Vegan Lentil Shepherd's Pie with Garlicky Sweet Potato Mash
A hearty vegan lentil shepherd's pie: savory mushroom, carrot and pea filling under a fluffy garlic sweet potato mash. Make-ahead and freezer-friendly.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 70 min
- Rest
- 10 min
- Serves
- 6
Vegan Lentil Shepherd's Pie with Garlicky Sweet Potato Mash is a vegan dinner recipe made with olive oil, yellow onion, carrots. It takes 90 minutes of hands-on time, plus 10 minutes resting, serves 6, and each serving has 478 calories, 17 g of protein and 13 g of fiber.
Green lentils simmer right in the filling with broth, tomato paste and soy sauce, so they soak up all that savory flavor and the sauce thickens without any flour. Finely chopped mushrooms, browned until their liquid cooks off, give it a deep, meaty base. The garlic cloves boil alongside the sweet potatoes and get mashed in with them, which gives the topping a mellow, sweet garlic flavor instead of a harsh bite.
Ingredients
Lentil filling
- 2 tbsp27 golive oil
- 1 large150 gyellow onion, diced
- 2 medium122 gcarrots, diced small
- 2 80 gcelery stalks, diced small
- 8 oz227 gcremini mushrooms, finely chopped
- 4 cloves12 ggarlic, minced
- 3 tbsp48 gtomato paste
- 1 tsp1.4 gdried thyme
- 1¼ cups240 gdried green or brown lentils, rinsed and picked over
- 3½ cups840 glow-sodium vegetable broth, plus more as needed
- 2 tbsp32 gsoy sauce or tamari
- 1 cup134 gfrozen green peas
- ½ tsp1.2 gblack pepper
- ½ tsp3 gsalt, to taste
Garlicky sweet potato mash
- 2½ lb1.13 kgsweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1½-inch chunks
- 6 cloves18 ggarlic cloves, peeled and left whole
- 3 tbsp41 golive oil
- ¼ cup61 gunsweetened soy milk, warmed
- 1 tsp6 gsalt
- 1 pinch0.2 gground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp0.6 gblack pepper
- 2 tbsp7.6 gfresh parsley, chopped, for serving (optional)
Kit: large deep skillet or Dutch oven, large saucepan, potato masher, 9x13-inch baking dish
Tips
- Chop the mushrooms small, about the size of the lentils. That way they blend into the filling and give it a ground-meat texture.
- Let the mashed sweet potatoes steam dry before you add the oil and milk. A wet mash sinks into the filling and won't brown.
- To make ahead, assemble the pie, cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Bake from cold for 35–40 minutes, until it's hot all the way through.
Swap ideas
- Use 2 (15-oz) cans of lentils, drained, instead of dried lentils, and cut the broth to 1¼ cups
- Cuts the simmering to about 10 minutes. The lentils come out softer and a little less flavorful.
- Replace half the sweet potatoes with Yukon Gold potatoes
- Makes a more traditional, less sweet topping that still has a bit of orange color.
- Add 1 tbsp vegan Worcestershire sauce with the soy sauce
- Gives a tangier, more classic British savory flavor. Check the label, since most Worcestershire sauce contains anchovies.
- Stir 2 tbsp nutritional yeast into the mash
- Adds a cheesy, savory note to the topping.
The numbers
Nutrition per serving
478kcal per serving
Everything else · 6 servings per recipe
- Saturated fat
- 1.8 g 9%
- Sugars
- 14.9 g
- Sodium
- 1458 mg 63%
- Potassium
- 1417 mg 30%
- Calcium
- 137 mg 11%
- Iron
- 5.3 mg 29%
- Vitamin C
- 18 mg 20%
- Vitamin B12
- 0.12 µg 5%
% Daily Value on a 2,000 calorie diet. Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient; optional ingredients are excluded. Estimates vary with brands and portions.
Sources: Oil, olive, salad or cooking, Onions, raw, Carrots, raw, Celery, raw, Mushrooms, brown, italian, or crimini, raw, Garlic, raw, Tomato products, canned, paste, without salt added (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program), Spices, thyme, dried, Lentils, raw, Soup, vegetable broth, ready to serve, Soy sauce made from soy and wheat (shoyu), Peas, green, frozen, unprepared (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program), Spices, pepper, black, Salt, table, Sweet potato, raw, unprepared (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program), Soymilk, original and vanilla, with added calcium, vitamins A and D, Spices, nutmeg, ground
Method
Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots and celery with a pinch of salt and cook, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent, 7–8 minutes.
Turn the heat up to medium-high and add the mushrooms. Cook, stirring often, until they release their liquid, it evaporates, and the mushrooms start to brown, 7–9 minutes.
Stir in the minced garlic, tomato paste and thyme. Cook for 1–2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the paste darkens to a brick red and coats the vegetables.
Add the rinsed lentils, broth and soy sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce to a steady simmer, partly cover, and cook for 30–35 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the lentils are tender but still hold their shape and the sauce is thick and glossy. If it gets dry before the lentils are done, add broth ¼ cup at a time.
While the lentils simmer, put the sweet potatoes and whole garlic cloves in a large saucepan, cover with cold water by 1 inch, and add a big pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and cook until a knife slides easily into the sweet potatoes, 12–15 minutes. Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
Drain the sweet potatoes and garlic well, then return them to the hot pot for 1–2 minutes so any leftover water steams off. Mash with 3 tbsp olive oil, warm soy milk, 1 tsp salt, nutmeg and pepper until smooth and fluffy. Add a splash more milk if it's too stiff to spread.
Stir the frozen peas and black pepper into the lentil filling, then taste and add salt as needed. The filling should be thick, not soupy. Spread it evenly in a 9x13-inch baking dish.
Spoon the mash over the filling in dollops, spread it gently to the edges to seal, then rough up the top with a fork so it forms ridges that will brown.
Set the dish on a baking sheet and bake until the filling bubbles at the edges and the ridges on top are lightly browned, 20–25 minutes. For more color, broil for 2–3 minutes, watching closely. Let it rest for 10 minutes before serving so it firms up, then scatter parsley on top if you like.
Storage: Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Reheat portions in the microwave or covered in a 350°F oven until hot all the way through. To freeze, wrap the cooled pie or individual portions well and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
Questions
- How much protein is in vegan lentil shepherd's pie with garlicky sweet potato mash?
- Each of the 6 servings has 17 g of protein, 13 g of fiber and 478 calories, calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for every ingredient.
- Is vegan lentil shepherd's pie with garlicky sweet potato mash vegan?
- Yes. It contains no dairy, eggs, honey or other animal products.
- How long does vegan lentil shepherd's pie with garlicky sweet potato mash take to make?
- 20 minutes of prep and 70 minutes of cooking, so 90 minutes of hands-on time, plus 10 minutes of unattended resting.
- Can you make vegan lentil shepherd's pie with garlicky sweet potato mash ahead?
- Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Reheat portions in the microwave or covered in a 350°F oven until hot all the way through. To freeze, wrap the cooled pie or individual portions well and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
- What can I substitute in vegan lentil shepherd's pie with garlicky sweet potato mash?
- Use 2 (15-oz) cans of lentils, drained, instead of dried lentils, and cut the broth to 1¼ cups — cuts the simmering to about 10 minutes. the lentils come out softer and a little less flavorful.. Replace half the sweet potatoes with Yukon Gold potatoes — makes a more traditional, less sweet topping that still has a bit of orange color.. Add 1 tbsp vegan Worcestershire sauce with the soy sauce — gives a tangier, more classic british savory flavor. check the label, since most worcestershire sauce contains anchovies.. Stir 2 tbsp nutritional yeast into the mash — adds a cheesy, savory note to the topping..
- Does vegan lentil shepherd's pie with garlicky sweet potato mash contain gluten?
- Yes — the ingredient list includes gluten. Check the labels on the products you buy if you're cooking for an allergy.
Nutrition is calculated from USDA data for every ingredient — how we work it out.
Published September 30, 2026 ·British