Like its cousin, shepherd's pie, this is a simple, hearty dish combining meat and mashed potatoes. The 2 names are interchangeable, but for traditionalists, shepherd's pie uses lamb meat while cottage pie uses beef. This dish was originally a peasant dish from the UK, and would use left over meat and potatoes from the Sunday roast. These days minced beef is more commonly used.
The beauty of this dish is its simplicity. There are just a few ingredients and the cooking method is very simple.
