Easy Vegan Lentil Shepherd’s Pie Recipe

This lentil shepherd’s pie is a hearty vegan dinner of green lentils, mushrooms, carrots and celery under creamy mashed potatoes, ready in about 1 hour 20 minutes. It feeds 6, holds together when you slice it, and tastes just as good the next day.

Why This Recipe Works

The filling gets its savory taste from three things: mushrooms cooked until they give up their water, tomato paste, and a mix of tamari and vegan Worcestershire sauce. That’s what stands in for the meat.

Almond flour does the quiet work. Stir a third of a cup in at the end. It soaks up the extra juice, so the filling holds its shape when you cut a square instead of running across the plate.

Mash the lentils roughly before they go in. Some stay whole and some break down, and that mix gives the filling a texture close to ground meat.

Lentil Shepherd’s Pie Ingredients

For the mashed potatoes

• 2 1/2 pounds yellow or russet potatoes (5 to 6 large)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons vegan butter
• 1/2 to 1 cup soy milk

For the lentil filling

• 1/2 tablespoon oil (or a splash of water or broth)
• 1 medium onion, finely diced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 10 ounces (275 g) mushrooms, finely diced
• 1 1/2 cups carrots, finely diced (220 g, about 2 1/2 to 3 large carrots)
• 3 ribs celery, finely diced
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons tamari (or soy sauce)
• 1 tablespoon vegan Worcestershire sauce (or more tamari)
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, plus more to garnish (frozen works too)
• 1/3 cup almond flour
• 3 cups cooked green or brown lentils (from 1 1/2 cups dry)
• Salt and pepper, to taste

How To Make Lentil Shepherd’s Pie

Cook the lentils and potatoes

1. Cook the lentils: Skip this if your lentils are already cooked. Add 1 1/2 cups dry lentils to 4 cups water and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer, cover, and cook for 20 minutes, until tender. Drain off any extra water and salt to taste.
2. Boil the potatoes: Peel the potatoes and cut them into large chunks. Small pieces soak up water and the mash tastes thin. Cover with water, add 1 teaspoon salt, and bring to a boil.
3. Simmer until tender: Turn the heat down a little, set the lid half on, and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until a fork slides in easily.
4. Mash: Drain the potatoes and add the vegan butter. Mash in the soy milk a little at a time until the potatoes are as creamy as you like, then set them aside.

Make the lentil filling

5. Heat the oven: Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
6. Soften the onion: Heat the oil (or water or broth) in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the onion for 2 to 3 minutes, until soft and fragrant. Season with a little salt and pepper as you go.
7. Add the garlic: Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute.
8. Cook the mushrooms: Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, until they soften and let out their water.
9. Steam the vegetables: Stir in the carrots, celery and tomato paste. Put a lid on the pan and cook for 5 minutes so the vegetables steam soft. While they cook, roughly mash the lentils with a fork or potato masher.
10. Season the filling: Add the mashed lentils, tamari, Worcestershire sauce and thyme. Cook for 2 more minutes so the flavors come together.
11. Thicken: Stir in the almond flour and take the pan off the heat.

Build and bake

12. Fill the dish: Spoon the filling into a 9×13-inch baking dish and press it down lightly.
13. Add the mash: Spread the mashed potatoes over the top, all the way to the edges.
14. Bake covered: Bake for 15 minutes. Cover the dish with foil or a baking sheet if you want the vegetables softer.
15. Brown the top: Raise the oven to 425°F (220°C), take off the cover, and bake for 10 to 15 minutes more, until the potato top turns golden.
16. Serve: Scatter fresh thyme over the top and serve, with gravy on the side if you like.

Recipe Tips

• Cut the carrots and celery small: They only cook for a few minutes before the pie goes in the oven. Big pieces stay crunchy inside the pie.
• Use plain soy milk: Unsweetened, unflavored soy milk keeps the mash savory. Vanilla soy milk will show.
• Mash made ahead: Warm it up and stir in a splash more milk before you spread it. Soft mash spreads easily and the pie heats through evenly.
• For a browner top: Brush a little melted vegan butter over the potatoes before the last 10 to 15 minutes.

What To Serve With Lentil Shepherd’s Pie

This pie holds together when you slice it, so a jug of warm gravy on the side is the best match. A green salad or steamed green beans adds something fresh next to it.

How To Store

• Fridge: Cover the dish and keep it in the fridge for up to 3 days.
• Freezer: Freeze the pie once it’s built and topped with mash, before it goes in the oven.
• Baking a frozen pie: The easiest way is to thaw it in the fridge overnight, then bake at 350°F (175°C) until hot in the center. From frozen, bake it at 350°F for 60 to 90 minutes. Either way, cover the top with foil so the potatoes don’t brown too much. A glass dish can crack if it goes from the freezer into a hot oven, so let it sit out for a while first.

FAQs

Can I use canned lentils?

Yes. Two 15-ounce cans, drained and rinsed, give you about 3 cups. Skip the first step and go straight to the potatoes.

Which lentils work best?

Green or brown lentils. They keep some shape after cooking. Red lentils turn to mush and make the filling pasty.

Is this shepherd’s pie gluten free?

It can be. Almond flour has no gluten and most tamari is gluten free. Check your vegan Worcestershire sauce, since some brands use malt vinegar, which comes from barley.

Can I use regular butter and milk?

Yes. If you don’t need the pie to be vegan, regular butter and milk work the same way in the mash.

Nutrition

Estimated per serving (1 of 6), worked out from the ingredients. Salt to taste is not counted.

• Calories: about 400 kcal
• Total Fat: 9g
• Total Carbohydrate: 65g
• Dietary Fiber: 14g
• Protein: 18g

Lentil Shepherd’s Pie

Recipe by Paula

0.0 from 0 votes

Servings

6

servings

Prep time

25

minutes

Cooking time

55

minutes

Total time

80

minutes

Lentil shepherd’s pie with a savory filling of green lentils, mushrooms, carrots and celery under creamy mashed potatoes. A hearty vegan dinner for 6 that slices clean and keeps well for 3 days.

Ingredients

• For the mashed potatoes

• 2 1/2 pounds yellow or russet potatoes (5 to 6 large)

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 2 tablespoons vegan butter

• 1/2 to 1 cup soy milk

• For the lentil filling

• 1/2 tablespoon oil (or a splash of water or broth)

• 1 medium onion, finely diced

• 6 cloves garlic, minced

• 10 ounces (275 g) mushrooms, finely diced

• 1 1/2 cups carrots, finely diced (220 g, about 2 1/2 to 3 large carrots)

• 3 ribs celery, finely diced

• 2 tablespoons tomato paste

• 2 tablespoons tamari (or soy sauce)

• 1 tablespoon vegan Worcestershire sauce (or more tamari)

• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, plus more to garnish (frozen works too)

• 1/3 cup almond flour

• 3 cups cooked green or brown lentils (from 1 1/2 cups dry)

• Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

• Cook the lentils: Skip this if your lentils are already cooked. Add 1 1/2 cups dry lentils to 4 cups water and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer, cover, and cook for 20 minutes, until tender. Drain off any extra water and salt to taste.
• Boil the potatoes: Peel the potatoes and cut them into large chunks. Small pieces soak up water and the mash tastes thin. Cover with water, add 1 teaspoon salt, and bring to a boil.
• Simmer until tender: Turn the heat down a little, set the lid half on, and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until a fork slides in easily.
• Mash: Drain the potatoes and add the vegan butter. Mash in the soy milk a little at a time until the potatoes are as creamy as you like, then set them aside.
• Heat the oven: Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
• Soften the onion: Heat the oil (or water or broth) in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the onion for 2 to 3 minutes, until soft and fragrant. Season with a little salt and pepper as you go.
• Add the garlic: Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute.
• Cook the mushrooms: Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, until they soften and let out their water.
• Steam the vegetables: Stir in the carrots, celery and tomato paste. Put a lid on the pan and cook for 5 minutes so the vegetables steam soft. While they cook, roughly mash the lentils with a fork or potato masher.
• Season the filling: Add the mashed lentils, tamari, Worcestershire sauce and thyme. Cook for 2 more minutes so the flavors come together.
• Thicken: Stir in the almond flour and take the pan off the heat.
• Fill the dish: Spoon the filling into a 9×13-inch baking dish and press it down lightly.
• Add the mash: Spread the mashed potatoes over the top, all the way to the edges.
• Bake covered: Bake for 15 minutes. Cover the dish with foil or a baking sheet if you want the vegetables softer.
• Brown the top: Raise the oven to 425°F (220°C), take off the cover, and bake for 10 to 15 minutes more, until the potato top turns golden.
• Serve: Scatter fresh thyme over the top and serve, with gravy on the side if you like.