Cottage Pie in Twice Baked Jacket Potato

During my years in the UK, I learnt how to cook lots of British & Irish dishes.  Cottage pie was one of the first dishes that I learnt from British people.

Cottage pie is a simple weekday evening meal for the busy British family.  For housewives, they can prepare it in their limited spare moments from child care and housework, and for professional couples, either husband or wife (whichever one comes home before the other after the long day at work) can cook it for their partner and family without extra effort.  It is still a hearty and filling dish and everyone's favourite.

Though cottage pie was originally one of Britain's clever cooking inventions in ensure no waste of the leftovers from roast beef, nowadays most people cook it with raw meat. For your information, the term for cottage pie is to cook with beef and a similar dish cooked with lamb is to be called shepherd's pie.

In this blog, I am introducing a variation of cottage pie which is cooked in a twice baked jacket potato and served with gravy.


Ingredients for 2 people
(jacket potatoes)
2 large russet potatoes
1 tablespoon butter
3 tablespoon milk

(filling)
olive oil
1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 medium sized onion, chopped finely
1 small carrot, peeled, chopped finely
1/4 green bell pepper, seeded, membrane removed, then chopped finely
3 brown mushrooms, the end of stems removed, chopped finely
3 OXO beef stock cubes, diluted in 2 1/2 cups of hot water
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon Lee & Perrins Worcestershire sauce
1/2 nutmeg, grated
salt & black pepper to taste
1/2 cup chopped parsley

(other)
2 oz grated Cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon pale dry sherry or brandy
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, dissolved in 2 tablespoons water


Instructions
Wash the potatoes and lightly pat-dry with kitchen paper.  Wrap the potatoes individually with a kitchen paper and cook in the microwave at 1000W for 8 minutes (flip them over once during cooking in the microwave).

Remove the kitchen paper and place the potatoes on an ovenable tray, turning the potatoes over, so the top side in the microwave becomes the bottom side in the oven.  Cook in a preheated oven at 400F for 20 minutes or until tender when tested with a skewer.

While baking the potatoes, heat a little amount of olive oil in a frying pan (if you are cooking more fatty beef in a non-stick frying pan, you can omit the oil) add the meat and cook for 6 - 7 minutes or until no longer red and any excess water has come out of the meat.  Drain through kitchen paper, discard the mysterious water and set aside.

Clean the frying pan with paper and heat some more olive oil.  Add the onion and cook for 4 - 5 minutes or until becomes soft, then add the garlic, carrot, bell pepper and mushroom and cook for a further 3- 4 minutes until the volume of the vegetables reduces by half.

Return the beef, add the beef stock and bring to a boil.  Add the tomato paste, Lee & Perrins Worcestershire sauce and grated nutmeg.  Season with salt and black pepper, then cook for 7 - 8 minutes or until the liquid has reduced a bit and slightly thickened.

Add the parsley, mix well, then remove from the heat and strain the filling through a colander to separate from the stock.  Reserve the stock for the gravy.

When the potatoes are done, remove them from the oven and, while they are still hot, wearing a pair of oven gloves,vertically cut them in half. With a spoon, scrape off the flesh to a mixing bowl being careful to not break the potato skins.

Add the butter and milk to the potato flesh and mash well to make a creamy mashed potato.

Fill the potato skins with the beef filling and cover with the mashed potato.  Sprinkle the cheese all over the jacket potatoes and bake in a preheated oven at 400F for 20 minutes or until the cheese melts and browns.

While baking the jacket potatoes, put the stock separated from the filling in a small pan and place on a medium heat.  Bring to a boil, season with salt and black pepper if necessary, then add the sherry or brandy.  Reduce the heat to simmer and, stirring well, gradually add the flour to thicken the gravy.  Increase the heat to medium and cook for 1 minute.

Serve the jacket potatoes hot with the gravy.

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Below is the Japanese version of the recipe.  If you would like to read this recipe in Japanese with pictures covering every step, please click HERE.

Bon appetit!


＜材料　３～４人分＞

じゃがいも、ジャケットポテトに適したジャンボサイズ．．．２～３個（普通サイズのじゃがいも６個）
バター．．．１０～１５ｇ
低脂肪牛乳．．．大さじ３

（フィリング）
牛ミンチ．．．２２５ｇ
オリーブオイル．．．適宜（脂肪の多いミンチなら焦げ付かないフライパン利用でノンオイル調理可）
たまねぎ、粗みじん切り．．．大１／２個
にんにく、細かく刻む．．．２かけ
人参、皮を剥き細かく刻む．．．細いもの１／２本
パプリカ、種を抜き白い薄膜を取り除いて細かく刻む．．．１／４個
マッシュルーム、石突を取り除き細かく刻む．．．３個
OXOキューブ、６００ｍｌの湯で溶く．．．３個（味の素固形コンソメなら同量の湯で２個を溶く）
トマトペースト．．．大さじ１
リー＆ペリンウスターシャーソース．．．大さじ１
ナツメグの削ったもの．．．１／２個分（もしくはナツメグパウダー小さじ１）
塩ブラックペッパー．．．適宜
パセリのみじん切り．．．１／２カップ

（その他）
チェダーチーズもしくはピザ用細切りチーズ．．．４０～５０ｇ
シェリー酒またはブランディー．．．大さじ１（どちらもなければ不要）
水溶き小麦粉．．．大さじ１の小麦粉を大さじ２の水で溶いたもの


＜作り方＞
１．じゃがいもは皮ごと食べれるようにたわしで綺麗に洗って汚れを落とす。ペーパーでパットドライ程度に軽く水分を取り、キッチンペーパーに包んで１０００Wの電子レンジで約１０分加熱する。

２．レンジで底になっていた面が上になるようにオーブントレーにじゃがいもを並べ、２００度で予熱を済ませたオーブンで２５～３０分、または竹串がすっと通るようになるまで焼く。 

３．じゃがいもを焼いている間にフィリングの準備をする。必要に応じ少量のオリーブオイルをフライパンに熱し牛ミンチをほぐしながら炒める。赤みがなくなり芯まで火が通ったら、穴のあいたお玉でペーパーの上に取り出す。鍋の底に残った水分は処分し、ペーパーで汚れを拭き取る。

４．フライパンにオリーブオイルを熱したまねぎを炒める。しんなりしてきたら、にんにく、人参、パプリカ、マッシュルームを加えて炒める。野菜のボリュームが半減するくらいまでよく炒める。

５．４に牛肉を戻す。熱湯で溶いたスープキューブを加え、煮立ってきたらトマトペースト、ウスターシャーソース、ナツメグを加え、塩、ブラックペッパーで味を調える。そのまま７～８分、スープの量が少し減るまで煮詰める。 

６．５にパセリを加え全体に混ぜ合わせたら火からおろす。 

７．ボウルにざるを載せ、６を具と煮汁を分ける。 

８．じゃがいもが焼きあがったら、やけどをしないように注意しながら、熱い内に縦半分に切り分け身をくり抜く。くりぬいた身が熱い内にバターを加えて溶かし、牛乳を加えながらクリーミーなマッシュポテトに仕上げる。 

９．７の具を８のじゃがいもの皮に６等分して詰める。 

１０．９の表面をたっぷりのマッシュポテトで被い、チーズをまぶして、２００度で予熱を済ませたオーブンで２０分、またはチーズが溶け、表面がこんがり色づくまで焼く。

１１．グレービーを作る。７の煮汁を火にかけ、煮立ったら水溶き小麦粉で好みの濃度にとろみをつける。（目安は、デミグラスソースよりは薄い！）

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