1-Hour Vegan Shepherd’s Pie

I just finished making this & unfortunately don’t think I’ll be doing it again. While the flavours are great, the lentil mix was WAAAAAAY too liquidy, even after stirring in some of the mashed potato to try to thicken it up. There was absolutely no way to spread the potatoes over the top to make a crust. So basically, in my oven right now I have a large pan filled with a lentil soup-type mix with globs of mashed potato in it :( My partner & I will likely eat it (as I hate to throw food away), but I have a feeling I’ll be stopping at McDonald’s on the way home from picking the kids up from school – there’s absolutely no way they’re going to touch this :(

I made this and Cheese cake for our Thanksgiving dinner. Came out really well. My wife and daughters loved it. Thank you!

I made this for thanksgiving, and it was good enough that I’m adding it to the rotation. I made a few changes (of course…I’m constitutionally incapable of following a recipe exactly as written): I cut the amt of lentils in half and increased the veggies (and added broccoli to the mixed veggies), and I added quite a bit of dried basil. Thanks for posting this, it was very good!

Thanks for the recipe. I made this for TWO different Thanksgiving parties, substituting frozen kale for the frozen veggie mix. Really enjoyed it! Served it on the buffet along with a wild rice casserole, carrots, cinnamon apples, pinto beans, stuffing and vegetarian gravy. I made a huge batch and will be enjoying leftovers. :)

OMG, a vegan sheperd’s pie that doesn’t have mushrooms (my husband’s least favorite food) or celery (my least favorite food), haha! Looks fab– thanks for sharing! :)

My husband and I have fallen in love with this recipe. I already made it to take to one family thanksgiving this year, and will be making and taking it to another. It’s a big hit and so tasty!

Delicious. I cut time and “beef” it up w some boca crumble vs the lentils which is also a crowd pleaser.

As so many of your recipes, this was wonderful and won over some non vegans! Thank you for all the recipes!

I made this once a long time ago, and when my vegetarian cousin texted me to tell me about the amazing shepherd’s pie recipe she’d found that’s even vegan for me, I knew she had to be talking about this one! I’m so glad she reminded me of it because it’s super simple and I’ve made it the past 3 weeks in a row. The only thing do differently is use russet potatoes and put in extra veggies, and it’s so easy and delicious! Glowing review from both me and my cousin :)

I loved this recipe and so did my family!!! Just added an extra ingredient…1/4c. of Worcestershire sauce which gave it that extra burst of flavor!!!
THIS IS A KEEPER!!!

Just whipped this up with what I had on hand (black and kidney beans instead of lentils, oregano instead of thyme, red potatoes, fresh cauliflower, zucchini, carrots and peas for veggies) and it was so delicious. We added chili flakes for a kick and it was PERFECT! Even my two roommates (non vegan college boys) loved it. Thanks for the recipe :)

I just made this tonight and it was SO GOOD! I made the base and the potatoes earlier in the day, but didn’t assemble and bake until this evening. The hardest part was not stealing spoonfuls of the lentil mixture all day! (I was not entirely successful). I made minimal changes, based on what I had on hand; I used frozen peas and corn, and fresh carrots and green beans (to a total weight of 10 oz). I also added an extra 10 minutes of baking time because I’d made it in advance.

Thanks for a great recipe – I’ve already bookmarked your vegan pizza and am looking forward to doing some more browsing.

WOW! I just made this and it turned out soooo good! I used red lentils and turned out perfect. Delicious recipe!! Thank you for sharing. I am looking forward to trying out your other recipes! yum yum.

This is delicious! Literally eating it right now, thank you for sharing! I’ve been a vegetarian for 7-8 months and have found that easy as – vegan on the other hand, has been a much harder transition for me! But with recipes like these, I am well inspired and even excited. Thanks again!

ohmyuuuuuuuum! I made this tonight and it is so good! I will be making this many times come winter. thank you ~♥~

Any specific reason why brown/green lentils only? I ask because I have yellow and red in my cupboard…

Just made this and loved it. Thanks for sharing it!!

I love this recipe! I live on an island so sometimes the frozen veggies are out of stock. Instead I used fresh carrots, turnips, okra, and yellow squash. I topped it off with sweet potatoes and used coconut oil to bind them together! It is so delicious! Thank you for this recipe :)

Sincerely,
a hungry veterinary student

This is one of my favorite comfort vegan recipes. I add a can of diced tomato’s and a dash of liquid smoke and liquid amino’s. SO GOOD!

I minor point, and probably pedantic; Shepherd’s Pie does not have beef in (that’s Cottage Pie), it is made of Lamb. Clue in the name. And in England the only veg we would traditionally have in the sauce is onion, carrot and celery. Part of the experience is the big pile of steaming buttery peas/beans/brocolli on the side.
Just writing about it reminds me of my grandmother. I’ll give your version a go. Thanks.

I’m stoked to see this recipe, and I’m going to try it tomorrow! I’ve made a vegan shepherd’s pie before using a puréed mushroom soup to mix in with the sautéed vegetables; it was amazing. Keep up the great recipes! They always kick ass!

I have made this before and loved it! Do you think I could make this and freeze it? If so, do you have any suggestions? Thanks!

Just made this as a practice run through for my GCSE Food technology controlled assessment on Monday and it turned out beautifully! Have been recovering from a nasty cold and this is the ultimate comfort food, yet still light enough as I have next to no appetite. My mum (vegan as well) rated it 10/10 and has asked me to make it again! Followed the recipe exactly except added some soy milk to mash and used cooked lentils to speed up cooking time. Wonderful recipe thank you so much :)

made this last night and it was Miraculous! Had frozen corn and peas so I added fresh shredded carrot and blanched green beans and added on top of the lentil gravy. Your proportions for cooking the dried lentils were spot on!!! Bravo!
I should mention that I found this recipe ( also a current subscriber though- because you rock) after a search inspired by visiting an Irish Festival. I opted for a falafel wrap and my partner went for nostalgia with the shepards pie ( not veggie). After looking at the brown gravy soaked sadness bowl I had to try a bite…. It was then I vowed to wow him with a much better ( taste and health wise) veggie version.
This recipe was my first foray and thanks to you I nailed it! He was sold after first bite of the Yukon mashed….. And I will continue to read and recommend you.
– cheers

I made this recipe yesterday, and it turned out AWESOME! Definitely a keeper! I love your website. I’m just starting to foray into vegan food/cooking, and you make it seem really accessible. I have quite a few of your recipes bookmarked; I can’t wait to try more! Thank you!

This was the first recipe I tried from Minimalist Baker and I loved it! It was also my first experience with vegan potatoes and lentils. Lots of firsts over here. My husband liked it too, which is saying a lot because he usually complains up a storm when I cook vegan. There was no complaining tonight – his mouth was too full! Thanks for this yummy recipe!

I made this shepards pie for my meat eaters last night. It was off the chart delish!!! They fought over the last of the left over today. Outstanding recipe!

The instructions do not seem to indicate that you peeled the mashed potatoes at any point (though the pics look to suggest otherwise). Is that the case? If you did, do you think this would work with smashed skin-on taters?

This was delicious! It made a lot of Shepard’s pie so I won’t have to cook for a couple of days. After tasting the lentil mixture I added ketchup. I just thought it needed some. That was the only change I made.

Can I substitue coconut oil for vegan butter?

Nice recipe!

If you ever want to do something a little different — try substituting the mashed potato topping with a sweet potato/cauliflower mash. I used two big sweet potatoes and a head of cauliflower (just boil the heck out of them and use an electric mixer to get a smooth texture).

It was a slightly sweeter and lighter version of the traditional shepherd’s pie topping.

Thank you so much for this wonderful vegan recipe!
I made this dish today and it was a success
delicious, easy to make and nutritious!
xxx

So yummy!! Everyone ate this up! My little siblings (6 and 8) helped pick out the veggies they wanted to put in it, and helped peel/wash the potatoes. They love helping me cook:) We somehow were out of lentils, so I used split peas instead lol. I plan on trying this again once we get lentils, but it was still very yummy with the split peas! Thanks!! The 6 year old rarely eats dinner but she ate her whole plate of this (and seconds)

Always on the lookout for good “comfort food” recipes, seems like meat is always a HUGE part of them! This is perfect because it’s vegan but looks SO satisfying! Adding this to my menu plan for next week, thanks!

This Shepherd’s Pie is my go-to recipe when I need something hearty that does not require much planning. And it’s delicious! I made one small change: I use organic coconut oil in the mashed potatoes as I love the extra flavor it gives.

Thank you for the recipe, i am doing it right now and i already can say that it look, smell and tastes delicious!
I dont normally put sold while i am cooking, so i decided to add sweet potatoes for more sweeter taste.

yumm! i would add about 1 potato worth of the mashed potatoes to the lentils to thicken them (and to get a better potato-lentil ratio)

I made this on the weekend and it was DELICIOUS! I added about 1/2 cup of the mashed potatoes to the lentils and the pie stays together so nicely that way. I made an 8×8 dish and I froze a smaller size for dinner in a few weeks time. Just included this recipe in my latest blog post about healthy meal planning. Thanks!!

This looks amazing!! Would it work just as well with sweet potatos?

This recipe is so yummy! I made it last week for my celiac mom & I, and I’m finding myself craving it again this week. I’ve never been big on lentils but they are absolutely perfect in this recipe. I’m making this for dinner again tonight. Thanks so much for sharing!

Substitute olive oil for the vegan butter in the mashed potatoes, add some daiya cheese as well if desired.
Seitan, aka. wheat cutlets, are a great addition to the filling (the sauce of which can be saved and thrown together with crimini or button mushrooms in a pan to make a gravy).

Otherwise an easy, quick, hearty meal.

Made this for St Patrick’s day! It was delicious! I put a little almond milk in my mashed potatoes and used the hand blender to make them really smooth. Otherwise I stuck to the recipe and even my 1 and 3 year olds ate it!

Its in the oven, my husband thinks there should be meat every meal so will see the reaction, I know I will like it, may have to move in with you if it does not go over well and I end up homeless! Will you take me in?

I had my doubts when it was cooking, but it tasted good! Even my boyfriend had two heaping helpings.

Made this for dinner tonight and it was absolutely delicious! I used a sprouted lentil trio and it worked really well. I also added a tiny sprinkle of garlic powder to the mashed potatoes and it was delicious! Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe!

made this with green lentils. they didn’t get soft for MUCH longer than the 45 min stated, i would recommend brown lentils. But other than that i really liked this recipe. i’m going to try it again and will make sure my lentils get nice a soft next time.

This is terrible… absolutely terrible. Ruined my night.

Thanks so much for this recipe! It was delicious! I didn’t any frozen veggies except for peas so I cooked some diced carrots with the onion and garlic and it turned out fabulous!

Thank you so much for this recipe! I made it for my husband and now he wants it so often that I keep running out of lentils. Amazing and delish :D Even my fussy toddler and 6 year old love it!

YUM! Making this tonight for dinner, I have been participating in Veganaury all month and the cravings started kicking in like crazy a week ago. I love the vegan comfort foods like these that replace my pre-veganuary omni meals. :-D

I’m in love! I LOVE Shepard’s pie but I have recently become vegetarian and I am missing all my winter favorites (pot roast, meatloaf, etc..) and this was heaven sent! My whole family loves it- even my super picky 7 year old. Thanks!

Delicious! I made it exactly as the recipe says. We all had seconds!

I followed the recipe exactly – had it for dinner and loved it!! I did however add a sprinkling of vegan cheese on top which gave it a yummy flavour. I was worried 4 cups of water would be too much but in the end it thickened nicely. Will definitely make it again as it was so yummy and nutritious.

Had this for dinner tonight and I was so surprised by how much yummy flavor it had! Even with thyme salt and pepper being the only spices. Family loved it. Will definitely make again!

Love. This. Absolutely delicious! I also use the vegetable base part of the recipe as a lentil soup when I don’t feel well… just add less lentils and no potatoes and it’s just what I need. Thanks for another incredible dish… or 2 for that matter.

Love. This. I also use the vegetable base part of the recipe as a lentil soup when I don’t feel

Tastes great, but I mistakenly followed the recipe without paying attention and think adding salt to the cooking lentils is a big mistake. Salt toughens up the lentils, so what should cook in 20 minutes took forever.

Yum! This is in the oven right now. I used my huge cast iron pan, something like a foot across, so there was plenty of room. Next time I’ll either use six potatoes instead of four, or freeze some of the filling and make a smaller batch. I like a little filling with my potatoes, ha ha.

SO good!!!

Made a few tweaks which were definitely worth it!

Topped my lentil filling with a thin layer of quinoa for a nutty texture & added protein;
Used the cauliflower mashed potato recipe to make it lighter & for less carbs;
Crumbled the Vegan Parmesan Cheese on top before putting it to bake.

And it turned out AHHH-MAYYY-ZINNGGGG.

Dana you’re a genius!

A HUGE thanks for this recipe!! I made this for family dinner last night! Everybody loved it, even the meat-eaters in the household! I added Barley to the Lentils to boost up the “meaty-ness” of the dish, and added some extra veggies. It was a huge hit! Thanks for inspiration to make grains the “meat” of the dish!!

I am going to try making this for dinner this evening, it looks yummy and it’s fun to make dishes that normall reguire meat without it. I bought some vegetarian minced meat to add to the dish, we’re lucky to have stores that sell quite some vegetarian meat like stuff.

I made this tonight for dinner, and it was amazing! I made it exactly as the recipe states. I did not need to thicken the lentil mixture. It was perfect!

This looks so good! I think I may make it for Thanksgiving. Do you know if this would be good to make ahead of time, freeze, then reheat on Thanksgiving?

Delightful! I want all the creamy crispy potatoes on top!

can you use canned lentils ? dont have the other..

First off, this was EXTREMELY tasty! I’ve been a Minimalist Baker fan for a while now, and this definitely lived up to the standards I’ve come to expect.

I want to take this to Thanksgiving (I’m vegan so it’d be nice to have a hearty dish I can actually eat) and I’m wondering how much of it can be made in advance. Can I fully assemble it and chill overnight? Ideally, I’d like to have as much of it completed prior to arriving at my grandmother’s house…there’ll already be 3 or 4 cooks in a cramped kitchen :)

Thank you for delicious, healthy and doable recipes!

Amazing! I made this tonight and cannot believe the size of a serving! I am sooooo stuffed and don’t feel at all guilty about what I ate. Very impressed! Although this took me closer to 90 minutes. Thanks for the recipe!

I made this tonight for a crowd (doubled the recipe) and they LOVED it. And I had everything except the frozen veggies already on hand, so it was cheap and easy. Fantastic recipe, thank you!!!

I made this for dinner tonight. So good! And plenty of leftovers for lunch tomorrow. I have made shepherds pie before, but this is BY FAR better than recipes tried in the past. In fact, past efforts were so disliked by my husband, I refused to tell him what I was making. Ha! He figured it out once it came out of the oven. Despite his prejudice, he loved this. Thanks!

I accidentally bought cooked lentils. How much veggie stock should I use (I am assuming much less)?

In argentina we call it pastel de papa, my mom used to do it all the time and since i became vegetarian i just change the meat for lentels and mushrooms, love it

Seriously good, thank you! Although my partner did put cheese on his… Oh well.

I made this Saturday and I loved it! I couldn’t eat lentils for a while because of a meatball idea I had months ago that when awry. I really wanted comfort food though and my mom always made a delicious Sheppard’s pie so I just had to try this. My parents tried my “vegan food” too and said it was good! Eating leftovers now and I think it’s even better, just like my mom’s traditional recipe.

Made it, ate it, loved it! I didn’t grow up eating a lot of casseroles either, but I’m always game for mixing up my food. This turned out even better than I hoped. I ended up blending a couple cups worth of the mix with cornstarch before adding it back in and plopping my potatoes on top. It cooked up into a nice rich gravy, made even thicker by some of the lentils breaking down. I’m looking forward to my leftovers for the next few days. Thanks!

Do you think I could sub chickpeas for lentils? I really want to make this but I can’t find lentils to save my life!

I made this tonight for dinner – I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to throw together! I used organic chicken stock, dried oregano instead of thyme, and Ontarian potatoes instead of Yukon (though they didn’t brown quite as nicely). However, it still came out of the oven wonderfully warm & delicious! I will definitely be using this recipe as a base for whatever vegetables & herbs I have on hand. Thank you :)

Made this last night. I loved it and so did my carnivore husband! I am enjoying the leftovers today and tomorrow. Even though I have been vegetarian for 13 years, I have yet to make a veg shepherd’s pie. Although it has been on my to-do cooking list as of late because this was a recipe I enjoyed in my childhood. I saw this post and knew I needed to seize the day. This was super simple and very flavorful despite minimal ingredients. Loved the filling…could have eaten it by itself!

I AM big on casseroles (or hot dish, as they like to call it where I’m from), and mushrooms, and, most of all, lentils. Looks like a win to add to the weeknight dinners list!

Just letting you know that the email for this inspired me and I had to make it! I made it last night (used asparagus, fresh carrots and mushrooms because I didn’t have frozen veggies) and it was SO good! I had a ton for lunch, infact my friends kept eying it and wanted some! I didn’t give them any, I ate it all! :) Thank you!

This looks amazing !! You combined two of my favorite things: lentils and mashed potatoes! :)

This looks delicious, it’s perfect comfort food, mmmm!

I made this with my mother tonight and it turned out great!!! We both decided it will be one of the vegan dishes served this Thanksgiving. Thanks so much for sharing!!!

My God, is there anything better than Shepherd’s Pie?

This looks amazing! I’ve only had shepherd pie once and I had to pick out the ground beef, but I loved it! So excited to make this!!

I grew up in a casserole family…so I don’t really eat them that much any more, ha! However, I LOVE the twist on shepherd’s pie…I’m all about potatoes and lentils :)

I’m finishing up making your vegan gf pumpkin bread and had just opened a google tab to search for “lentil shepherd’s pie,” and lo and behold! You had posted this! Perfect timing… can’t wait to make it for my snow day dinner tonight.

Wow, super well done in achieving the crispy bit of the topping! That is definitely the best bit of the dish! (and the lentils, and the veg and the smooth mashed potatoes…)

Ooh this looks great! I have a bit of a trauma with shepherd’s pie (I ate a portion while I was super sick and could never eat it again) but my sister loves it, so maybe I’ll try making this for her!

This looks amazing! Every time I cook lentils though, they turn to mush… yours look like rice! Nice and separated and fluffy… is there some trick I don’t know?

You are an angel from above for making this and sharing it with the world. I have been wanting to ‘veganize’ this for like ever and you have done it, beautifully.

Yay! I have everything to make this; dinner just appeared in my inbox!!!

yum! just printed and will be making very soon. perfect meal for a cold day!

You are a life-saver. I have been wondering what I should make for myself for Thanksgiving this year and now I think I know exactly what I’ll be eating! Thanks for sharing :)

I used to make a similar thing using mashed butterbeans as the topping and soya mince back when I ate more fake meat – now I think I’ll try moving the pulses down a layer and topping with good old potatoes. Looks so yum!

This kind of food is like a hug in the cooler weather. I just love this recipe.

I love that we both had sheppy pies ON THE BRAIN. Taking over the internets this week with our plant-power, babe! Love your spin on the mega-comforting traditional here. xo

Yum! Now I’m craving lentils…. :)

Sheperd’s Pie, def a winter time comfort food! I am shocked at how “meaty” yours appears, and makes me believe that even the meatiest lovers would enjoy it! I may have to give this one a try.

I was just wondering what I should make for dinner tonight. (Gimme a break– I like to plan ahead) And this is definitely the recipe! Thanks!

Shepherd’s Pie is one of my fav fall/winter comfort foods. I make mine with lentils too and usually do a sweet potato topping. Mmmm! I look forward to making it again soon.