This savory vegan shepherd's pie is filled with chickpeas, mushrooms, carrots, onions, and green peas, and it's topped with creamy mashed purple sweet potatoes. This gluten-free and colorful casserole is a family favorite recipe that everyone will love!Â
This delicious vegan shepherd pie is filled with a savory chickpea and vegetable filling and topped with vibrant purple sweet potatoes! The casserole is visually beautiful and incredibly tasty, it's the perfect main course to serve for dinner any night of the week or to make for your family for a special occasion like Christmas dinner or Thanksgiving.
I used a mix of fresh and frozen veggies to save time prepping for the casserole and canned chickpeas to make it even simpler! This casserole does require a few steps to make it, but it's all very easy to do and well worth the effort. I used mashed purple sweet potatoes as the topping to add a little pizzaz and color to the dish, but traditional mashed potatoes are just as delicious to use if that's what you have on hand.
Step by Step Instructions
First, saute the onions until soft. Add all the dried seasonings, tomato paste, tamari, and vegan Worcestershire to the pan and let it cook until fragrant. While the onions are cooking, boil the potatoes in a large pot until tender.
Add the quartered mushrooms, frozen veggies, and red wine to the pan and cook until the veggies are tender and the wine has reduced. Stir in the cooked chickpeas. In a small bowl, combine the veggie broth and arrowroot powder. Pour it over the vegetables and stir to combine.
When the potatoes are done cooking, drain the water and add almond milk, vegan butter, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mash the potatoes until creamy. Transfer the veggies to a large casserole dish and then spread the purple sweet potatoes over the cooked veggies. Top the vegan shepherd pie with shredded vegan cheddar cheese and bake until the cheese has melted.
What Goes With It?
Any of the following side dishes would be delicious served with the vegan shepherd pie.
- Arugula Avocado Tomato Salad
- Roasted Garlic RadishesÂ
- Roasted Lemon Garlic Asparagus
- Roasted Beet and Feta Salad
Can I Make It Ahead Of Time?
Yes, you can assemble the chickpea shepherd pie 1-2 days in advance. Cover it and store it in the fridge until you're ready to bake it. You may need to bake it an additional 10-15 minutes to make sure it's hot all the way through.
How Long Will It Last In The Refrigerator?Â
Store the leftover vegan shepherd pie in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4-5 days.
Can I Freeze It?Â
You can freeze leftovers in a freezer-safe container and store it in the freezer for up to 2 months for the best quality.
To freeze an entire vegan shepherd pie, bake it in an oven and freezer-safe container and then let it cool completely. Cover the casserole so it's airtight and then freeze it whole.
How to Reheat It
From the Fridge: You can reheat wedges of the vegetable pie in the microwave for 2-3 minutes or until warmed through. To reheat the rest of the casserole in the oven, cover with parchment paper or foil and bake it for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees.
When reheating at least 3-4 servings in the oven, I like to whisk together ½ cup of lukewarm water with 1 tsp of arrowroot powder in a small bowl and then pour it into the bottom of the casserole dish before I add the rest of the shepherd's pie on top of it. The extra liquid stops the vegetable filling from drying out and helps it to stay thick and saucy while it's reheating.
From the Freezer: Take the vegan shepherd pie out of the freezer and put it in the fridge to defrost for 24 hours. Then bake it at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until it's hot all the way through.
Substitutions & FAQ
- Chickpea Substitutions: Great northern beans, cannellini beans, black-eyed peas, pinto beans, green lentils, brown lentils, or french puy lentils can be used instead of the chickpeas. If you're looking for more of a "meat substitute" then brown lentils would be your best choice.
- Purple Sweet Potato Substitution: You can use russet or red potatoes or garnet/ jewel sweet potatoes instead.
- Almond Milk Substitutions: You can use any plant milk that you like as long as it's unsweetened and not vanilla-flavored.
- Do I Have to Use Frozen Vegetables? No, you don't need to use frozen vegetables, I only used them for convenience. You'll need about 4 cups of fresh veggies if you don't want to use frozen.
- Is the Wine Necessary? You can omit the red wine from the vegan shepherd pie recipe. I added wine to give an extra layer of flavor to the vegetables, but it's not necessary.
- What's the Best Vegan Shredded Cheese? My favorite dairy-free shredded cheese to use is Violife cheddar cheese, but I also like Follow Your Heart and So Delicious.
Success Tips
- Boil the potatoes while the vegetable filling is cooking so both are ready at the same time.
- Use frozen vegetables to save time prepping and chopping vegetables. Any frozen vegetable mix is fine.
- Don't add the arrowroot powder directly to the pan, if you do it will clump up and be difficult to incorporate. It's important to whisk the arrowroot powder into a separate bowl with the lukewarm vegetable broth or water to help it dissolve.
- The red wine and vegan shredded cheese are optional ingredients. They add extra flavor to the dish but are not necessary if you don't want to use them.
- Store leftover vegan shepherd's pie in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days or you can freeze it for a future meal.
Want More Chickpea Recipes?Â
Vegan Chickpea Shepherd Pie
Equipment
- Large Pan
- Small Bowl
- Large Pot
- Large 9x13 Casserole Dish
Ingredients
Filling
- 3-4 tbsp low-sodium vegetable broth
- 1 medium onion diced
- 4 medium garlic cloves minced
- 1 tbsp Italian seasonings
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 1 tbsp vegan Worcestershire
- 1 tbsp low-sodium tamari
- 8 oz cremini mushrooms quartered
- (2) 10 oz bags mixed frozen vegetables (about 4 cups)
- ½ cup red wine (optional)
- (1) 14 oz can chickpeas rinsed and drained
- 1 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
- 2 tsp arrowroot powder
Mashed Potatoes
- 3 lbs purple potatoes peeled
- ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
- 2 tbsp vegan butter
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- salt and pepper to taste
Toppings
- 1 cup shredded vegan cheddar cheese (optional)
- 2 tbsp parsley
Instructions
- In a large pan over medium heat, saute the diced onion in 3-4 tbsp vegetable broth until soft. Add minced garlic, 1 tbsp Italian seasonings, ¼ tsp black pepper, ¼ cup tomato paste, 1 tbsp vegan Worcestershire, and 1 tbsp tamari to the pan, stir, and let it cook until fragrant.
- While the onions are cooking, put the purple potatoes into a large pot with cool water. Bring it to a boil and let the potatoes cook for 20 minutes or until they're fork tender. Drain the water. Add ½ cup unsweetened almond milk, 2 tbsp vegan butter, 1 tsp garlic powder, salt and pepper (to taste) and then mash until creamy.
- Add the quartered mushrooms, frozen vegetables, and ½ cup red wine to the pan with the onions and let it cook until the vegetables are tender and the wine has reduced. Stir in the cooked chickpeas.
- Pour 1 cup lukewarm vegetable broth in a separate bowl and whisk in 2 tsp arrowroot powder until it has dissolved. Pour the mixture into the pan with the vegetables and stir to combine. Let it cook for a few minutes until the sauce starts to thicken.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Pour the vegetable mixture into a large casserole dish and spread it out. Spread the mashed potatoes evenly over the vegetable filling.
- Sprinkle vegan shredded cheese over the mashed potatoes and bake for 30 minutes. To get more color on the mashed potatoes, broil the casserole for an additional 4-5 minutes.
- Remove the casserole from the oven and let it sit for 5 minutes to set up before serving. Garnish with parsley.
Notes
- Boil the potatoes while the vegetable filling is cooking so both are ready at the same time.Â
- Use frozen vegetables to save you time prepping and chopping vegetables. Any frozen vegetable mix is fine.Â
- Don't add the arrowroot powder directly to the pan, if you do it will clump up and be difficult to incorporate. It's important to whisk the arrowroot powder into a separate bowl with the lukewarm vegetable broth or water to help it dissolve.Â
- The red wine and vegan shredded cheese are optional ingredients. They add extra flavor to the dish, but are not necessary if you don't want to use them.Â
- Store leftover vegan shepherd's pie in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days or you can freeze it for a future meal.Â
Nutrition
*This recipe was originally shared on 7/1/15, but I updated it with better recipe instructions on 7/30/20.
Andy
This was delicious! My grocer did not have purple potatoes in stock, so I used Japanese yams instead. They did the trick! I will definitely be making this one again.
Stacey Homemaker
I'm so happy that you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for letting me know =)
Amanda@TexMexCrafting
This dish is beautiful and looks yummy. I love the color combinations! Pinning.
Stacey Homemaker
Thank you so much!
Annie @ Annie's Noms
I did not know that purple potatoes have more antioxidants than white! Although it does figure lol, and they're so pretty! This looks great! 🙂
Stacey Homemaker
They sure do! Thanks!
Velaundra{at}Velsworld.com
Oh my this looks super yummy! I will definitely have to give this one a try.
Maggie
So uh this looks amazing!! 🙂 Going to have to try it out soon as Shepard's pie is one of my Husbands favorites!! Great Job Stacey! The pictures look fantastic as well.
Stacey Homemaker
I hope he loves it! My fiance gave it two thumbs up! Thank you!