This easy shepherd's pie is a hearty, delicious and quick dish perfect for a weeknight family dinner. Made with low in fat ground turkey as well as a generous amount of vegetables, this recipe is proof that great comfort food can also be healthy.
Check out also my vegetarian lentil shepherd's pie.
This easy turkey shepherd's pie is a great cold weather dish, satisfying, delicious and packed with nutritious ingredients. I've modified the traditional recipe by swapping lamb/beef for turkey and bulking up the filling mixture with vegetables. The result is a healthy, satisfying dish that comes together in just over 40 minutes.
Turkey shepherd's pie ingredients
The filling of this easy shepherd's pie consists of ground turkey and popular vegetables including onion, carrot and celery. I cooked these ingredients in chicken stock along with a few other ingredients for added flavour (white wine, tomato puree and thyme) and thickened the sauce with a little flour. This rich and flavourful filling mixture is topped by creamy potato mash and a scatter of grated cheddar for a crispy golden finish.
Equipment you'll need
- Kitchen scale/measuring cup and spoons
- Chopping board, vegetable peeler, knife and grater
- Medium casserole dish (approx. 6 cm deeep)
- Pot for boiling the potatoes and potato masher
- Large pan, spatula and fork
Step-by-step recipe instructions
1. Boil the potatoes in salted water, drain well, add the butter and milk and mash until smooth. Set aside.
2. While you are waiting for the potatoes to cook prepare the rest of the ingredients. In a pan heat up 3 tablespoons of oil, add the onion, garlic and celery and fry for 3 minutes until softened stirring often. Add the wine and cook for another minute.
3. Add the ground turkey and cook for 3 minutes mashing with a fork and breaking up the larger pieces.
4. Add the cubed carrots, stock, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, tomato puree and pepper to taste, stir, cover and cook gently for 15 minutes stirring occasionally. In the meantime preheat the oven to 400 F/ 200 C/ gas mark 6.
5. Add the frozen peas and corn and scatter over the flour. Stir until the sauce thickens and starts bubbling. Remove from the heat and adjust the seasoning if needed.
6. Transfer the mixture into your casserole dish.
7. Top with the mashed potatoes and scatter over the cheese.
8. Bake on the top oven shelf for 20-25 minutes until golden. Remove your turkey shepherd's pie from the oven and serve.
Top tips
- Turkey: Use ground turkey containing approx. 7% fat.
- Potatoes: Use starchy, floury varieties such as Maris Piper, King Edward, Vivaldi, Russet or Yukon Gold. It is important to mash the potatoes while hot for a super creamy consistency.
- Vegetables: Use mixed frozen vegetables for convenience if you like.
- Bake the pie on the top shelf of your oven so it browns nicely and relatively quickly.
- Best served immediately. Refrigerate leftovers, covered, for up to 3 days.
- Freeze for up to 3 months.
You might also like
- Easy Turkey Spaghetti Bolognese
- Vegetarian Sausage Pie with Mushrooms + Sweet Potato
- Quick and Easy Tortilla Bake
- Turkey Lasagna with Vegetables
You might also like this collection of healthy one-pot chicken recipes.
Keep in touch!
If you make this turkey cottage pie I'd love to know how it turned out for you. Have you added any other vegetables into the filling? Let me know in the comments below, thanks:)
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Recipe
Easy Turkey Shepherd's Pie with Vegetables
Equipment
- Large pan with lid
- Medium casserole dish (approx. 6 cm/2½ in deep)
Ingredients
For the topping
- 1½ pounds (700 g) potatoes peeled weight
- ¼ cup+2 tsp (70 ml) milk
- 1 tablespoon (15 g) butter
- ⅓ cup (40 g) cheddar cheese coarsely grated
For the filling
- 1.1 pounds (500 g) ground turkey approx. 7% fat
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 1 celery stalk small, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons white wine
- 2 medium carrots peeled, diced
- 2 tablespoons tomato puree
- 1½ tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1¼ cups (300 ml) chicken stock hot
- ¾ cup (100 g) frozen peas
- ⅔ cup (80 g) corn from a can
- 1 tablespoon flour
- Sea salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Peel and boil the potatoes in salted water, drain well, add the butter and milk and mash until smooth. Set aside.
- While you are waiting for the potatoes to cook prepare the rest of the ingredients. In a pan heat up 2 tablespoons of oil, add the onion, garlic and celery and fry for 3 minutes until softened stirring often. Add the wine and cook for another minute.
- Add the ground turkey and cook for 3 minutes mashing with a fork and breaking up the larger pieces. Add the cubed carrots, stock, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, tomato puree and pepper to taste, stir, cover and cook gently for 15 minutes stirring occasionally. In the meantime preheat the oven to 400 F/ 200 C/ gas mark 6.
- Add the frozen peas and corn and scatter over the flour. Stir until the sauce thickens and starts bubbling. Remove from the heat and adjust the seasoning if needed.
- Transfer the mixture into your casserole dish. Top with the mashed potatoes, scatter over the cheese and bake on the top oven shelf for 20-25 minutes until golden. Remove form the oven and serve.
Notes
- Turkey: Use ground turkey containing approx. 7% fat.
- Potatoes: Use starchy, floury varieties such as Maris Piper, King Edward, Vivaldi, Russet or Yukon Gold. It is important to mash the potatoes while hot for a super creamy consistency.
- Vegetables: Use mixed frozen vegetables for convenience if you like.
- Bake the pie on the top shelf of your oven so it browns nicely and relatively quickly.
- Best served immediately. Refrigerate leftovers, covered, for up to 3 days.
- Freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
*Nutritional information is automatically generated and should be considered as an estimate.
**A note about baking: If using a fan-assisted oven refer to your appliance's instructions and adjust the temperature accordingly.
Wendy says
I made this recipe and it was delicious! Thanks so much. Modifications I made:
I used red and yellow bell peppers instead of celery (that is what I had and it looked prettier)
I used three cloves of garlic (I love garlic)
I used 2 tsp. of thyme
I added 3 T. tomato paste (in addition to the tomato puree)
I used frozen corn
I used gluten free flour
Monika says
You are welcome! Thank you for taking the time to leave feedback:)
Ty says
Hi. Looks great. What do you use the chicken stock for? Not in the cooking instructions.
Monika says
Step 3.
Tina says
Will this work with a 9 by 13 casserole dish? Thanks!
Monika says
The casserole dish I used (in the photos) is approx. 8 by 11 so with a larger dish your pie might be a little flatter. Or you could consider increasing the amounts. Good luck!
Jennifer says
Just made this tonight for dinner. The only thing I did differently was I mixed the cheese into the potatoes instead of sprinkling on top. It was delicious! My husband had two servings!
Monika says
Good idea stirring the cheese into the mash. Thanks for the feedback:)
Julie says
This was a great, warming dish. Easy and perfect for a chilly fall night. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to add the liquid from the pan to the casserole but it looked like it in the photos so I did and it turned out great.
Monika says
Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for the feedback:)
Claire says
I thought this was a pretty good recipe. I use a gravy powder instead of flour for more flavor. I added some extra spices like crushed red pepper, basil, and rosemary. I also used lean ground beef instead of turkey because that's what I had. I also didnt use wine. Turned out great still! Looking forward to the leftovers tomorrow.
Monika says
Sounds delicious! Thank you for your feedback:)
Joan Poulton says
My husband loves traditional cottage pie so I’m very excited to find this recipe as I don’t eat red meat or pork. I’ll let you know how it goes for me.
Monika says
Looking forward to it!
Peg says
Yum! Tripled the recipe. Added 1 tsp salt. Extra thyme, some rosemary, & double the garlic. Everyone loved!
Monika says
Sounds triple delicious! Thanks for sharing your feedback:)
Jennifer Labrum says
We made this last night and it was absolutely delicious! Thanks!
Monika says
Fantastic, thanks for letting me know!
shelley says
I found that this lacked flavour. I had to add alot more tomato paste, worchester sauce. I also had to add some chicken bouliion to get it to taste like anything.
Shel says
Hi me again...one other discrepancy...your instructions show tomato paste, but the list of ingredients says tomato puree. Those 2 are not the same. Which did you use?
shelley says
Hi me again...one other discrepancy...your instructions show tomato paste, but the list of ingredients says tomato puree. Those 2 are not the same. Which did you use?
Monika says
Hi, I used tomato puree, thanks for pointing this out, corrected it now:)
shelley says
I'm confused what to do with the flour. Also you mention a sauce in the instructions, but what sauce are you referring to? please clarify thanks
Monika says
After you've added the peas and corn stir in the flour. As there is already quite a lot of moisture in the mixture this will create the sauce (as shown in the pictures).
Darlene says
Just made your recipe,I loved it, I added dried cranberries, tastes great.
Monika says
Thank you for letting me know! Dried cranberries sound like an interesting addition to this recipe.
Caitlyn says
Can you make this ahead of time the day of keep in fridge then bake later in the evening
Monika says
Yes you can! But make sure it's cooled completely before refrigerating it. Also since this dish will be going into the oven chilled you may have to bake it a few minutes longer to ensure it's hot throughout.
Kristy Ruppe Craddock says
Made it this evening, and made some mods based on items I wanted to use up on hand. I added fresh mushrooms, green beans, and used beef stock in place of chicken. I also replaced mashed potatoes with mashed cauliflower and it came together deliciously. I realize I took lots of narrative liberties, but I assure you it wouldn’t have worked without a flawless framework provided here! Thanks for a great recipe! Bravo💯💯
Monika says
I love the mods! Especially the cauliflower mash. Glad my recipe inspired this new creation. Really appreciate the feedback:)
London says
I’m 12 years old and made this all by myself! I’m not no master chef just an ordinary kid. Quite easy and cheep! It was delicious!!!!
Monika says
Well done! Glad you liked it:)
candace says
Made without the wine, still pretty damn good 👍🏻👍🏻
Monika says
Glad they turned out ok for you. Thanks for the feedback!
Justyna says
You got my full attention with this one! I LOVE it! My partner is one big pie fan and I already know he's going to be over the moon with your brilliant pie! I normally make 8-10 of pies at a time and freeze them, so he can just dip down into the freezer when I'm away for a healthy + homemade meal. A new pie is going to be such a nice surprise for him! Thanks so much for sharing! 🙂 x
Monika says
Thank you! I hope he likes this new pie:)
Justyna says
Looking at the ingredients and how you constructed things, I have no doubt!
Nicole says
Wow! This was my first time making shepherds pie and it was very tasty! My boyfriend loved it and is already excited for tomorrow’s leftovers! Thanks for the recipe!
Monika says
You are very welcome! Glad you both liked it. Thanks for the feedback:)
dtills says
I love the look of this dish! Much more appealing than a standard sheppard's pie look 🙂
Monika says
Thank you!
Balvinder says
This looks delicious! I’m thinking about making this sometime next month,
Monika says
Thank you! Do let me know how it turns out:)
Donna (@bobsysmum) says
ooo I love shepherds pie, but I always tend to stick to the basics! This sounds awesome and the potatoes look so pretty! #CookBlogShare
Monika says
Thank you! I like to modify tried and tested recipes so I don't end up cooking the same thing in the same way all the time.