Turkey Shepherd’s Pie

Turkey Shepherd’s Pie is a great way to use leftover turkey after Thanksgiving, or make it with chicken if you prefer. And the topping for this shepherd’s pie recipe is made with cauliflower mash, so this recipe is surprisingly low in carbs!

PIN Turkey Shepherd’s Pie to try it later!

This delicious Turkey Shepherd’s Pie is a recipe to make when you have leftover turkey and want something low in carbs but with comfort food vibes! When we sampled this while we tested it, my nephew and cooking assistant Jake kept saying “This is really good.”

And the shepherd’s pie with turkey uses cauliflower mash for the topping, and we made it with the lowest-carb turkey gravy we could find. So even if you don’t have leftover gravy, I hope you buy some gravy (like we did!) and try the Turkey Shepherd’s Pie. And if you check the carbs, you’ll see it’s surprisingly low in net carbs for this type of recipe!

What ingredients do you need?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe with ingredient amounts.)

• onion
• Olive Oil (affiliate link)
• Poultry Seasoning (affiliate link)
• carrots
• frozen peas
• diced leftover turkey (or chicken)
• turkey gravy (use the gravy with the lowest amount of carbs you can find)
• grated cheese blend
• head of cauliflower
• large cloves of garlic
• milk, half and half, or cream
• finely grated Parmesan
• salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste

Is this really a Shepherd’s Pie?

The loose definition of Shepherd’s Pie is simply a pie of meat and vegetables in gravy that’s topped with mashed potatoes, but some people insist that true Shepherd’s Pie can only be made with lamb. No matter how strict your definition is though, using turkey in a dish called Shepherd’s Pie is not the norm, but I wanted to convey the idea that this is a pot pie type casserole made with turkey!

Can you use purchased mashed cauliflower for Turkey Shepherd’s Pie?

I created this recipe before frozen “cauliflower mash” was a thing, and I really like the texture of the made-from-scratch cauliflower mash the best. But if you’re a fan of that, it would probably work to replace the step of cooking and mashing the cauliflower for this recipe.

Is this Turkey Shepherd’s Pie low in carbs?

We replaced traditional potatoes with mashed cauliflower, looked for the lowest carb gravy we could find, and used a moderate amount of higher-carb peas and carrots. That made this a low-carb turkey casserole with Shepherd’s Pie flavors and only 10 net carbs per serving with 22 grams of protein.

How to Make Turkey Shepherd’s Pie:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

1. Cut up cauliflower and cook (with garlic cloves) in boiling salted water for 12-15 minutes .
2. Drain cauliflower well; don’t rush this step.
3. We used a hand beater to whip the cauliflower and garlic like you would potatoes, adding a little milk, Parmesan cheese, and seasoning with salt and fresh ground black pepper.
4. While cauliflower cooks, cook chopped onion in olive oil, then add the poultry seasoning.
5. I used one cup each of finely diced carrots and frozen peas. Cook the carrots in the microwave for about 3 minutes to barely soften them.
6. You’ll need at least 3 cups diced leftover turkey. We cut our turkey into chunks about 1 inch square.
7. I looked for the lowest carb gravy I could find and this one that I found at Costco has 3 carbs in 1/4 cup or 21 carbs in the 1 3/4 cups I used in the recipe.
8. Add the turkey, partially cooked carrots, peas, and gravy to the pan and simmer a few minutes so the gravy thickens a little.
9. Spray an 8″ x 8″ casserole dish with non-stick spray and spread the turkey mixture in the bottom. (You can use a rectangular dish if that’s all you have but the finished dish will be thinner.)
10. Then spread the mashed garlic-parmesan cauliflower mixture over that and top with grated cheese.
11. Bake uncovered at 375F/190C for about 30 minutes, or until the top is browned and the casserole is bubbly.
12. Serve Turkey Shepherd’s Pie hot and enjoy!

Want more low-carb ideas for leftover turkey?

For more low-carb ideas for using that leftover turkey check out Low-Carb Leftover Turkey Recipes. And remember, anything you can make with leftover chicken can also be made with turkey!

Continue to Content

Print

Yield: 8 servings

Turkey Shepherd's Pie

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

This Turkey Shepherd's Pie is a great way to use Thanksgiving leftovers, or make it with chicken if you don't have any turkey. And this Shepherd's Pie that uses cauliflower mash for the topping may not be traditional, but it's delicious for a low-carb way to use leftover turkey.

Ingredients

Filling Ingredients

• 1 onion, chopped in pieces about 1/2 inch
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 2 tsp. poultry seasoning
• 1 cup raw carrots, diced into 1/4 inch pieces
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 3 cups diced leftover turkey, cut into pieces about 1 inch square
• 1 3/4 cups turkey gravy (use the gravy with the lowest amount of carbs you can find)
• 1/2 cup grated cheese blend

Topping Ingredients

• 1 medium-sized head of cauliflower, cut into small pieces
• 4 large cloves garlic
• 2 T milk
• 1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan
• salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375F/190C.

Bring a medium sized pot of salted water to a boil.

Chop cauliflower into small pieces and simmer with the garlic cloves until it’s soft enough to mash easily.

Drain cauliflower very well; then use an immersion blender, food processor, or hand beater to combine the cauliflower with the milk and Parmesan.

Season the mashed cauliflower with salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste.

While the cauliflower cooks, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan and saute the onion 3-4 minutes, then add the Poultry Seasoning (affiliate link) and saute about 1 minute more.

Put the chopped carrots in a glass measuring cup, cover with cling-wrap, and microwave about 3 minutes, or just until barely starting to soften.

Add the partially cooked carrots, diced turkey, peas, and turkey gravy to the pan and simmer on low for 10 minutes, or until the gravy is slightly thickened.

Spray an 8″ x 8″ casserole dish with non-stick spray.  (You need a dish with fairly high sides. You can use a slightly bigger dish and have a thinner finished product if needed.)

Spread the turkey-vegetable mixture in the bottom of the dish.

Top with the cauliflower, using a rubber scraper to spread it out so it covers the filling.

Top with the grated cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes, or until the casserole is bubbling and the top is lightly browned.

Serve Turkey Shepherd's Pie hot and wait for compliments!

Notes

This freezes well; to reheat, cook in microwave for a few minutes or heat in an oven or toaster oven in a small ovenproof dish covered with foil.

Recipe created by Kalyn and Jake.

Nutrition Information

Yield

8

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 224Total Fat 10gSaturated Fat 4gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 5gCholesterol 67mgSodium 562mgCarbohydrates 13gFiber 3gSugar 4gProtein 22g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This Turkey Shepherd’s Pie with mashed cauliflower instead of potatoes and the lowest-carb turkey gravy I could find is good for low-carb diets, but may not for Keto. It could be a holiday treat for the original South Beach Diet, but not for phase one because the gravy does contain some flour and the dish has carrots and peas. 

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Casserole Recipes to find more tasty ideas like this one! Use the Recipes by Diet Type photo index pages to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This recipe for Shepherd’s Pie made with turkey and cauliflower mash was first posted in 2012. It was last updated with more information in 2025.

Share This: