A delicious twist on a family classic, this Curried Shepherd’s Pie with a Sweet Potato Mash Topping is going to be your new favourite midweek meal! Subtly flavoured with Indian spices and topped with nutritious sweet potato, this recipe takes shepherd’s pie to a whole new level – plus this version can be ready in under 40 minutes, making it a brilliant choice for busy weeknights.
Shepherd’s pie is a fabulous British tradition – easy, thrifty, speedy and delicious – it’s midweek cooking at its finest, but I felt it was high time to give this humble British classic a bit of a makeover and take it to the next level – with some added spice…
I am currently working with the ‘LAMB. Tasty Easy Fun’ campaign, as one of their Lambassadors, helping share my love of lamb and showing how easy peasy lamb is to cook with.
One thing I love about lamb is that is goes so well with all sorts of different flavourings – herbs, spices, chilli and lots of different vegetables too – it is so flexible! One of my favourite flavour combinations with lamb is Indian spices – so to make this shepherd’s pie even more exciting, I have added cumin, ginger, garam masala, turmeric and chilli – all flavours which really complement the lamb and make this shepherd’s pie extra delicious.
Then instead of traditional mash, I have topped this pie with sweet potato mash instead – not only does the sweet potato go brilliantly with lamb and Indian spices, but it also counts as one of your 5 a day, making this shepherd’s pie that little bit healthier. As a bonus, this pie contains no dairy, gluten, eggs or nuts, making it suitable for many free from diets too.
To speed things up and make less washing up – I have cooked this dish all in one pan. I have used my trusty cast iron sauté pan, but any pot or pan that can go on the hob and under the grill will do. I simply cook the mince and spices up in the pan, top with the sweet potato mash and them pop the pie under the grill for 10 minutes to brown the top. Much less time-consuming than the traditional oven cooked method.
If you are really short of time, you could miss out the grilling step altogether and simply serve the curried mince with the sweet potato mash straight out onto the plates, cutting 10 minutes off the cooking time!
I have chosen to serve my shepherd’s pie with peas for a super simple midweek supper – but broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and sweetcorn would all work well here. To make things even easier you could throw the frozen peas directly into the mince mixture for the last 5 minutes of cooking time – meaning one less pan to wash!
This is also a great meal to make ahead of time – or you could make extra and freeze in ovenproof containers – then they can simply be defrosted and popped in the oven for a zero effort meal later in the month! If heating from cold, I recommend cooking for 30 minutes in the oven, pre-heated to 180C (160C fan/ gas mark 4 / 350F).
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Curried Shepherd’s Pie with Sweet Potato Mash Topping
Ingredients
Sweet Potato Mash Topping
- 1 kg sweet potatoes chopped into small chunks (leave the skins on for added goodness)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Black pepper to taste
Curried Lamb Filling
- 2 tablespoons rapeseed or olive oil
- 1 onion diced
- 500 g lamb mince
- 3 cloves garlic crushed or grated
- 3 cm fresh ginger grated
- 1 teaspoon dried chilli flakes (or to taste)
- 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
- 2 teaspoons turmeric
- 2 teaspoons garam masala
- 400 g tin chopped tomatoes
- Salt and pepper to taste
To serve
- Your favourite vegetables (I served mine with peas)
- Your favourite pickles and chutneys (Mango chutney would be very good here!)
Instructions
- Put the sweet potato chunks into a large saucepan and pour over enough boiling water to cover, bring back to the boil and then simmer for 15 minutes until the sweet potato is tender. Drain and mash with a little salt and pepper.
- While the sweet potato is cooking, put the oil in a wide, shallow grill proof pan (I used a cast iron sauté pan) and add the onions, fry on a low heat with the lid on for 3 minutes until softened.
- Remove the lid and turn up the heat. Add the lamb mince and brown for 3 minutes, then turn the heat back down again and add the garlic, ginger, chilli, cumin, turmeric and garam masala, cook for a further 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the chopped tomatoes and bring to the boil, then turn down and simmer for 10 minutes. Turn your grill on to medium-high to heat up.
- Remove the mince from the heat and spread the mashed sweet potato over the top – place under the pre-heated grill for 10 minutes until nicely browned on top. If your grill is a bit uneven, the pie might need to be turned around after 5 minutes to ensure even browning.
- While the shepherd’s pie is under the grill, quickly cook your peas (or whatever vegetable you are having to accompany your shepherd’s pie).
- When the pie is nicely browned on top, serve with the veggies and any pickles or chutneys you like.
Notes
This is a collaborative post with the ‘LAMB. Tasty Easy Fun’ campaign. ‘LAMB. Tasty Easy Fun’ is an EU funded campaign which aims to increase the use of lamb in everyday cooking. Lamb is often considered difficult to cook, expensive, or something to be saved for Sunday roasts. The aim of the campaign is to demonstrate just how tasty, easy and fun lamb is to cook with every day of the week!
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Nichole Goodland says
This looks so yummy. I just love finding new recipes to try.
🙂 x
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Nichole 🙂 Eb x
Corina says
This looks great Eb! I have to say I love lamb with spices and this sounds like such a tasty shepherds pie. I know my little boy would love it too as he’s a big sweet potato fan. Thank you so much for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice x
Eb Gargano says
Haha – I thought when I was linking this one up to #CookOnceEatTwice that it was really up your street. It is such a great crowd pleaser – my kids wolfed it down (though that may be partly due to the fact I took so long taking the photos that they were starving!!!) Thanks for the kind comments. Eb x
debbie says
Love the idea of using sweet potato mash!! I’m a big fan of the sweet potato so will definitely have to give this a go. I always find Shepherds pie so comforting as well, and imagine its extra good with all those warming spices – thanks for the fabulous idea!!
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Debbie! Sweet potato mash goes so well with lamb and spices – I love regular shepherd’s pie but this one is even better! And yes you are right, all those warming spices make it perfect for chilly days when all you want is comfort food!! Eb x
Sarah James @ Tales From The Kitchen Shed says
What a delicious twist on a shepherd’s pie Eb, I love Indian spices and what a good idea to use sweet potato mash. x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Sarah, it really works so well – the lamb, the spices, the sweet potato mash – it really is a very happy combination, and so easy! Eb x
Mandy says
This looks delicious. I have a veggie shepherds pie recipe that uses Indian spices too – but not with sweet potato mash – must try that #CookBlogShare
Eb Gargano says
Oooh yes you should – the sweet potato goes so well with the spices! Thanks for your lovely comments 🙂 Eb x
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
Ooh scrummy! I love a shepherds pie (or in our case what ever they call a vege shepherd’s pie – shepherdless?) – but topped with sweet potato and then grilled rather than oven baked – not that is inspired! I had to smile too at your pic after you’d made the pretty fork pattern ontop of the potato – it’s just how mum does it 🙂
Angela x
Eb Gargano says
Haha – I once made a Quornherds pie for the blog 🙂 I can just imagine the Quornherd rounding up all those little Quorns!! 😉 The sweet potato on top works really well and I love how quick and easy grilling makes this pie. Cooking in the oven makes sense when the Shepherd’s Pie needs heating up from cold, but always feels a bit unnecessary when all the components are already piping hot and edible. I always do the fork pattern – I love how rustic it looks. Somehow feels more ‘right’ with this kind of simple dish than piping! Thank you for your lovely comments 🙂 Eb x
Monika Dabrowski says
I love the fact that this shepherds pie has curry spices and sweet potato mash, which also includes the skin! I always peel sweet potatoes but I’ll leave the skin on next time, especially if it gets pureed. I am one of those people who don’t cook lamb very often, but it’s ideal in curry dishes and that’s something I cook a lot of, so I should try to include it in my cooking a bit more as it really is so tasty.
Eb Gargano says
I very rarely peel sweet potatoes these days…if it is mashed you hardly notice and if it is roasted I actually like it even better with the skin on. In this dish you just don’t notice it at all, yet you gain all the health benefits and it’s easier! I totally agree about lamb being great in curries – it just goes so well with all the flavours! Thanks for your kind comments 🙂 Eb x
Chloe says
Hi, I do like a shepherd’s pie. I’ve never tried it with sweet potato before and I love the twist of the added curry flavour. I shall be giving this a try, Chloe #freefromfridays
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Chloe 🙂 Oooh you have to try it with sweet potato – it is such a fab combo!! Eb x
Andy says
This is so delicious and the mince mixture smells divine when cooking. It’s become a regular weekday meal in our house. I’ve taken to adding a couple of handfuls of peas in with the lamb mince (keema peas/keema mattar) and then adding another vegetable such as broccoli on the side. You can’t get enough veggies!
Eb Gargano says
Yay! So pleased you like this recipe so much. Totally agree about how good it smells! And love the idea of using peas in the mix and serving with extra veg. As you say – you can never have too many veggies! Eb 🙂
Kat says
I used leftover lamb roast diced, and add peas and carrots to the mixture. It made the most delicious dinner I have had in a long time. Thanks for posting this amazing recipes.
Eb Gargano says
Thanks so much for this lovely comment – I am delighted that you liked it so much. Love your adaptations too! Eb ?
Karen says
Made this with leftover lamb- which was already cooked of course. So, I ran the meat through the food processor and added it when everything else was cooked- just enough to heat it up. It’s a delicious way to use leftover lamb. Thanks for the recipe!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, yay! I am so pleased you liked this. Great tips for making this recipe with leftover lamb! Eb 🙂
Vivien Mary Proudfoot says
Looking forward to trying your recipe with left over Lamb. But can you tell me how spicy this is, as my husband doesn’t like his food too spicy.
Eb Gargano says
Good to hear! I would say it is mild-medium (though it does depend on the brand of chilli flakes you use) If you want to ensure it’s not too spicy, I recommend you start with maybe only 1/2 or even 1/3 of a teaspoon of chilli flakes and see how you get on. You can always add extra chilli flakes if it’s not spicy enough! Hope that helps… and let me know how you get on! Eb 🙂
Nancy S says
My favorite thing to make with leftover lamb is shepherd’s pie, but my husband has never really been a big fan and was also recently diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, so he’s really been avoiding white potatoes. I initially found your regular shepherd’s pie recipe and was trying to figure out how to get around the white potatoes for him when I saw the link to this recipe. It was the perfect solution and was a hit with my family.
I had to leave the chili flakes out in deference to my 93 year old mother in law who doesn’t tolerate anything spicy, but my husband cut up some fresh hot peppers for those who wanted them.
I also incorporated my vegetables right into the recipe instead of serving them on the side. I just used a basic frozen vegetable mix (peas, corn, carrots, green beans and Lima beans – very common in the United States and I had enough on hand.)
Eb Gargano says
Aw, so great to hear that this recipe means that all of your family can enjoy shepherd’s pie together. And I love the idea of adding a simple frozen vegetable mix to make this meal even easier! Thank you for this lovely review and especially the 5* rating 😀