Vegan Shepherd's Pie with Lentils and Creamy Mash
I often make shepherd's pie with soya mince, but this time I made it with lentils. Green lentils to be precise, but I've also made a shepherds pie with red lentils before and that was rather good too. This beauty is made with green lentils, mushrooms, onions and carrots in a rich tasty gravy and topped with a creamy mash and baked until golden and bubbling. YUM!
We love comfort food like this, especially on a cold day. It's the perfect dish to make ahead and freeze, but I have to admit I never do get around to freezing this. I don't have enough room in my new freezer, which is rather small and to be honest I'm rarely organised enough.
Vegan Shepherd's Pie with Lentils and Creamy Mash
An easy and comforting shepherd's pie made with mushrooms, onions, carrots and lentils in a rich gravy topped with a creamy dairy free mash.
Ingredients
1 tbsp rapeseed oil
2 tbsp mustard seeds
1 onion, chopped
2 large celery stalks, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, crushed
4 large carrots, chopped
250g chestnut mushrooms, chopped
400g tin green lentils
2 tsp dried thyme
1 vegetable stock pot
3 tbsp HP brown sauce (or a BBQ sauce)
2 tbsp tomato puree
1 tsp cornflour
a good grinding of salt and pepper
1 kg potatoes, peeled and chopped
50g dairy free spread (or butter)
a splosh of unsweetened soya milk (or standard milk)
Instructions
1. Heat the oil in a large heavy bottomed pan and add the mustard seeds. Leave them for a couple of minutes until they start making popping sounds, then add the onion, celery and garlic. Saute until soft.
2. Add the carrots, p the lid on and leave to cook gently for 5 minutes.
3. Add the mushrooms, the lentils and the thyme. Cover again and allow to cook for a further 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Add the stock pot to a measuring jug and top up with boiling water to the 400ml mark. Stir well until dissolved and then add to the pan, along with the HP sauce, which gives the gravy a great flavour and the tomato puree.
5. Add a little water to the cornflour, to make a runny paste. Add this to the pot and stir well. This will help to thicken the gravy.
6. Cover the pot and leave to simmer gently for 30 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the gravy is thick.
7. While this is cooking, boil the potatoes until soft, then drain and mash with the dairy free spread, then season with salt and pepper.
8. About 10 minutes before the end of cooking, pop the oven on to heat. 200c/180c fan/gas mark 6.
9. Ladle the savoury lentil mixture into 1 large or 4 individual pie dishes. Top with the mashed potato and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden.
10. Enjoy