Beef and Lentil Cottage Pie
with stemmed tenderstem broccoli and sweetcorn
Serves 4
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
Ingredients
For the base of the pie:
2 tbsp olive oil
200g red onion
200g carrot
200g celery
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp tomato purée
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp thyme
125g dried red lentils
200g beef mince
500-750ml beef stock
200g frozen peas
For the mashed potatoes:
400g white potatoes
400g sweet potatoes
250ml milk (dairy or alternative)
2 tbsp olive oil
Method
Step 1: Gather and prepare your ingredients. Preheat the oven to 200c/180c fan.
Step 2: Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pan. Add the onions, carrots and celery with a light sprinkle of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, for 5-6 minutes, until softened.
Step 3: Add the garlic, tomato puree, Worcestershire sauce and thyme. Cook for 1-2 minutes until darkened and fragrant.
Step 4: Add the red lentils and beef and stir to coat. Chop up the beef with the back of a spatula (the beef doesn’t need to fully cook at this stage).
Step 5: Add the stock, bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 10-12 minutes, until tender. Add more stock if needed, you want the mixture to be a little saucy but not excessively so. (When cooking the beef, cook uncovered).
Step 6: Add the peas at the end and cook for about 1 minute, just until defrosted.
Step 7: Meanwhile, place the potatoes into a saucepan and cover with cold water. Add a generous pinch of salt. Bring to the boil and cook for 17-20 minutes until tender. Drain well. (Allow the potatoes to sit in the colander for several minutes to steam. The drier your potatoes are at this stage, the creamier your mash will be).
Step 8: While the potatoes are draining, place the milk and olive oil into the pan over a low heat. Heat for 2-3 minutes, just until shivering but do not let it bubble.
Step 9: Turn off the heat and add the cooked potatoes to the pan with the milk. Mash until smooth and creamy. Adjust seasoning to taste. (Don’t worry if it appears wet at first. Potatoes absorb a lot of liquid and they will dry out further in the oven. As there is a fairly little amount of added fat in this mash you need a lot of liquid to avoid a grainy texture.
Step 10: Spoon the mashed potatoes over the base. (if desired, use a fork to create grooves in the mashed potatoes.
Step 11: Bake for 30-35 minutes, until golden brown and bubbling at the edges. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving.
Step 12: Enjoy!
