Golden veggie shepherd’s pie

Golden veggie shepherd’s pie

Make this comforting pie in bulk and freeze in separate servings, so you can defrost only what you need

Difficulty and servings

Easy

Serves 10

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 30 mins

Cook time

Cook 1 hr 45 mins

Vegetarian Freezable

Vegetarian

Method

  1. To make the sauce, heat the butter in a pan, then gently fry the onions, carrots, celery and garlic for 15 mins until soft and golden. Turn up the heat, add the mushrooms, then cook for 4 mins more. Stir in the herbs, then add the lentils. Pour over the wine and stock - it's important that you do not season with salt at this stage. Simmer for 40-50 mins until the lentils are very soft. Now season to taste, take off heat, then stir in the tomato purée.
  2. While the lentils are cooking, tip the potatoes into a pan of water, then boil for about 15 mins until tender. Drain well, mash with the butter and milk, then season with salt and pepper.
  3. To assemble the pies, divide the lentil mixture between all the dishes that you are using, then top with mash. Scatter over the cheese and freeze for up to two months (see tips, below) or if eating that day, heat oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5, then bake for 30 mins until the topping is golden.
Try

LENTILS

You could also use three cans of rinsed and drained green lentils for this - simply make the stock, then simmer them for just 10 minutes.

HOW TO FREEZE

If you have lots of pie dishes, then you can make the pies in a variety of sizes to suit different occasions, then freeze them. I like to make two large pies to serve up to four, plus two individual pies - perfect for a solo meal or a delicious supper for the babysitter. If you don't have lots of dishes, then you can freeze the sauce, mash and cheese in separate freezer bags, then defrost and assemble when needed.

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

For best results, defrost the prepared pies thoroughly before cooking as stated. The pies can also be cooked from frozen if short of time - first heat oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3, then cover the pie with foil and bake for 1 hr-1 hr 20 mins (30 mins for individual pies) until completely soft when prodded with a knife. Increase the heat to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6, uncover, then continue to cook for 20 mins until golden on top and piping hot.

IF YOU WANT TO USE A SLOW COOKER...

Fry off your onions, celery, carrots and garlic for 15 mins in a frying pan. Tip into your slow cooker with the mushrooms, herbs and lentils. Pour over the stock and wine, cover and cook on High for 5-6 hours. Meanwhile make the mashed potato according to step 2. Turn off the slow cooker, season and stir in the tomato purée. Divide the lentils between dishes, top with the mash and cheese and cook for 30 mins until piping hot.

PER SERVING

449 kcalories, protein 19g, carbohydrate 68g, fat 13 g, saturated fat 7g, fibre 10g, sugar 9g, salt 0.59 g

Recipe from Good Food magazine, April 2009.

Try 3 issues of Good Food magazine for £3 - subscribe now!

Latest comments and suggestions

Results 41-53

  • Binder photo GrannyP

    12 August 2012

    GrannyP commented on this recipe

    I wonder if MrMatty and Ana above are vegetarians and if so do they realise that both Parmesan cheese and Worcester sauce are not vegetarian?

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Noble Bull

    13 August 2012

    Noble Bull commented on this recipe

    How much is a head of celery ?

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Julia

    01 October 2012

    Julia rated this recipe

    5 stars

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo wky77

    24 October 2012

    wky77 rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Just made this, I used dried red lentils instead, and the result is the same, looks more like meat!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo SavedRecipes

    06 November 2012

    SavedRecipes commented on this recipe

    Lovely comfort food. I halved the recipe and used 2 tins of green lentils - next time I will use dried puy lentils as I think the texture might be better. Great suggestion from previous comments to use worcester sauce, I think a necessary addition. Yum.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo SavedRecipes

    06 November 2012

    SavedRecipes rated this recipe

    4 stars

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Victoria

    23 November 2012

    Victoria rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Delicious - one of the nicest recipes I've tried. Will definitely make again.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Lottie

    27 November 2012

    Lottie commented on this recipe

    Lovely! Really tasty! My boys who are 5 & 4 loved it too!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Dee

    11 December 2012

    Dee rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    This is wonderful! Just be aware that not only does this make a ton of filling (I only used half and put the rest in the freezer for another pie), but the filling needs a lot more seasoning that the recipe calls for. I added more salt and pepper plus Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste and tomato puree since my filling was a bit dry. But once I did that, it was fab. So, so good.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Evi

    15 March 2013

    Evi commented on this recipe

    I'm allergic to lentils, peas and chickpeas. Any suggestions on what vegetables to use instead?

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Curlyb

    25 March 2013

    Curlyb rated this recipe

    5 stars

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Meklaina

    08 April 2013

    Meklaina commented on this recipe

    This was absolutely DELICIOUS!! And my little fussy 2 year old seemed to think so too. Jam packed with goodness and very mouth watering. I will definitely be making this again.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Pam

    19 April 2013

    Pam rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Very tasty and simple dish to prepare - went down well with our vego friends. Like some other reviewers have said, the 1.7 litres of liquid was far too much so I took some out to avoid having a mash topped soup. Would make it again.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

Leave a comment or suggestion

You must sign in or register to leave a comment.

Sign in / Register

Difficulty and servings

Easy

Serves 10

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 30 mins

Cook time

Cook 1 hr 45 mins

Vegetarian Freezable

Vegetarian

Ingredients

FOR THE LENTIL SAUCE

  • 50g butter
  • 2 onions , chopped
  • 4 carrots , diced
  • 1 head of celery , chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves , finely chopped
  • 200g pack chestnut mushrooms , sliced
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 tbsp dried thyme
  • 500g pack dried green lentils (we used Merchant Gourmet Puy lentils)
  • 100ml red wine (optional)
  • 1.7l vegetable stock
  • 3 tbsp tomato purée

FOR THE TOPPING

  • 2kg floury potatoes , such as King Edwards
  • 85g butter
  • 100ml milk
  • 50g cheddar , grated
Print this recipe
Add to your binder

PER SERVING

449 kcalories, protein 19g, carbohydrate 68g, fat 13 g, saturated fat 7g, fibre 10g, sugar 9g, salt 0.59 g

Advertisement

Your binder

Here are three other great reasons why to sign up:

  • You get an online binder, where you can store all your favourite recipes and create menus.
  • You can add your own recipes to this site for others to try; plus, rate and make comments on recipes, and share your views on our blog.

Follow Good Food

Advertisement

All about Good Food

Magazine

Good Food Magazine

Subscribe to Good Food magazine - enjoy 100+ triple-tested recipes delivered to your door, every month.

Order today, and receive your first 3 issues for just £3

On TV

Foodie TV

See your favourite chefs on Sky Channel 247, Virgin TV 260 and find their recipes at goodfoodchannel.co.uk.

Good Food Apps

Good Food Apps

For Good Food on the go, download our apps to your phone or portable device.
Find out more here

Buy ingredients

With just one click, the full list of recipe ingredients will be put into a basket at your choice of provider. Choose from:

mySupermarket Compare prices and choose a retailer you wish to buy them from.

Ocado Let Ocado deliver all you need for this recipe, right to your door

Tesco Buy all the ingredients from our recipes through your Tesco online shop.

new

Asda Shop with Asda? You can now buy ingredients for our recipes via your Asda online shop.

In association with the above providers. Terms and conditions apply.

Close