Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie Recipe (2024)

Shepherd’s pie is the ultimate comfort food. Made with simple ingredients, this Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie is a healthy, hearty meal for a cozy night at home. A layer of seasoned ground beef and vegetables topped with buttery mashed sweet potatoes is a deliciously satisfying meal all in one cast iron skillet.

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Shepherds pie is one of our favorite easy weeknight dinners, especially this time of year. It is a delicious combo of hearty meats and vegetables topped with fluffy sweet potatoes and baked to bubbly perfection. My go-to recipes are the ones that only call for simple ingredients I almost always have on hand, and this is one of them. Another thing I love about it is that it is all made in one skillet, so it’s light on the dishes.

Spring is trying to “spring” here in Wisconsin, but the snow just keeps lingering, so we just keep on cozy cooking! I’m super looking forward to lighter, summer meals with all those hearty vegetables from the garden. But the persistent winter is blessing us with more opportunities to share a comforting meal around our table before we welcome a warmer season.

ingredients you’ll need for sweet potato shepherd’s pie

Meat and Vegetable Layer:

• 1 yellow onion
• 1 lb ground beef
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 – 8 oz bag frozen mixed veggies (carrots, peas, green beans and corn)
• 1 C beef or chicken broth
• 1/4 C Worcestershire sauce
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 2 Tbsp all purpose flour

Sweet Potato Layer:

• 4-5 sweet potatoes
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 C freshly grated parmesan cheese

tools you’ll need:

• Stock Pot
• Cast Iron Skillet
• Measuring Cups
• Measuring Spoons
• Wooden Spoon
• Potato Masher
• Cheese Grater

how to make sweet potato shepherd’s pie

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Fill a stock pot 3/4 of the way full with hot water and heat on the stove on high.
3. While you’re waiting for the water to boil, get a large skillet heating on the stove over medium-high heat, with 2 Tbsp of avocado oil.
4. Add a chopped yellow onion and 1 lb ground beef to the skillet. Add 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp garlic powder and 1/2 tsp black pepper. Chop the beef into small pieces and stir frequently as it browns.
5. After the water is boiling in the stock pot, add the peeled, cubed sweet potatoes and cook until they’re soft all the way through.
6. Back to the cast iron skillet: After the meat is browned, drain the excess grease and then return to the heat. Add the broth, Worcestershire sauce and tomato paste. Add frozen vegetables. Stir every minute or so to make sure nothing is burning to the bottom of your pan. Allow the sauce to simmer for 4-5 minutes. Then, sprinkle 2 Tbsp flour over the meat and vegetables. Stir and let the sauce continue to simmer until it thickens slightly.
7. After the sweet potatoes are soft, drain the water. Mash the sweet potatoes with 4 Tbsp butter, salt and garlic.
8. Remove the cast iron skillet from the heat, and cover the vegetable and beef mixture with the mashed sweet potatoes. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over the sweet potato mash.
9. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes, until the sauce is bubbly and the sweet potatoes have started to brown.
10. Serve with fresh sourdough bread or biscuits.

Don’t forget to make these Sourdough Buttermilk Biscuits and Raw Milk Butter to go along with your Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie!

can fresh vegetables be substituted for frozen?

You can definitely use fresh vegetables in this recipe instead of a bag of frozen mixed veggies. If you are using fresh, cut them down so they are pretty small and cut the carrots finely. Then, allow them to cook in the sauce a little longer than the suggested time to make sure they’re soft when you serve the shepherd’s pie.

make ahead method-

​This recipe works great if you like to meal prep at the beginning of the week! It’s also a great freezer meal.

1-2 Days Ahead: Store in Refrigerator

• When ready to serve,cover and bakein a350° oven for 35 minutes.

1-2 Months Ahead: Store in Freezer

• Let it thaw completelyand store in an airtight container.
• When ready to serve, let it thaw overnight, thencover and bakein a350° oven for 30 minutes.
• OR, cover and bake the frozen pie at350° oven for 1 hour.

variations of this recipe

-Try different ground meat, such as ground lamb or lean ground turkey.

-Add in some different veggies! In addition to the frozen mixed vegetables, I often throw in some more vegetables from the fridge that need to be used up.

-If you don’t have an oven safe skillet, you can dump the veggie and meat mixture into a casserole dish and top with mashed sweet potatoes. Bake according to the recipe’s instructions.

-This recipe also works well with regular potatoes. We prefer sweet potatoes, but you can use any combo of white potatoes, golden or baby red potatoes too.

try another favorite comfort food

Sourdough Chicken Pot Pie

printable recipe card:

Sweet Potato Ground Beef Shepherd's Pie

Yield: 5 servings

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 lb ground beef
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 - 8 oz bag frozen mixed veggies (carrots, green beans, peas and corn)
• 1 C beef or chicken broth
• 1/4 C Worcestershire sauce
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 2 Tbsp all purpose flour
• 4-5 medium sized sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 C freshly grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Fill a stock pot 3/4 of the way full with hot water and heat on the stove on high.
3. While you’re waiting for the water to boil, get a cast iron skillet heating on the stove over medium heat with 2 Tbsp of avocado oil.
4. Add a chopped yellow onion and 1 lb ground beef to the skillet. Add 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp garlic powder and 1/2 tsp black pepper. Chop the beef into small pieces with a wooden spoon and stir frequently as it browns.
5. After the water is boiling in the stock pot, add the peeled, cubed sweet potatoes and cook until they're soft all the way through.
6. Back to the cast iron skillet: After the meat is browned, drain the excess grease and then return to the heat. Add the broth, Worcestershire sauce and tomato paste. Add frozen vegetables. Stir every minute or so to make sure nothing is burning to the bottom of your pan. Allow the sauce to simmer for 4-5 minutes. Then, sprinkle 2 Tbsp flour over the meat and vegetables. Stir and let the sauce continue to simmer until it thickens slightly.
7. After the sweet potatoes are soft, drain the water. Mash the sweet potatoes with 4 Tbsp butter, salt and garlic.
8. Remove the cast iron skillet from the heat, and cover the meat and vegetable layer with the mashed sweet potatoes. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over the sweet potatoes.
9. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes, until the sauce is bubbly and the sweet potatoes have started to brown.
10. Serve with fresh sourdough bread or biscuits.

Notes

Fresh veggies can be used instead of frozen, just cut them down into small pieces and give them time to cook through before adding the sweet potatoes.

Ground turkey is a good substitute for ground beef in this recipe! Add an additional 2 Tbsp of avocado oil to the cast iron skillet before browning, as ground turkey has much less naturally occurring fat.

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