Recipe Background
Grandpa's Skillet Pie offers a comforting blend of savory beef, carrots, and crispy-cheesy potatoes, perfect for sharing.
Grandpa's Skillet Pie brings the comforting aroma of browned onions and sizzling meat filling your kitchen, a nod to simpler times. As the ingredients meld on the stove, the scent of garlic and Worcestershire sauce envelops you, adding warmth to every corner of the room. This rustic dish rewards patience—let the sauce thicken properly, ensuring every spoonful is rich and flavorful as you layer mashed potatoes on top.
Each bite offers a satisfying texture contrast, with tender beef and carrots nestled beneath a golden blanket of cheesy potatoes. The edges of the mashed topping turn irresistibly crispy as it bakes, while the middle stays fluffy, merging harmoniously with the savory base. Be sure to let it cool just a bit, allowing everything to set for the perfect slice—it's worth the wait.
Sharing this pie is like offering a slice of nostalgia. It has a way of bringing new stories to the table alongside old memories. Whether you're cooking for a cozy family dinner or reintroducing older adults to flavors they grew up with, this dish connects generations over the simple joy of good food.
Ingredients
For the mashed potato topping:
- 2 pounds medium russet potatoes peeled and quartered
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup milk
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese shredded
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- parsley chopped, optional, to taste, for garnish
For the beef mixture:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion diced
- 3 medium carrots diced
- 1 pound ground beef or ground lamb
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup peas frozen
- 1 cup beef broth or water
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Add the potatoes to a large pot of salted water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Cook the potatoes until fork tender, about 10-15 minutes.
- Drain the potatoes.
- Use a potato masher or a fork to mash the potatoes.
- Add the butter, the milk, the cheddar cheese, the garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of the pepper to the mashed potatoes and stir well.
- While the potatoes are boiling, heat the olive oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat until it sizzles, about 2 minutes.
- Add the onion and the carrots to the skillet and sauté until fragrant and tender, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add the ground beef to the onion mixture and cook, while crumbling the beef, until it is browned, about 5-7 minutes.
- Add the garlic, the Worcestershire sauce, the Italian seasoning, the paprika, the remaining salt, and the remaining pepper to the ground beef mixture and stir until well-combined.
- Add the flour to the ground beef mixture and stir well until fully-incorporated.
- Add the peas and the beef broth to the ground beef mixture and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens, about 4 minutes.
- Spread the ground beef mixture into an even layer in the skillet and place the skillet on a baking sheet.
- Carefully spoon the mashed potatoes over the top of the ground beef mixture, spreading them out evenly.
- Bake the skillet pie until the top turns golden-brown, about 25-30 minutes.
- Allow the skillet pie to cool for 15 minutes.
- Garnish with the parsley and serve.
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