Читать книгу Sophie Conran’s Pies - David Loftus - Страница 15

My daughter, Coco, refused to eat shepherd’s pie until she helped me make one; now she loves it. Kids are strange.

SERVES 6

FOR THE FILLING:

2 tbsp olive oil

a knob of butter

1 red onion, chopped

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

1 large stick celery, chopped

150g (5oz) chestnut mushrooms, chopped

½tsp dried thyme

salt and freshly ground black pepper

400g (14oz) lamb mince

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 handful flat leaf parsley, chopped

1 small glass red wine (about 150ml / 5fl oz)

400g (14oz) tin plum tomatoes

½tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tbsp tomato purée

FOR THE MASH:

6 medium-sized Maris Piper potatoes, peeled and cubed

75ml (2½fl oz) milk

50g (2oz) butter, plus extra for dotting on to the mash

Place the oil and butter in a large pan with a lid over a medium heat. Add the onion and gently fry for 5 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, mushrooms and thyme, and season. Stir through and continue frying gently for another 15 minutes, stirring from time to time.

Add the lamb mince to the pan, breaking it up into large chunks with a wooden spoon. Then add the garlic and parsley and stir them through. Fry the mixture until all the meat has browned and any liquid has evaporated.

Stir in the wine, tinned tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce and tomato purée and stir. Cover the pan and allow it to simmer for 1 hour. Check that the mixture is not burning, sticking or drying out and stir it occasionally, adding a little water if the mixture becomes too dry. Once it is done, taste and season again if necessary.

Meanwhile, prepare the mash by boiling the potatoes in plenty of salted water until they are very soft when poked with a sharp knife. Drain the spuds and mash them. I use a mouli (pictured on page), which makes a lovely lump-free mash. Stir through the milk and butter. You may need a bit more or less milk but you want to end up with a fairly soft mash. Add the salt (you may need more than you think).

When your mixture has simmered for an hour, pour it into your pie dish. Cover the mixture with the mash, then use a fork to rough the surface of the mash into small peaks, which will become lovely and crispy. Dot the mash with butter all over. Place the pie dish in the oven and bake for 35 minutes or until the top is golden.

Serve with buttered peas.