A cozy vegan shepherd’s pie made with lentils or chickpeas. This vegan main is perfect for the holidays or for a comforting winter meal. It’s packed with vegetables, including mushrooms, carrots, peas and celery, then topped with creamy mashed potatoes.
Vegan comfort food at its best! Just imagine gravy-coated mushrooms, carrots, celery and peas topped with creamy mashed potatoes. All baked together to create a cozy vegan shepherd’s pie.
This recipe can be made with lentils or chickpeas – Simply use what you prefer. I added notes on substitutions below, including an easy gluten-free option and more.
It’s perfect for a vegan holiday main dish or for a comforting winter weekend meal.
How to Make a Vegan Shepherd’s Pie
Start by preparing the mashed potatoes. You have the option to make them on the stove-top or in the Instant Pot using this recipe. Mash the potatoes with your choice of plant-based milk, plus vegan butter and salt.
Meanwhile, prepare the shepherd’s pie filling. Start by sautéing the vegetables, including onions, garlic, celery, carrots and mushrooms. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Once the vegetables have softened, add the herbs, vegetable broth, flour or corn starch, soy sauce, tomato paste, lentils or chickpeas and green peas. Cook everything together for a few minutes until the sauce thickens.
Spread the mashed potatoes over the vegetables, then bake for 20 minutes. Done!
Notes on the Recipe:
You can prepare the mashed potatoes in the Instant Pot following this recipe. You can also add roasted garlic to the mashed potatoes following the recipe.
I love using oat milk in the mashed potatoes, but plain and unsweetened soy, almond or cashew milk will also work.
If you don’t have cremini mushrooms, feel free to use white button mushrooms.
You could try replacing 1/2 a cup of broth with red wine if preferred. I tested this recipe with broth only, but wine is often used in Shepherd’s pie recipes.
This recipe was tested with both canned lentils and chickpeas. Both were delicious, but I personally preferred the lentils. Choose your favorite or what you have on hand.
For a gluten-free option, use corn starch instead of flour.
A cozy vegan shepherd's pie made with lentils or chickpeas. This vegan main is perfect for the holidays or for a comforting winter meal. It's packed with vegetables, including mushrooms, carrots, peas and celery, then topped with creamy mashed potatoes. Vegan comfort food at its best!
Course Main Course
Cuisine vegan
Prep Time 40 minutesminutes
Cook Time 20 minutesminutes
Total Time 1 hourhour
Servings 6
Ingredients
Shepherd's Pie Filling
2tablespoonsolive oil
1mediumyellow onion,finely diced
3largegarlic cloves,finely minced
2largecarrots,diced
2mediumcelery stalks,diced
3cups (227g)cremini mushrooms,thinly sliced
2teaspoonssage,dried
1/2teaspoonthyme,dried
1/2-1teaspoonsalt,more or less to taste
Pepper to taste
1 1/2cupvegetable broth, low sodium (divided)
2tablespoonscorn starch or all-purpose flour
1tablespoonsoy sauce,low-sodium
2tablespoonstomato paste
1can (540ml/19oz)lentils or chickpeas,drained and rinsed
1cupgreen peas,frozen
Mashed Potatoes
7-8mediumRusset or Yukon Gold potatoes,peeled and diced (about 8 cups)
3/4-1cupoat milk, plain and unsweetened
4-5tablespoons vegan butter
1teaspoonsalt
Instructions
Prepare the Mashed Potatoes
Peel and roughly chop the potatoes – I chop them into four pieces. The larger the pieces, the longer you'll need to boil them. Boil them until fork tender and easy to mash. Drain and mash the potatoes, along with the oat milk (start with the smaller amount and add more if needed – the potatoes should be thick and creamy), vegan butter and salt. Taste and adjust as needed. Keep covered until ready to use.
Prepare the Filling
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Chop and prepare all of your vegetables.
Heat the oil in a large oven safe pot or 12" cast iron skillet. Add the onions and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes or until fragrant. Add the carrots and celery and sauté for another 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for another 8-10 minutes or until the vegetables are softened. Stir in the sage and thyme, then season with salt and pepper to taste.
In 1/2 cup of broth, whisk the corn starch or flour until well combined. Add the mixture to the vegetables, along with the remaining 1 cup of broth, soy sauce, tomato paste, lentils or chickpeas and peas. Simmer over low to medium heat until it thickens, about 5 minutes. The mixture should be thick, but saucy. If it's thinner and soup-like, add more flour or cornstarch, mixed in a small amount of broth.
Gently spread the mashed potatoes on top of the vegetable filling.
Bake for 20 minutes at 350°F, then broil for a few minutes if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
I love using oat milk for the mashed potatoes, but almond milk, soy milk and cashew milk should also work. Make sure to use plain, unsweetened plant-based milk.If preferred, you can prepare the mashed potatoes in the Instant Pot following this recipe. Feel free to add the roasted garlic as instructed in that recipe.You could try replacing 1/2 a cup of broth with red wine if preferred. I tested this recipe with broth only.This recipe was tested with both canned lentils and chickpeas. Both were delicious, but I personally preferred the lentils. Choose your favorite or what you have on hand.You can use white button mushrooms if you don’t have cremini mushrooms.
If you make this vegan Shepherd’s Pie, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! I love to hear from you guys. And of course, if you try this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram!