Vegan Shepherd's Pie

Made with a base of hearty lentils and veggies and topped with creamy, mashed potatoes, this Vegan Shepherd's Pie Recipe will quickly become your go-to comfort meal!

Looking for some vegan comfort food?

Try out this Vegan Shepherd's Pie!

This dairy and egg-free shepherd's pie recipe is hearty, nutritious and packed with flavor!

Whenever you need a plate of comfort food, you'll be whipping up this vegan shepherd's pie!

Let me show you how to make it!

What is Shepherd's Pie?

Shepherd's Pie is traditionally a dish made with ground meat that is then topped with mashed potatoes.

This dish originated in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

If the meat is lamb, it's called shepherd's pie.

If the meat is beef, it's often called cottage pie.

Today I'm going to show you a plant-based version of shepherd's pie!

Vegan Shepherd's Pie Ingredients

To make shepherd's pie vegan, we'll obviously need to replace the meat with a plant-based protein source.

In this vegan version, I'm using lentils and chopped veggies instead of meat.

I've also replaced the dairy butter, cheese and cream in traditional mashed potatoes with olive oil, non-dairy milk and nutritional yeast.

To make this version of vegan shepherd's pie you'll need the following ingredients:

For the vegan mashed potatoes:

• White potatoes
• Garlic
• Non-dairy milk
• Nutritional yeast
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

For the lentil "meat" you'll need:

• Green lentils
• Water
• Bay leaf
• Olive oil
• Onion, chopped
• Carrots
• Celery
• Garlic
• Frozen corn
• Tomato paste
• Tamari or soy sauce
• Dried Italian herbs
• Salt and pepper
• chili flakes

How to Replace Meat in Shepherd's Pie

While I'm using lentils in this vegan version of shepherd's pie, there are other ways you can replace the meat.

Some meat replacements for shepherd's pie are listed below:

• Tempeh
• Tofu
• Lentils
• Beans
• Soy-based meats

How to Make Vegan Shepherd's Pie (with step-by-step instructions)

There are a few steps you have to follow to make this vegan shepherd's pie come together.

Let me walk you through them.

Step 1: Preheat your oven to 375°F / 190°C and grease an 8x8 baking dish.

Step 2: Cook your potatoes, drain and rinse them and place them back in the same pot. Once they've cooked you'll later mash them with garlic, milk, nutritional yeast, olive oil, and a generous amount of salt and pepper. Taste and adjust as needed.

Step 3: While the potatoes are cooking, start cook your lentils until softened, but not mushy. Drain and rinse them.

Step 4: In a large skillet or sauce pan, cook the onion in some olive oil until translucent.

Step 5: Add in the carrots, celery and minced garlic and sauté another 5 minutes or until the vegetables have softened.

Step 6: Add in the frozen corn, tomato paste, tamari, herbs and salt and pepper to taste. Don't be shy with the salt!

Step 7: Allow everything to sauté for a few minutes. Add in the cooked and drained lentils and stir until everything is well combined.

Step 8: Pour the lentil mixture into an 8x8 baking dish and use the back of a spoon to make the filling flat.

Step 9: Spoon the mashed potatoes over the top of the lentils and evenly spread them out, making a fun, textured design with the back of your spoon if desired. You may not use all of the mashed potatoes.

Step 10: Place the Shepherd's Pie into the preheated oven and allow it to bake about 30 minutes or until the mashed potatoes start to turn golden brown.

Enjoy! Remove you Vegan Shepherd's Pie from the oven and serve warm with freshly ground black pepper and parsley if desired.

Best Foods to Pair with Shepherd's Pie

Since vegan shepherd's pie contains a hearty portion of protein, carbs, fats and veggies, it really is a complete meal!

However, if you have extra time, you can pair your pie with some of these options:

• Roasted veggies
• Yeasted bread
• Irish Soda Bread
• Peas with mint
• Fresh green salad

Really any veggie or bread side-dish will pair beautifully with shepherd's pie!

Can You Freeze Shepherd's Pie?

Yes!

Shepherd's pie is a great recipe to make and freeze for later.

Once you've assembled your shepherd's pie, you can allow it to cool before freezing it for up to a month.

To cook your shepherd's pie form frozen, make sure you freeze it in an oven-safe baking dish.

Cook the pie from frozen in a preheated oven at 350F for about 1 hour until it's nice and hot in the center.

To finish it off, you can place it under the broiler for a few minutes to brown the potatoes!

📖 Recipe

Vegan Shepherd's Pie

Faith VanderMolen

Made with hearty lentils, warming spices and cheesy potatoes, this Vegan Shepherd's Pie is the perfect comfort food for any time of year!

3.75 from 8 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr

Course Vegan Main Dish Recipes

Cuisine American

Servings 8

Calories 366 kcal

Equipment

• 8x8 Baking Dish

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

MASHED POTATO TOPPING

• 5-6 white potatoes ~3 lbs., peeled and coarsely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 cup non-dairy milk
• ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• salt and pepper

LENTIL FILLING

• 1 cup green lentils picked through and rinsed
• 2 ½ cups water
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 cup diced carrots
• 1 cup diced celery
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 2 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon tamari sauce*
• 1 tablespoon dried italian herbs
• salt and pepper
• chili flakes

Instructions 

• Preheat your oven to 375 °F and set aside an 8x8 baking dish.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add in the peeled and chopped potatoes and 2 cloves of garlic and reduce the heat to a simmer. Allow the potatoes to cook until fork tender. Once cooked through, drain and rinse the potatoes and garlic and place them back in the same pot.
• While the potatoes are cooking, start cooking the lentils. Place the 1 cup of lentils, 2 ½ cups of water and a bay leaf in a sauce pan and bring everything to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and allow the lentils to cook until softened, but not overcooked, about 15 minutes.
• Drain and rinse the lentils, remove the bay leaf, and set aside.
• In a large skillet or sauce pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat.
• Add in the chopped onion and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Add in the carrots, celery and minced garlic and saute another 5 minutes or until the vegetables have softened.
• Add in the frozen corn, tomato paste, tamari, herbs and salt and pepper to taste. Don't be shy with the salt! Allow everything to saute for a few minutes.
• Add in the cooked and drained lentils and stir until everything is well combined.
• While the vegetables are cooking you can continue preparing the mashed potatoes. To the boiled potatoes and garlic, add in the milk, nutritional yeast, olive oil, and a generous amount of salt and pepper.
• Using a potato masher, mash everything together until the potatoes are smooth and everything is well combined. Taste and add more salt and pepper or nutritional yeast if desired.
• Pour the lentil mixture into an 8x8 baking dish and use the back of a spoon to make the filling flat.
• Spoon the mashed potatoes over the top of the lentils and evenly spread them out, making a fun, textured design with the back of your spoon if desired. You may not use all of the mashed potatoes.
• Place the Shepherd's Pie into the preheated oven and allow it to bake about 30 minutes or until the mashed potatoes start to turn golden brown.
• Removed from the oven and serve warm with freshly ground black pepper and parsley if desired.

Notes

*You can substitute the tamari sauce for soy sauce if not gluten-free.

Nutrition

Calories: 366kcalCarbohydrates: 59gProtein: 15gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gSodium: 276mgPotassium: 1295mgFiber: 16gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 3908IUVitamin C: 39mgCalcium: 133mgIron: 5mg

Tried this recipe?Let me know how it was!