Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie! ♡ Ay yay yaaaay. This is good.
click here to Pin this recipeShepherd’s Pie season is upon us and this super cozy vegetarian version is running around on the loose in our house. And did you hear me when I said veg only? Honestly, we don’t even need the meat – I promise these vegetables are the yummy kind.
Like, really yummy.
Like, sautéed with garlic and onion, sauced up with a sizzle of red wine, coated in a quick gravy, and baked under a layer of creamy mashed potatoes good. Want. Want. Want.
This is not a lentil shepherd’s pie, but if you want to add lentils for a little more protein punch, you do you.
A Quick Word On The Mashed Potatoes
I decided to put Greek yogurt in my potatoes to lean towards healthy while still being creamy-tangy (gah, so good).
That being said, if you want this to be a completely vegan shepherd’s pie, just use olive oil instead of butter and maybe a splash of non-dairy milk in your potatoes and you will be golden. And if you’re gluten free? I have a hack for you involving mashed potatoes – check the recipe notes.
Let’s Make Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie
Step 1: Mash Your Potatoes
Step 2: Cook Your Veggies
Step 3: Make That Gravy
Step 4: Add Peas and Potatoes
Step 5: Bake It Up
Can you smell it though? That red wine, garlic, olive oil, rosemary aromatherapy?
If you’re really looking ahead, I’ll also say that Shepherd’s Pie is a perfect after-Thanksgiving recipe, because guess what you have a lot of in your fridge after Thanksgiving? Leftover mashed potatoes. This is an amazing way to use up some of those holiday potato leftovers.
Important to note that this vegetarian shepherd’s pie is a total comfort food meets real food situation, so it’s going to require pajamas or sweats. A big fluffy sweater would be okay, too. Blanket, slippers, and candle are all optional. But a big appetite will be necessary. I know you can deliver.
When you pull this out of the oven and the sauce is bubbling up around the sides under the lightly-golden-brown potatoes and your whole house smells like a log cabin in the northwoods?
This will not be a sad moment for you.
Watch How to Make Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie:
Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 8, or 6 if you’re hungry 1x
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie ♡ saucy mushrooms, carrots, and peas topped with creamy mashed potatoes. Real food meets comfort food!
Ingredients
Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie Filling:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 shallots, minced (or some onions and garlic)
- 16 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
- 6 carrots, peeled and chopped (about 2 cups)
- fresh herbs to taste (I used 1 sprig of rosemary, thyme, and a bay leaf)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 1–2 cups veggie broth
- 1 teaspoon salt (more or less to taste)
- 2 cups frozen peas
Mashed Potatoes:
- 6 Yukon gold potatoes (about 2 pounds)
- 1/2 cup full fat Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup butter or olive oil
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Make the mashed potatoes: Peel the potatoes. Boil them until fork tender (you want them to mash easily). Drain, mash, and mix in yogurt and butter. Season to taste. (You can also use the Instant Pot method which is quick and easy! That’s what I do.)
- Make the veggies: In a large oven-safe pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add shallots and sauté until fragrant. Add mushrooms, carrots, and whole herbs (you will pull the herbs out later). Sauté until carrots are softened.
- Make the gravy: Add tomato paste and flour to the pot and stir. Pour in the red wine (sizzzzle) and scrape all the browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Let the wine cook out for a minute or two. Slowly add the broth, stirring it in until a gravy starts to form. Season with salt. Simmer over low heat to get it thickened even further.
- Bake: Remove the herbs. Stir in the peas, spread the mashed potatoes on top (brush with butter to be extra awesome), and bake for 15 minutes at 350. I finished mine on the broil setting for a few minutes to get it nice and brown on top.
Notes
Gluten Free Variation: Skip the flour and stir in about 3/4 cup mashed potatoes to the veggies and liquid to make a “gravy.” Easy. Tasty.
Vegan Version: Use olive oil in place of butter and non-dairy milk in place of the yogurt.
Meat Version: Add browned ground meat to the gravy mixture. Yummy!
Pro Texture Tip: I chopped up half of my mushrooms so there would be a better texture variety in the filling. If you don’t want to use red wine, just sub a little more liquid. No problem.
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: British-Inspired
Keywords: shepherd’s pie, vegetarian shepherd’s pie, vegetarian recipe, vegetarian comfort food, easy shepherd’s pie recipe
One more thing!
This recipe is part of our coziest comfort food recipes page. Check it out!
I’m here for both the recipe and the insanely catty comment section LOL
LOL, you and me both
I can’t use alcohol in recipes. What would you substitute for the red wine? or would you leave it out?
You can just add a little more broth instead.
Made this tonight and it was delicious! It’s the best vegetarian shepherd’s pie I’ve had or made, and I’ve made a number over 13 years of vegetarian cooking.
★★★★★
So so so happy to hear this, Julie!
I’m already cozy me out the cool autumns with your amazing shepherds’ pie. Unable waiting to try it today!
Love this- such a delicious classic!
If you have it I’d highly recommend 1-2 tbsp of Lea & Perrins in the gravy it gives such a depth of flavour and a little sprinkling of cheese on top of the potato, because melted cheese is always a good idea 😉
Hi, would just like to comment that this takes closer to an hour to prepare properly. This is with an experienced two man squad in the trenches chopping and peeling at high velocity.
The pie is scrumptious though.
Regards,
Michael
★★★★
Absolutely fantastic. Truly delicious – so comforting. Greek yogurt is a must on the potatoes, really finishes nicely. I added some ground beef and my husband has been eating this every day since I made it. Great for lunches after – highly recommend!
★★★★★
YES. Lots of leftovers and perfect for lunches. Glad you enjoyed this, Brittney!
After discovering https://28dayketo.com/?hop=adambeest3 and losing all the weight I’m always looking for new recipes! Great one here! Super healthy and easy to make!
★★★★★
This recipe was very easy to follow and absolutely delicious! It will certainly make it into our fall rotation. My husband and I got three dinners and a lunch out of it. We did add ground beef.
★★★★★
Glad you enjoyed this, Melissa!
This is very really unique helpful information.I learn so much from you as well!Thank you so much for sharing your helpful information. Keep it up.
★★★★★
This is delicious! Just made it for dinner and even my meatasaurus hubby loved it! I added parsnips but otherwise stuck to the recipe. This is going to be a regular at our home!
★★★★★
Parsnips sound like a great addition! YUM!
Made this today(with lentils) for my meat loving husband, and he loved it. Said it’s the best veggie recipe he ever had.
Yay yay yay! So happy to hear this, Kathy!
I added celery and chickpeas to the filling and used pie crust instead of potatoes on top. The sauce was so thick and flavorful! This was just as comforting and delicious as I wanted—a solid recipe that I will make again.
★★★★
YUM! Sounds delicious, Emily!
We love anything good on foo. So We love this too. thanks a lot.
thanks and best wishes
kancor-a pioneer in the field of cocoa extract
★★★★★
Lindsay this looks so amazing. Can you please share a link to the orange pot you used? I’d love to try and cook it exactly how you did to get the most flavor into that gravy…it sounds divine.
Thank you very much.
Love Sam.
★★★★★
Hey, Sam! This is the one we used! (affiliate link)
This is fantastic! Thank you for sharing so that us vegs can enjoy this dish!
★★★★★
Enjoy, Elizabeth!
I didn’t like this the day that it was made but once the flavors all soaked in together, overnight, holy moly! Super delicious ! I will definitely be making this again and did not make any substitutions to the recipe.
★★★★
Glad you enjoyed this, Marcela! 🙂
I added a tin of lentils and this was very very tasty !! I’ll be making this on a regular basis
★★★★★
Mmmm lentils sound yummy here! Thanks for the tip, Jacky! 🙂
We made this last night and it was incredible! So hearty and flavourful, the perfect comfort meal now that the cold weather (and snow!) are here.
I was so impressed with this recipe, I’ve obsessively raved about it to everyone I know!
We will no doubt be making this one again!
★★★★★
YES! The perfect comfort food right here. 🙂
This recipe was spectacular!! I used dried herbs because I didn’t have any fresh ones handy and it was still great. This is definitely going into my monthly rotation of staple meals this winter.
★★★★★
So glad you enjoyed this!
So delicious! Not vegetarian and I thought this was so filling and satisfying. I did pre-cook and add about 1/2-3/4 cup lentils just before adding the potatoes on top.
★★★★★
So glad you enjoyed this, Ashley!
OMG I cannot rave enough about this recipe, it’s a godsend and now in my weekly rotation, thank you!
Just a quick question—what type of dish did you use in the picture to bake this with and what depth? (Eg Dutch oven, x quarts)? Def need one for my kitchen. Thanks so much again! <3
Hi, Kristin! We have a couple of different dishes pictured here. This one in the 5.5 quarts and this one in the 3.6 quart (affiliate links).
Hello, I’m just about to make this!! Would it freeze ok?? Wasn’t sure with the yogurt used in the potato topping?? TIA 😊
We’re not sure how the mashed potatoes would freeze, but we think the filling would freeze well! You could make the mashed potatoes when you go to reheat the filling. Enjoy!
Delicious – even without the Thyme. Next time I will try with whipped potatoes instead of mashed.
★★★★
Hi, I want to make this, but was wondering if I should use 1 or 2 cups of the broth?
Thank you!
Hi, Chelsea! We’d suggest starting with 1 cup and adding more liquid as needed until you get the consistency of gravy.