Healthy Shepherd’s Pie (or Cottage Pie)
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For a hearty, comforting and delicious meal, make a healthy Shepherd’s Pie, AKA Cottage Pie! Ground beef or lamb, tender veggies, and fluffy mashed potatoes are oven baked to perfection. This easy St. Patrick’s Day dinner will warm you up from head to toe!
2025 Update: This recipe is still a family favorite and has been updated to simplify the cooking instructions and add extra cooking tips for our readers. We hope you love it as much as we do!
Shepherd’s Pie Recipe
Shepherd’s Pie is an Irish comfort food, traditionally made with ground lamb. When it’s made with ground beef, it’s technically known as Cottage Pie, but here in the U.S., we use both names interchangeably.
So, call it what you want, and make it with ground beef or lamb. Either way, it’s going to be delicious, and I’ll show you how easy it is to make it healthy.
Like my Irish Vegetable Soup, this is one St. Patrick’s Day recipe you’ll make year round!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Healthy comfort food. Many cold weather meals are full of unhealthy carbs and fat, but not this one! This healthy Shepherd’s pie is paleo compliant, and gluten free. Plus, with a couple of tweaks, it’s also low carb and keto friendly!
- Perfect for a quick weeknight dinner. The prep is simple (it can even be made ahead), and because it’s cooked in one pan, clean up is a breeze!
- Special enough to serve to dinner guests. There’s no need to go out to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day when you invite your friends over for this tasty meal.
Want to make other healthy comfort food recipes? Some of my favorites are Instant Pot Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes, Asian Orange Chicken with Broccoli and Bacon Cheeseburger Nachos.
Ingredients
As I just mentioned, this recipe makes either a healthy Shepherd’s Pie or a healthy Cottage Pie. It really just depends on the meat you want to use.
- lean ground beef or ground lamb: If you’ll be using beef, keep it lean by using a blend with no more than 15% fat. A blend of 85/15 has enough fat to make it flavorful while also keeping it moist.
- vegetables: The traditional veggies are carrots, celery, green beans, onions and garlic.
- tomato paste: This adds flavor to the filling and also helps to thicken it a bit.
- coconut aminos: This is a gluten-free and paleo-friendly substitute for Worcestershire sauce.
- beef broth: You can use bone broth or even chicken broth if that’s all you have on hand.
- herbs and spices: You’ll need coarse salt (not iodized table salt), black pepper, dried thyme and dried oregano. I also like to garnish the casserole with fresh thyme leaves.
- full-fat coconut cream: Feel free to substitute with heavy whipping cream if your eating plan allows for it.
- mashed potatoes: We use russet potatoes, with ghee, garlic powder and salt & pepper.
Ingredient Substitutions and Cottage Pie Variations
Keep it paleo friendly: Use either green peas or green beans, a compatible broth, and use dairy-free mashed potatoes. I make mine with ghee and almond milk, so we’re all good!
Make it Keto/Low Carb: Omit the carrots, and substitute the potatoes with cauliflower mash. To increase the fat, sprinkle the top with about 1/2 cup of full-fat cheese.
Cottage Pie: While I love lamb (check out my Italian Lamb Meatballs recipe!), ground beef is a little easier to come by in most grocery stores, so cottage pie is a little more common. But even ground turkey or chicken will work well! If you want to get really fancy, try this Venison Shepherds Pie.
Farmer’s Pie: This is the nickname for a meatless shepherd’s pie. This vegetarian shepherd’s pie with mushrooms, carrots and peas would be a great vegetarian twist twist.
How to Make a Healthy Shepherd’s Pie
This is just a summary of the steps. See the recipe card for the full instructions.
- Brown the meat, and drain the fat if necessary.
- Add the vegetables and sauté with the meat.
- Add the stock, tomato paste, and seasonings.
- Make mashed potatoes or cauliflower mash to spread over the filling.
- Bake until hot and bubbly. Add a little fresh thyme for garnish.
Tips for Success
This incredibly easy shepherd’s pie recipe is going to become a favorite! Here are my tips for making it as tasty as possible.
- Use lean ground meat, or drain the fat if necessary.
- Avoid over mixing the potatoes. Otherwise, they become gummy and pasty
- Taste and season before serving. Some brands of stock are really salty, so you may not need to use additional salt for seasoning.
Storing and Freezing Instructions
If you have leftovers, allow them to cool, then transfer them to an airtight container. In the refrigerator, the shepherd’s pie casserole will keep well for up to 4 days.
FAQ
While both are meat pies topped with mashed potatoes, the main difference is the type of meat used. Shepherd’s pie is the name for a lamb pie, while cottage pie contains beef.
While healthy is subjective, you can make a leaner shepherd’s pie with lighter ingredients. You could use a leaner cut of meat with higher protein. You can pack in more vegetables and use cauliflower mash on top
Other Healthy Dinners
- Egg Roll in a Bowl Skillet
- Swedish Meatballs
- Barbacoa Beef & Plantain Sliders
- Buffalo Ranch Chicken & Cauliflower Casserole
And if you’re planning a Whole30, be sure to take a look at my monthly Whole30 Meal Plan (with weekly printable shopping lists)!
I’d love to hear about your experience making this recipe! Please leave a comment and rating below!
Healthy Shepherd’s Pie
Equipment
- Oven Safe Skillet
Ingredients
Filing
- 1 pound ground beef or ground lamb
- 3 medium carrots
- 1 cup green beans fresh or frozen
- 1 large yellow onion or white onion
- 1 rib celery
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- ¾ cup beef stock or bone broth
- 1 teaspoon coconut aminos
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
Mashed Potato Topping
- 2 pounds russet potatoes (about 6-7 medium potatoes)
- ⅓ cup coconut milk full fat
- 2 tablespoons ghee or clarified butter
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
Video
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Set a large pot of salted water over medium-high heat and bring to a full boil.
- Meanwhile, peel and dice the onion, dice the celery, peel and cut the carrots into coins, and mince the garlic. If using fresh green beans, trim the ends and cut the beans into ½ inch pieces.
- Wash and peel the potatoes. Cut them into 2-inch cubes. Add the potatoes to the boiling water. Cook until the potatoes are fork tender, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the filling.
- Meanwhile, heat an oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the ground meat, breaking it apart as it cooks. Add the onion, carrot, celery, green beans, and garlic, and sauté for 2-3 minutes.
- Stir in the beef stock, tomato paste, herbs, and salt. Continue cooking for another 2-3 minutes.
- When potatoes are fork tender, remove from the heat and drain through a colander. Transfer potatoes to a large mixing bowl.
- To the potatoes, add coconut cream, ghee, salt and pepper. Use a potato masher or electric mixer on medium speed to blend, just until smooth. (Avoid over mixing, which can result in pasty mashed potatoes. If needed, add more coconut milk to reach a creamy consistency.)
- Spread the mashed potatoes evenly over the filling (I like to leave a little open space on the edges so it bubbles over a tiny bit. Those crispy pieces are my favorite!)
- Bake casserole in the preheated oven for 15-18 minutes or until the potatoes begin to get crispy on top.
- Remove from the oven and garnish with additional pepper and/or fresh thyme or parsley, if desired. Divide among four plates and serve while warm.
