If you love traditional shepherd’s pie, you’ll really love this Caribbean twist on it: Plantain Shepherd’s Pie is the ultimate comfort food recipe and today this recipe with you!
Plantains have become a staple in our New England home. It’s the way I stay connected to my Dominican roots, by cooking up a plantain recipe at least weekly. This past week, I made my husband this Plantain Shepherd’s Pie for the first time and he fell head over heels for it. Spiced ground beef and carrots are layered under mashed almost ripe plantains (fully yellow, no black spots yet) and covered in a sprinkling of cheese that’s broiled to golden perfection.
Granted, it’s a hearty meal that you should accompany with a big green salad on the side, but sometimes in the Dominican Republic, we would use this as a side dish to a full meal. Because that’s the thing with plantains, they go with everything. Their slight sweetness really pairs well with the ground beef that we cook down with carrots, onions, tomato paste, and oregano. This Plantain Shepherd’s Pie recipe is a must if you’re trying to use a larger variety of starchy vegetables in your diet.
And if you think of plantains as the heavy vegetable they are typically made into – you’re wrong! In this shepherd’s pie recipe, I’ve mashed the plantains with soft butter and Greek Yogurt, to give it a lighter texture. It’s definitely one of my favorite recipes growing up and if you’re vegetarian, you can make my Three Cheese Plantain Casserole!
Photography by Stacey Rupolo / Recipe by Cooking with Books
Plantain Shepherd's Pie

Ingredients
- 6 ripe yellow plantains
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup sour cream or greek yogurt
- 1 pound ground beef
- 2 carrots peeled and diced
- 1 large onion diced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 cups shredded cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and grease a pie pan with olive oil.
- Boil a large pot of water. Peel and cut plantains into quarters, to then add to the boiling water to cook for about 20 minutes, until fork tender.
- While plantains cook, cook the ground beef, carrots, and onions. Add the tomato paste and oregano. Cook over medium heat for 20 minutes and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Once plantains are cooked, drain water and mash with butter and sour cream.
- Place seasoned, cooked ground beef on the bottom of pie pan and top with plantain mash, making sure to cover the entire top. Sprinkle with cheese and bake for 15 minutes until bubbly and golden brown.
What a fun and delicious twist on Shepherd’s Pie! I’ve been wanting to try plantains, so this recipe is perfect timing!