This vegan shepherd’s pie has a base of assorted veggies and mushrooms in gravy, a mid-layer of lentils and fresh herbs, and a canopy of creamy mashed potatoes. It’s 100% heartwarming nourishment, perfect for a family dinner or potluck in cooler weather.
Intro to Vegan Shepherd’s Pie
I took some time off from blogging lately and the seasons have completely changed. Gone are the hot, humid days that make me reluctant to go in the kitchen. Right now it’s mostly comfortable, but I can tell the cooler days are right around the corner. I’m starting to want heartier meals, and shepherd’s pie was one of my favorite hearty meals growing up.
This vegan shepherd’s pie replaces the meat (often lamb or beef) with a combination of different veggies, mushrooms, and lentils. Some simple mashed potatoes go on top. The potatoes taste like potatoes – they’re not overloaded with distractions – and have a nice smooth mouthfeel.
I used a great recipe from the latest issue of Forks Over Knives as a starting point, but I’ve added a number of additions to make this a more filling and flavorful meal.
Why Make Vegan Shepherd’s Pie?
The short answer is comfort. You get a savory, filling, protein-rich meal and with this variety of veggies, there are some nice textures in there, too. It’s plenty of food and won’t leave you feeling hungry, but it also won’t weigh you down (I went for a run immediately after eating two servings of the test batch).
It takes some time to put everything together, about an hour and a half, so I recommend making this for a family dinner, meal prep, or potluck.
The Cooking Process
Cook the potatoes and lentils
There are a few ways to do this:
- If you have an Instant Pot and a steaming stand, you can cook them both at the same time. Just put the lentils and water in the pot, then place the steaming rack into the lentils and water. Stack the potatoes on the steaming rack. Cook at high pressure for 7 minutes and use natural release; it takes 20-25 minutes total.
- If you don’t have an Instant Pot, you can steam the potatoes in a steaming pot and boil the lentils separately. The potatoes need to be steamed for 20 minutes and the lentils boiled for 25. This method doesn’t actually take that much longer.
- You can also use canned lentils if you like.
Inside the Instant Pot: lentils and water hide in the darkness below the steaming stand
Mash the potatoes
Use your trusty masher or a fork to crush the taters to your preferred consistency. Add a small amount of plant-based butter, plant milk, and nutritional yeast, then season with salt and pepper.
You control the consistency by how thoroughly you mash and how much plant milk you add. I left the skin on the potatoes and mashed them coarsely, so they’ll have some variation in the texture. But if you like yours smooth, go for it! Mash them all the way and mix in plant milk until you’re happy with them.
Saute the veggies and mushrooms and make the gravy
While the potatoes and lentils cook, you can cut the onion, garlic, carrot, celery, and mushrooms. Saute them all together with dried Italian herbs, then add plant milk and ground oats to make a creamy gravy. You can add frozen veggies (corn, peas, etc.) here if you like.
It’s important to make sure the fresh veggies are cooked all the way through before moving on. Taste a piece of onion, carrot, and celery to make sure it’s not too crunchy. They won’t get cooked much more even though they’ll be baked in the pie.
Assemble and Bake the Vegan Shepherd’s Pie
Spread an even layer of the veggie-mushroom on the bottom of a large baking dish (at least 3 quarts/liters). Spread a layer of lentils on top of that, sprinkling in some optional fresh parsley and sage. Top it off with mashed potatoes.
Bake it until it starts bubbling and the potatoes are slightly browned and it’s ready to serve! You can sprinkle some paprika on top before serving if you like.
Some Tips
If you want to make this ahead of time, you can assemble the pie and save the final baking step for right before you serve. If the dish has been chilled, it might take a bit longer to heat through, up to 45 minutes.
Taste and season the components before you assemble the pie! You’ll want to make sure each part (sauteed veggies-mushrooms-gravy, lentils, and mashed potatoes) is seasoned with salt and pepper to your liking before putting them in the pan and baking them. This will make for a more flavorful finished dish.
Quick Side Dishes to Pair with Vegan Shepherd’s Pie
- Kale Salad with Apples and Pecans
- Plant-Based Creamed Spinach
- 3-Ingredient Sauteed Summer Squash
- Roasted Oyster Mushrooms
More Hearty Plant-Based Dinners
- Winter Squash and Mushroom Enchiladas
- Lentil and Mushroom Bolognese
- Veg-Loaded Minestrone Soup
- “The Only Vegan Chili Recipe You Need”
As always, if you try this recipe out, let me know! Leave a comment, rate it (once you’ve tried it), and take a picture and tag it @gastroplant on Instagram! I’d love to see what you come up with.
Vegan Shepherd's Pie
Ingredients
Mashed Potatoes
- 2 pounds potatoes (900 grams) scrubbed preferably Yukon gold
- 1 cup plant milk unsweetened and unflavored
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 Tablespoons plant-based butter optional
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast optional
- 1 pinch paprika smoked or sweet
Lentils
- 1 cup dry lentils rinsed and drained, I used Beluga but any kind will work (see note)
- 1 pinch salt
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley optional
- 2 tablespoons chopped sage optional
Vegetable and Mushroom Saute
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil optional
- 1 cup onion diced coarsely
- 1 cup carrot diced coarsely
- 1 cup celery diced coarsely
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 teaspoons dried “Italian” seasoning
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 cups mushrooms diced coarsely
- 1 cup plant milk unsweetened and unflavored
- 1 Tablespoon vinegar white wine or apple cider
- 1/4 cup rolled oats ground to a fine powder in a coffee grinder
- 1 cup frozen corn and/or green peas
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C)
Cook the potatoes and lentils
If using an Instant Pot and Steaming Stand
- Combine the lentils with two cups of water and a pinch of salt in the Instant Pot pot. Place the steaming stand into the pot above the lentils and stack the potatoes on top of the sand so that they are not touching the lentils or the water. Cook at high pressure for 7 minutes then use the natural release method. Remove the pot from the heating element.
If not using an Instant Pot
- Place the potatoes in the basket of a stovetop steamer pot and add an inch (2.5 centimeters) of water). Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to medium and steam for 20 minutes. Add water if the pot runs dry at any point. Remove from heat.
- In a separate pot, combine the lentils with 2 cups of water and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then cover and reduce to low heat. Simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat when the lentils are to your preferred tenderness.
Mash the potatoes
- Combine the potatoes, plant-based butter, nutritional yeast, 1/2 cup of the plant milk, and salt and pepper in a large bowl. Use a potato masher, fork, or other appropriate device to mash the potatoes to your desired thickness. Mix in more plant milk gradually to make the potatoes more runny. Taste and add more salt and/or pepper if needed.
Cook the vegetables and gravy
- Heat the oil (if using) in a large skillet over medium-high heat. If not using oil, heat 1/4 cup water in the same way. Add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, “Italian” seasoning, and a pinch of salt. Stir and cook until the onion is translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms, continuing to stir and cook for another 7 minutes, until the mushrooms are tender. If the ingredients start to smoke at any point, reduce to medium or medium-low heat.
- Add the plant milk, vinegar, and ground oats and stir well. Once the mixture has thickened, 2-3 minutes later, add the frozen corn and/or peas. Stir again and let cook for 1 minute so the corn and peas thaw. Remove from heat.
- Taste the mixture and season with salt as needed.
Assemble and bake the pie
- Spread the vegetable-gravy mixture in an even layer across the bottom of a large baking pan (at least 3 quarts/liters). Spread the lentils in an even layer on top of that. Sprinkle the parsley and sage over the lentils (if using). Spread the potatoes in an even layer on top of the lentils.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes, until the potatoes are lightly browned and the mixture below is bubbling. Sprinkle with paprika and serve immediately.
Notes
You can peel the potatoes after steaming if you like, but it’s not required.
You can use canned lentils instead of dried. One 15-ounce (425-gram) can contains slightly less than this recipe produces (it makes about 20 ounces / 565 grams) but the amount in the can should still be enough to create the lentil layer.
Any kind of lentils will work, though some varieties will become softer than others, given a single cook time.
If you’d like to prepare this ahead of time and serve it later, you can assemble the pie but not bake it. Cover it and keep it in the fridge in the meantime. Bake it at 425 F (220 C) for 30-40 minutes, until heated through, right before serving.
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