Cozy up with a plate full of Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie. It’s the ultimate comfort dish complete with fluffy mashed potatoes and loads of delicious veggies and spices!
When you’re craving a hearty, comforting dinner, there’s one food that never disappoints…mashed potatoes. Buttery, herby mouthfuls of yum, they’re even better when they’re paired with other hearty ingredients!
Shepherd’s pie, for example. It’s a layered dish of veggies, mushrooms, tomato paste, and broth, with a thick, fluffy bed of mashed potatoes on top!
Traditionally made with beef or lamb, we’re totally skipping the meat in favor of an all-veggie version complete with peas, corn, carrots, celery, and onion. With loads of spices included, the flavors are so intense that you won’t even miss the meat!
Ingredients in veggie shepherd’s pie
This shepherd’s pie recipe begins with 4-ingredient mashed potatoes, followed by the filling made with mushrooms, onion, carrots, and more.
Mashed Potatoes
- Potatoes: First, you will need 2 lbs of Yukon Gold potatoes. Russet or Colorado will work, but Yukon are best!
- Greek Yogurt: Next, you’ll need ½ cup of full fat plain Greek yogurt. This will help create very creamy, fluffy mashed potatoes.
- Butter: As for the butter, use ¼ cup of unsalted butter. Feel free to use dairy-free or margarine if that’s what you have on hand.
- Salt: Throw in ¼ tsp of salt to enhance all those delicious potato flavors. If you only have salted butter, omit the extra ¼ tsp of salt.
Filling
- Mushrooms: Mushrooms provide a savory flavor that will help mimic meat! Most types of mushrooms will work, but I recommend button.
- Yellow Onion: Next stop, Flavor Town with 1 medium sized yellow onion, sliced!
- Garlic: Include 3 cloves of garlic for flavor (or 1½ tsp of powder if that’s all you have).
- Carrots: Next you will need 4 medium carrots, which should equal about 1½ cups when chopped.
- Celery: The same goes for the celery — use need 4 medium-sized ribs.
- Herbs: For your fresh herbs, you’ll need 2 tablespoons of chopped rosemary, thyme, and/or bay leaves (I like to use a combination of all three). For the fried herbs, we’ll keep it simple with fennel and smoked paprika.
- Tomato Paste: Include 2 tablespoons of tomato paste for a boost of savory umami flavor.
- Flour: 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour will help thicken the sauce, making the pie filling more cohesive.
- Vegetable Broth: 2 cups of broth brings everything together. Feel free to use any variety you have on hand (like low-sodium, mushroom, or beefless base).
- Peas: Include 1 cup of frozen peas. Add from frozen – they’ll cook quickly with everything else!
- Corn: Last but not least, include 1 cup of canned corn.
How to make vegetarian shepherd’s pie
Vegetarian shepherd’s pie is made in four steps. Start by cooking and mashing the potatoes, followed by the veggies. Then, just assemble and bake!
Step 1: Prepare the potatoes
Preheat the oven to 375° (190°C) and bring a large pot of water to a boil. Peel and roughly chop the potatoes and then add them to the boiling water. Cover and cook until fork tender, which should take about 15 minutes. When finished, add the potatoes to a large bowl and mash, then mix in the Greek yogurt, butter, and salt. Set aside.
Step 2: Cook the veggies
In a large oven-safe pot, heat olive oil over medium/high heat. Add the mushrooms, sliced onion, and garlic, cooking until the mushrooms lose their moisture and begin to turn golden brown, about 5 minutes.
Add the carrots, and celery, continuing to cook until the vegetables are slightly soft, another 5 minutes.
Step 3: Add the flavorings
Stir in the fresh herbs, tomato paste, fennel, and paprika. Sprinkle in the flour and stir to evenly coat everything. Slowly drizzle in the broth, stirring as you add it. Heat the mixture until it thickens slightly, and then stir in the peas and corn.
Step 4: Assemble the dish
Spoon the mashed potatoes over the filling in the pot.
Bake uncovered for 20 minutes. If desired, cook under the broiler for a few minutes to help brown the surface of the mashed potatoes.
Shepherd’s Pie Recipe tips
Getting a “beef” flavor
If you’d like to wind up with a meaty flavor but want to keep things vegetarian, you can use something like Vegetarian No Beef Base.
Adding extra ingredients
Want to add extra veggies? Some people throw in green beans, and others finely chopped broccoli!
Make it cheesy
Additionally, you can add a layer of cheddar or pepperjack on top for an extra savory finish!
Hungry for more Irish classics?
Be sure to try these vegetarian versions of classic Irish meals!
Ingredients
Mashed Potatoes
- 2 lb Yukon Gold potatoes about 6, 0.9 Kg
- ½ cup full fat plain Greek yogurt can sub dairy-free, 120 g
- ¼ cup unsalted butter can sub dairy-free, 56 g
- ¼ tsp salt
Filling
- 2 Tbsp olive oil 30 mL
- 16 oz sliced mushrooms 450 g
- 1 medium yellow onion thinly sliced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 4 medium carrots about 1½ cups roughly chopped
- 4 medium ribs of celery about 1½ cups sliced
- 2 Tbsp of fresh herbs chopped rosemary, thyme, and/or bay leaf
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste 20 g
- 1 tsp fennel seed
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- 2 cups vegetable broth 470 mL
- 1 cup frozen peas 100 g
- 1 cup corn from a can 100 g
Instructions
- Mashed Potatoes: Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Peel and roughly chop potatoes then add to boiling water. Cover and cook until fork tender, about 15 minutes. When finished, add to a large bowl and mash, then mix in Greek yogurt, butter, and salt. Set aside.
- Veggies: In a large oven-safe pot, heat olive oil over medium/high. Add mushrooms and cook until they lose their moisture and begin to turn golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add sliced onion, garlic, carrots, and celery, continuing to cook until vegetables are slightly soft, another 5 minutes.
- Flavor: Stir in fresh herbs, tomato paste, fennel, and paprika. Sprinkle in flour and stir to evenly coat everything. Slowly drizzle in the broth, stirring as you add it. Heat the mixture until it thickens slightly. Stir in peas and corn.
- Assemble: Spoon the mashed potatoes over the filling in the pot, spreading it into an even layer (you can crimp the top with a fork to get little crispy edge pieces). Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes. If desired, cook under the broiler for a few minutes to help brown the surface of the mashed potatoes.
Tracey says
Hi. I have trouble getting celery in Turkey, what do you suggest as a replacement? Thanks
Sarah says
Can you find fennel? That would be a good replacement. Otherwise, just leave it out!
Deb says
I love this recipe, but how do I keep the sauce from boiling up in the oven and covering my potato top?
Sarah says
It’s a bit in the nature of this recipe for the sauce to boil over, but you could try using more potatoes if you really don’t want that to happen! 😀