1lb minced beef

1 large onion

2 carrots

2 tbsp butter

5 tbsp flour

4.5 QT’s beef stock/gravy *see recipe method for details

Dice the onion and peel and chop the carrots into circles.

Heat a saucepan or pot to a medium heat, melt the butter and add the onions, cooking them until they are soft.

Add the mince, using a wooden spoon to break it up so there are no big lumps.

Add the flour and stir thoroughly.

Add the carrots and stock/gravy. You should have enough to cover the meat. It will reduce through the cooking process but if it does so too quickly you can add a bit more.

Turn to a low heat and simmer until the meat and carrots are tender and it has all thickened up. This will be approximately an hour. You can also cover with a lid if the stock is reducing too quickly.

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile, prepare your mashed potatoes as desired (we like lots of butter and seasoning!) and then serve with any other sides like peas or skirlie.

NOTES

Stock or Gravy?

We prefer to use stock to flavour our mince and tatties, but lots of people swear by gravy granules and water instead. Gravy will thicken the mixture faster than stock, and you can use a little less flour (try 3 tbsp instead).

Minced Beef

We’ve made our mince and tatties with both lean beef (less than 5% fat) and beef with 20% fat. We have to say the 20% beef is usually a bit tastier, but of course you can use lean beef and add additional seasoning or try some of the variations below if you like too.

Adding Sauces

As a child, we always added a bit of tomato sauce to our mince & tatties, and I would liberally squirt some extra over the top right before eating too. Brown sauce is another option as well.

Some people like to add Worcestershire sauce to the recipe, and maybe a dash before serving as well, although this is more English of course.

Extra Ingredients

Our mince and tatties recipe is very simple and sticks to the most basic of ingredients, as it would have been made for many, many years. However, you will find some recipes that include things like garlic, red wine, celery, tomato paste, or even beer.

*found this recipe on https://scottishscran.com/