Delicious Cottage Pie

Cottage pie is perfect comfort food. Rich, creamy, cheesy mashed potato on top of mince in unctuous gravy. For me, the secret is an over abundance of Irish butter. My rule of thumb is keep adding it until you think you've put too much in, then double the amount. So, not an everyday dish, but a great treat now and then. I like to add soy sauce and fish sauce, not enough that you taste them, but  just so they add their umami flavours to the dish.

INGREDIENTS

120g potato

700g beef mince

2 onions

3 carrots

50g frozen peas

2Tbsp soy sauce

2Tbsp fish sauce

2Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 glass red wine

1/2 stock cube

20g cheddar cheese

10g parmesan cheese

Enough butter to grease a large pig

Instructions:

1: Pre-heat the oven to 200 C. Wash your potatoes, and peel if you prefer. If some are significantly larger than others, cut them so they are all roughly the same size. Place in a steamer and cook for 20-25 minutes until soft. Transfer to a bowl, and mash. Add salt, pepper and as much butter as you like (I recommend a lot). Add the grated cheddar cheese and fold into the mash.

2: Brown the mince in a frying pan. If your pan is too small, brown it in batches so as not to over crowd the pan. Transfer to a bowl.

3: Finely chop the onions and add to the pan with a bit of oil. Dice the carrots and add them as well. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the onion has started to brown and the carrots soften.

4: Add the mince back to the pan. Add the sauces, wine, and stock cube with a bit of warm water. Stir, then adjust the seasonings to your taste. Keep cooking to thicken the sauce, adding more water if needed. You're aiming for nice, rich gravy for the mince.

5; Pour the mince into an oven proof dish. Layer the mash on top and spread it evenly. Take this opportunity to add more butter on top. Sprinkle on the parmesan, and place the dish in the oven for 30 minutes, until the top is crisp and brown. Serve with a salad, in a vain attempt to make up for all that butter.

                                                       

TIPS

• When cooking the potatoes, I prefer to steam them; by cooking them this way, the potatoes don't absorb too much water, leading to fluffier mash. If you don't have a steamer, just boil them.
• Before placing in the oven, run a fork over the surface of the mash to make little ridges. This helps to make a crispy surface, and increases the surface area for absorbing even more butter.
• For the stock, I like using Marigold stock powders. Since they come in powder form, it's easier to gauge how much to add and adjust to your taste. Even better though, if you have some home made stock to hand, use that instead.
• Butter. More butter.