Shepherd’s pie stuffed potatoes take all the cozy flavors of classic shepherd’s pie and tuck them into perfectly baked russet potatoes. These stuffed baked potatoes have crispy skin, a savory meat filling, and are topped with creamy mashed potatoes that get golden and toasty in the oven.
This is the perfect jacket potato recipe for an easy weeknight dinner or a crowd-pleasing meal. The individual portions make them great for meal prep, and they reheat like a total dream. Plus, they can be made ahead and finished in the oven right before serving!
If you love classic comfort food, these meat-stuffed potatoes are a must-try, especially for St. Patrick's Day! But, if you're more of a corned beef fan, you can opt for these reuben hand pies, corned beef fritters, or cheesy reuben dip to celebrate the holiday, instead.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
Perfect comfort food: fluffy mashed potatoes, rich beef filling, and crispy potato skins make this dish extra satisfying. Plus, it's a great option to serve on St. Patrick's Day!
Make ahead: assemble the potatoes ahead of time and bake when ready to serve. Meal prep, sorted. Badabing badaboom!
Customizable: swap in your favorite ground meat, vegetables, or even cheese for a flavor addition.
Ingredients
- Russet potatoes. Large russet potatoes work best because their thick skin holds up to the filling. Waxy potatoes (Yukon gold, red, etc.) are a no-go for these.
- Ground beef. I used 80/20 beef, but you can use a leaner version (or any type of ground meat) you prefer.
- Vegetables. A bag of mixed frozen vegetables is your best friend here! No chopping, just add it in.
- Tomato paste. This helps to deepen the flavor and color of the stuffed potatoes.
- Worcestershire. I always notice when this ingredient isn't added. It just adds some extra oomph!
- All-purpose flour. This is the thickener for the gravy. You can also use cornstarch (see below).
- Beef stock. This makes a small amount of "gravy" for the beef filling and keeps the inside of the potatoes nice and saucy.
- Sour cream. I love to add a small amount of sour cream to my mashed potatoes for a bit of extra tangy flavor. It helps to cut the richness, and makes them ultra smooth.
See recipe card for full ingredients list and quantities.
Substitutions and Variations
- Meat. Swap ground beef for ground lamb, turkey, or chicken.
- Vegetables. Use your favorites or swap in mushrooms, spinach, or bell peppers.
- Cheese. Sprinkle sharp aged cheddar cheese over the mashed potatoes before baking.
- Loaded. Mix bacon and cheese into the mashed potatoes for an extra indulgent version.
- Thickener. Use 1 tablespoon of cornstarch mixed into 2 tablespoons of water instead of the flour for a gluten-free version.
- Stock. Use chicken stock, vegetable stock, or even water to create the gravy.
How to Make This Recipe
Bake the potatoes in a 400F oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour until tender, then let them cool before you start to make the filling.
One: Brown the ground beef, onions, garlic, herbs, and salt and pepper in a large pan.
Two: Add the tomato paste and worcestershire and stir it in.
Three: Add the vegetables and cook until no longer frozen.
Four: Sprinkle everything with flour and mix, then stir in the stock until thickened. Remove from the heat.
Five: Cut off the tops of the baked potatoes, then scoop out the flesh.
Six: Mash the potatoes with melted butter, milk, sour cream, and salt.
Seven: Add the potatoes to a sheet pan and fill them to the top with the meat filling.
Eight: Pipe or spoon the mashed potatoes on top of each potato, then bake until hot, and finish with a quick broil (on the top rack) to get the tops browned.
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Expert Tips
- Don’t scoop too much. Leave a thin layer of potato inside the skins so they don’t collapse.
- Crispy skin trick. Bake the potato skins for 5 minutes before filling for extra crispiness.
- Use a piping bag. For a fancy touch, pipe the mashed potatoes on top using any textured piping tip. This is optional, but the more texture, the more browning! Or just plop them on top and leave a bunch of cracks and crevices.
- Warm the dairy. The potatoes will be cool by the time you're mashing them, so be sure the butter and milk are hot before mashing them into the potatoes. This will help them be more pliable and pipe or spread onto the stuffed potatoes more easily.
- Make ahead. Assemble the stuffed potatoes and store them in the fridge for up to 24 hours before baking.
Recipe FAQs
Totally. If using pre-made mashed potatoes, just warm them up slightly before topping the stuffed potatoes so they pipe or spread on more easily.
Russets are best because of their sturdy skin and fluffy interior, but you can use smaller potatoes for mini versions. Just be super careful when scooping out the flesh!
That's ok! Finish the job as gently as possible, then wrap the skin in a bit of aluminum foil to keep its structure. Fill, top, then bake accordingly.
Storage
Refrigerator - Store leftover stuffed potatoes in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Reheating
Microwave - Heat in 1-minute intervals until warmed through.
Oven - Bake at 350°F for 15-20 minutes.
What to Know When Cooking with The Cozy Plum
- All recipes are created with Diamond Crystal kosher salt, the least salty variety of kosher salt. If using Morton's, you'll need to cut the amount of salt in half as it's 2x as salty. This will be the same for sea salt. Please do not use table salt.
- Switch between Cups vs Metric using the toggle on the recipe card. Baking by weight using a digital scale will always produce the most accurate results.
- Scale the recipe using the '1X' '2X' '3X' buttons on the recipe card. Note that this does not make an adjustment for baking times, only quantities.
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📖Recipe
Shepherd's Pie Stuffed Potatoes
Equipment
- potato masher
Ingredients
- 6-8 large russet potatoes
- 1 lb ground beef 80/20
- 1 yellow onion finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon crushed dried rosemary
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons worcestershire
- 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables carrots, peas, corn, green beans
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup beef stock
- ½ cup salted butter melted
- ⅔ cup milk
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Wash the potatoes, then pierce the tops with a few pricks of a fork. Bake the potatoes in a 400℉ oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour until a knife pierces into the center and removes easily. Cool until comfortable enough to handle.6-8 large russet potatoes
- Add the ground beef to a large skillet over medium heat and begin breaking it up as it cooks. Add the onion, garlic, rosemary, thyme, salt, and pepper and continue cooking and breaking up the pieces of meat.1 lb ground beef, 1 yellow onion, 2 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon crushed dried rosemary, ½ teaspoon dried thyme, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper
- Once the meat is browned, add the tomato paste and worcestershire, mix it in, and cook for a few minutes, then stir in the frozen mixed vegetables and cook until no longer frozen.2 tablespoons tomato paste, 2 teaspoons worcestershire, 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables
- Sprinkle the flour over the meat and stir to combine, then slowly stir in the beef stock. Allow the mixture to cook and bubble until thickened slightly.2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 1 cup beef stock
- Slice the tops off of the potatoes, then use a spoon to gently remove the flesh from the potato skins. Scrape as much out as possible, but don’t get too close to the skins in order to preserve structural integrity.
- Add the scooped potato to a bowl and mash in the butter, milk, sour cream, and salt until smooth. Taste for seasoning.½ cup salted butter, ⅔ cup milk, ¼ cup sour cream, 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Add the potato skins to a sheet pan lined with foil or parchment, then give a little sprinkle of salt into each cavity.
- Transfer the shepard’s pie filling into each potato until filled to the top.
- Spoon or pipe the mashed potatoes onto the top of each filled potato. The more craggily the tops, the better the browning!
- Bake at 400℉ for 10 minutes. Switch the oven to broil and finish by getting the mashed potatoes nice and brown (move them to the top rack).
- Serve hot.
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