the edges. If you don't have a cast iron skillet or oven-safe skillet, you can transfer the filling to a casserole dish before adding the sweet potato topping.
Bake the shepherd's pie in the oven 20-25 minutes until filling is warm and topping is lightly browned. Remove from oven and garnish with herbs and sea salt, if desired. Cool 10-15 minutes before serving.

Notes

This sweet potato shepherd's pie freezes very well! To freeze, assemble the dish in a 9x9-inch square casserole dish rather than a skillet. Let it cool completely, then wrap in plastic wrap and foil and place in the freezer. It can be frozen up to 3 months.

To reheat frozen shepherd's pie, let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Then bake it in the oven at 375F for 25-30 minutes until the filling is hot. You can bake it directly from frozen but it will take longer, about one hour. If heating a frozen shepherd's pie, cover it with foil for the first 30-40 minutes, then remove the foil and continue to cook another 20-30 minutes until the filling is hot.

You can use ground turkey or lamb instead of beef. You can even use veggie crumbles or lentils if you want to make this shepherd's pie vegetarian or vegan (you can substitute vegan butter and nondairy milk too).

Mix up the seasonings to your liking. I make a TexMex version of this dish with chili powder and cumin in the filling- the smoky flavors complement the sweet potatoes perfectly.

Nutrition