The Genius Freezer Hack For Fast Shepherd's Pie

Do you have just a bit of uneaten mashed potatoes you're not quite sure what to do with? Enter a brilliantly simple TikTok hack that turns these leftovers into a delightful and ridiculously easy-to-prep Shepard's Pie.

Instead of discarding leftover potatoes, you can press the creamy mash into the shape of your baking dish and then freeze it solid. This frozen potato disk then becomes your ultimate pie shortcut. When the urge for shepherd's pie hits, you simply prepare your savory meat filling on the stovetop, pour it into your oven-safe dish, and then place the frozen disk lid directly on top. Bake it all together, letting the frozen potato dish melt and then crisp into a golden-brown crust that belies its convenience-oriented origins.

@pinchofyum

This is the move after a holiday meal! ☝️ Swoop, freeze, and pop on top! This will save you a ton of time on weeknight cooking, WHICH YOU KNOW I LOVE! Did you know that between 30-40% of all food in the U.S. never gets eaten? Most of that waste is produced at the household level. In Ramsey and Washington counties (where I live!), food scraps make up the largest portion of the trash. Like this video shows, freezing food to enjoy later or reimagine into different recipes can be an easy way to reduce waste. You can also freeze turkey, gravy, cranberry sauce, stuffing, squash, and rolls to enjoy later and make your holiday meal go the extra mile. Just the simple act of thinking ahead and planning how to use leftovers after a holiday meal is one of the best ways to reduce food waste around the holidays and make weeknight cooking easier. We partnered with Ramsey and Washington counties for this video to help spread the word about reducing food waste! ❤️ #ad #easyrecipes #leftovers #mashedpotatoes #foodwastereduction

♬ original sound – Pinch of Yum

This method, shared by TikTok user Pinch of Yum,  not only saves significant time but also helps reduce food waste. If you're looking to maximize this convenience, you can also swap some condensed soup in for the traditional gravy, a substitution that cuts down on stewing and waiting with no compromise on flavor.

Once you have your frozen potato foundation, there are endless ways to customize your Shepherd's Pie depending on your tastes and whatever you have in your fridge.

Start with the meat base. The kind of meat you use actually technically changes what kind of pie you are making;  true shepherd's pie uses lamb, while cottage pie uses beef. But if you want a base with no meat at all, there are plenty of ways to make this dish meat-free: you can substitute in soy crumbles with cannellini beans, or just stew up a hearty combo of black beans and carrots. You can also get creative with which vegetables you include; edamame beans with soy sauce can give a more Asian flavor to your pie, while roasted eggplants and peppers can be mixed with a hint of tahini for a more Middle Eastern palette.

For a more adventurous twist, consider the topping itself. Swap traditional potatoes for a vibrant layer of sweet potatoes. If you don't already have some frozen, simply mash up roasted yams and freeze them for later. In fact, any sort of starchy pureed vegetable can act as a topping, be it leeks and cauliflower for a lower-carb Shepard's Pie, or any of your favorite grilled vegetables. Simply blend up those leftovers and freeze them into a disk for your next adventurous Shepard's Pie.