Canada's food guide
Turkey and lentil shepherd’s pie
This must-try family-friendly version of Shepherd's pie is as comforting as the one prepared with ground beef. Serve with a green salad (see tip for vinaigrette).
Prep time
20 min
Cook time
10 min
Servings
6
Ingredients
- 5 large potatoes (about 1kg/2 ¼ lb), washed and cubed
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 450 g (1 pound) lean ground turkey
- 250 mL (1 cup) canned lentils, rinsed and drained
- 30 mL (2 tbsp) Worcestershire sauce
- 30 mL (2 tbsp) canned tomato paste
- 500 mL (2 cups) frozen peas and carrots, thawed
- 30 mL (2 tbsp) soft non-hydrogenated margarine
- 15 mL (1 tbsp) 1% milk
Directions
- Place potatoes in a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Cook until the potatoes are soft, about 10 minutes and then drain.
- Lightly coat a non-stick pan with cooking spray or oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook for about 5 minutes, until browned. Add ground turkey and cook until brown.
- Add lentils, Worcestershire sauce and tomato paste to the ground turkey.
- Pour ground turkey mixture into a 20x20 cm (8x8-inch) casserole dish and spread evenly across the bottom. Layer peas and carrots on top of turkey mixture.
- Add margarine and milk to the potatoes. Mash with a potato masher or a hand blender. Layer mashed potatoes overtop peas and carrots and spread evenly.
- Place in the oven on the lower rack and broil for 5 to 10 minutes until potatoes begin to brown. Use a digital food thermometer to check that the turkey has reached an internal temperature of 74 °C (165 °F).
Learn about food safety.
Tips
- Little chefs can prepare a vinaigrette by mixing 80 mL (⅓ cup) olive oil with 30 mL (2 tbsp) balsamic, red wine or white wine vinegar and 15 mL (1 tbsp) lemon juice (about ½ lemon).
- Freeze leftover tomato paste to use later. Spoon tomato paste into ice cube trays and place in the freezer for 2 to 3 hours, or until completely frozen. Transfer cubes into an airtight container and freeze for up to 6 months.
- Lentils can be dried or canned. If you use dried lentils, follow cooking instructions on the package and add them cooked at step 3.
- Use any other fresh or frozen vegetable you like such as leeks or mushrooms. Make sure to chop vegetables into small pieces and cook until tender.
