Bison and Red Wine Shepherd's Pie

From the kitchen of Carly

Lean bison stewed with bacon, red wine, and root vegetables until rich and tender, then topped with creamy mashed potatoes. A shepherd's pie that trades beef for something leaner but equally satisfying, with deeper, more elegant flavors.

Bison and Red Wine Shepherd's Pie

Bison's clean, lean muscle demands proper searing and long, gentle braising to turn tender and deep. Red wine and bacon anchor the stew, while sage, thyme, and pearl onions keep it classic. The creamy potato crown on top catches the oven's heat into something golden and crispy at the edges, which is where all the comfort lives.

Prep
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Cook
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Total
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Servings
4
Difficulty
medium

Ingredients

4 servings

  • 1/3 cupall purpose flour
  • 1 tbspHungarian sweet paprika
  • 1 1/2 tspcoarse kosher salt
  • 1 tspfreshly ground black pepper
  • 3 1/2 lbbison or beef short ribs or 2 1/2 pounds boneless chuck, cut into 2-inch cubes
  • 1/3 lbrindless slab bacon, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices
  • 2 tbspolive oil
  • 1 cupchopped onion
  • 1/2 cuppeeled chopped carrot
  • 1/2 cupchopped celery
  • 3garlic cloves, chopped
  • 2 cupdry red wine
  • 2 2/3 cuplow-salt chicken broth
  • 1 cupcanned crushed tomatoes
  • 2bay leaves
  • 1 tspchopped fresh thyme
  • 1 tspchopped fresh sage
  • 10 ozpearl onions
  • 1 1/2 cup3/4-inch cubes peeled parsnips
  • 12baby turnips, trimmed, peeled
  • 21/4 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, quartered
  • 3/4 cupwhole milk
  • 1/2 cupunsalted butter
  • 1/3 cupheavy whipping cream
  • 1 tspcoarse kosher salt
  • 1/2 tspfreshly ground black pepper
  • 1 largeegg, beaten to blend
  • 1 largeegg
  • 1 tbspwater
  • 1 cupfinely grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

  1. Whisk together the flour, paprika, 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper in a large bowl. Add the bison and toss to coat. Set a large pot over medium heat, add the bacon, and cook until crisp, then lift it onto paper towels. Pour 2 tablespoons of oil into the same pot and crank the heat to medium-high. Brown the bison in batches, adding more oil by the tablespoon as needed, then return the meat to the bowl. Tumble in the chopped onion, carrot, celery, and garlic, cover the pot, and let the vegetables soften, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Pour in the wine and bring it to a boil, scraping up every browned bit from the bottom. Add the broth, tomatoes, bay leaves, thyme, sage, reserved bacon, and bison. Drop the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the bison is tender, stirring now and then, about 2 hours (boneless beef chuck may only need 1 1/2 hours).

  2. While the bison braises, drop the pearl onions into a large saucepan of boiling salted water and cook for 2 minutes. Fish them out into a bowl of ice water, then trim and peel them.

  3. Lift the bison onto a rimmed baking sheet. Cut the meat off any bones and chop it into 3/4-inch cubes. Back in the pot, add the parsnips and turnips to the braising sauce and simmer, stirring occasionally, until tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the pearl onions and cook 5 minutes more, then return the meat to the pot. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

  4. Cover the potatoes with lightly salted water in a large pot, bring to a boil, and cook until completely tender, 18 to 20 minutes. Drain well. In a medium saucepan, warm the milk, butter, and cream together until just below a boil. Rice the potatoes into a large mixing bowl, pour in the milk mixture, and add 1 teaspoon kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Whisk until smooth and slightly cooled, about 2 minutes, then whisk in the egg.

  5. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spoon the bison filling into a 3-quart (13x9x2-inch) baking dish, then dollop the mashed potatoes on top and smooth them into an even layer that covers the filling completely.

  6. In a small bowl, beat the remaining egg with 1 tablespoon of water. Brush the mixture over the potato surface, then scatter the Parmesan evenly across the top.

  7. Bake until the top is deeply browned and the filling is bubbling hot, 30 to 40 minutes (or 50 to 60 minutes if the dish went in cold from the refrigerator). Rest for 10 minutes before serving.

  8. A full-bodied red pairs beautifully here, something like a Crozes-Hermitage from the Rhone Valley, which echoes the Syrah used in the braise.

Tips from the kitchen

  • Bison needs a good brown crust before it meets the braising liquid, which means don't crowd the pot and let each batch sit undisturbed for a minute or two.
  • Pearl onions peel easiest after a quick blanch and ice bath, but you can swap them for halved shallots if you're pressed for time.
  • Flour-coat the meat first not just to brown it better, but to help thicken the sauce as it cooks, so you won't need a slurry later.
  • The potato topping goes on at the very end and must cover the filling completely to bake properly, seal it right to the edges of the dish.

Variations

  • Beef chuck or short ribs work just as well if bison isn't available, adjust the braising time down slightly to 1.5 hours.
  • Swap parsnips for celery root or the turnips for baby potatoes, keeping ratios close to what's called for.
  • Use a full-bodied red like Cabernet instead of Syrah, or go with a dry white wine and add a splash of Worcestershire for different depth.
  • Lay the mashed potato topping thinner and rougher with a fork instead of smooth and piped, which gives you more crispy, browned surface.

Make ahead and storage

Leftovers keep in the fridge for 3 days; reheat gently in a 325°F oven so the potato top doesn't dry out. The stew (before topping) also freezes well for up to 2 months, and you can top and bake it straight from frozen, though it will need an extra 10 to 15 minutes.