Cottage pie with tater tots second edition

 

Ingredients:

3 lb ground beef

1 lb cremini mushrooms, sliced

1-2 cup dried gourmet mushrooms, chopped or diced (plus the water it was soaking in)

2 red onions (diced)

6 garlic cloves (crushed)

1 small green cabbage (finely shredded)

3-4 large carrots (diced)

2 cups frozen peas

1 cup flour

3 tbsp Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce

3/4 cup tomato paste

2 tsp dried thyme

3 bay leaves

1 tbsp salt

1 tsp pepper

2 cup beef broth

2 bags tater tots (McCain 800g per bag)

mozzarella cheese (shredded)

lard or butter or olive oil

Directions:

After making the other cottage pie several times now, I felt it t needed some punch. I opted to substitute the Swiss Chalet gravy mix with Worcestershire sauce which is a common ingredient in English cooking. And since cottage pie is English, I elected to try it along with the addition of tomato paste, thyme and bay leaves. My spin to this typical English dish was adding the water used to soak the dried gourmet mushrooms. I wasn't sure how it would pair with the Worcestershire sauce, but I didn't want to waste all that umami flavour from the dried mushrooms. Please note that the quantities listed above will make two rectangular casserole dishes.

Like the other recipe, set oven to 375F and bake tater tots for 20-30 minutes so that one side is crispy.

You'll want to do this step early in the morning. Quickly rinse the dried mushrooms to get rid of any dirt. Place them in a bowl and soak in hot water (3 cups water) for a couple of hours. More if possible. I let mine soak for over 4 hours. DO NOT discard the water. We want to use the water to make the gravy as it has a ton of umami. 

Add some lard to a skillet on medium heat. Toss in the cabbage and fry until they brown up. It's the caramelization that brings out cabbage's wonderful flavour. Once they are done and give off that wonderful aroma, transfer them to a bowl.

Now fry the onions in the empty skillet. You may need to add some more lard or oil. Cook until they become translucent. Next add the garlic and carrots to the onions and cook until the carrots are tender. You can transfer them to the same bowl the cabbage are sitting in.

Now scoop out the dried mushrooms onto a chopping board and cut up into roughly 1 cm sized chunks. Toss them into the skillet along with the sliced cremini mushrooms. Again add oil or lard and fry the mushrooms. Remove from skillet.

Lastly you want to fry the beef. Make sure you break up the large chunks. I tend to prefer medium ground beef over lean as the former is fattier and also cheaper. I'll let the moisture evaporate until just the meat and fat remain. Then throw in the flour and stir in to the beef. You're essentially making a roue. It should take a minute or two over medium heat. Now toss in tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, bay leaves, beef broth, salt and pepper and the dried mushroom water. Let simmer for at least a half hour. More if you can swing it. The wet ingredients should start thickening into a gravy.

Turn off the heat and remove the bay leaves from the skillet. Now add all the vegetables back in with the beef and gravy and mix well. Ladle the concoction into two rectangular casserole dish. Use a spatula to smooth it flat. Place a thick layer of mozzarella cheese on top. Traditionally a layer of mash potatoes is placed on the surface. Place the tater tots on top of the cheese making sure the crispy side is facing the cheese. The cheese layer is to keep the tater tots separated from the beef mixture so it doesn't get soggy. I stick some toothpicks and cover with aluminum foil. Throw into the oven and bake at 375F for 3/4 of an hour. Remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes. This will allow the tater tots to crisp up before serving.