Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie
Updated Sep 17, 2025
Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie made with mushrooms and quinoa, simmered in vegetable broth with fresh thyme and topped with mashed potatoes.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Jump to Section
my vegetarian shepherd’s pie is so good!
When the weather cools off, I always start craving comfort food, but that doesn’t have to mean heavy or with meat. This vegetarian shepherd’s pie brings the same amount of comfort with a filling of veggies and quinoa that makes it just as satisfying as the traditional kind. And of course, there’s the potato topping, I wouldn’t dream of skipping it. I make it lighter with a little butter and Greek yogurt, but if you’ve got leftover mashed potatoes, those work too.
One of my favorite parts about this vegetarian shepherd’s pie recipe is the leftovers. The flavors settle in overnight, and honestly, I think this shepherd’s pie tastes even better the next day.
Happy Cooking!
– Yumna
Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie Ingredients
- Vegetables: You’ll need an onion, mushrooms, carrots, and frozen peas. No need to thaw the peas beforehand!
- For the potato topping: Russet potatoes, Greek yogurt, and unsalted butter make up the mashed potato topping. Instead of russets, you could use another creamy potato like Yukon gold.
- Seasonings: Minced garlic, tomato paste, salt, pepper, and fresh thyme add flavor to this vegetarian shepherd’s pie. Instead of fresh thyme, you can use 1 ½ teaspoons of dried thyme leaves.
- Quinoa: Any color quinoa works!
- Broth: This recipe calls for vegetable broth, but if you’re not vegetarian you can use chicken broth.
How to Make Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie
Vegetarian Shepherds Pie Recipe
Video
Ingredients
Potato Crust
- 2 large russet potatoes peeled and quartered
- ½ cup non-fat Greek yogurt
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Vegetarian Filling
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion diced
- 16 ounces mushrooms chopped
- 2 carrots peeled and diced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme plus more for serving
- 2 tablespoons uncooked quinoa
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ¼ cup vegetable broth
- 1 cup frozen peas
- Chopped parsley for serving
Instructions
- Combine potatoes and water in a pot and bring to a boil, heavily season with salt, cook until very tender, strain and place back into the pot. Add yogurt, butter, salt, and pepper, and mash with a potato masher until smooth.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- In an oven-safe skillet, heat the olive oil on medium heat. Add the onions and cook until golden, about 5-7 minutes. Reduce heat to low, add mushrooms, carrots, garlic, and thyme, and cook until the vegetables soften, about 10 minutes.
- Add quinoa, tomato paste, and salt, cook until the tomato paste begins to stick to the vegetables, 3 more minutes. Then add the vegetable broth and peas and stir to combine. Carefully place mashed potatoes on top of the filling and spread into an even layer.
- Place the pie in the oven and bake until the potatoes begin to brown, about 25-30 minutes, then broil for 2-3 minutes until the potatoes become golden. Remove from the oven and let stand for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve.
Equipment
- Braiser
Notes
- Instead of quinoa, you can use any other grains or any type of flour.
- Instead of greek yogurt, you can use sour cream or milk or any other dairy or non-dairy substitute for making mashed potatoes.
- You can replace any vegetables that don’t excite you 😉
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Recipe Tips
- Use leftover mashed potatoes to cut down on the cooking time. Just be sure to warm the mashed potatoes first because it’s hard to spread cold mashed potatoes!
- Use an oven-safe skillet if you have one. That makes it much easier to cook the filling in the skillet, top it with the potato crust, and bake, instead of transferring the mixture from a pan to a casserole dish.
- Cook the filling in layers for the best flavor. It’s tempting to combine all the ingredients and cook everything at once and then just add the mashed potatoes on top. But cooking them step by step allows for a richer flavor that develops with each layer.
- Make it vegan by changing the mashed potatoes recipe. The filling itself is completely vegan, and the mashed potatoes can easily be made vegan by using vegan butter or olive oil and dairy-free milk instead of the Greek yogurt.
Serving Ideas
Vegetarian shepherd’s pie is a meal on its own. So there’s no need to serve it with any sides since it’s well balanced with protein, vegetables, and carbohydrates. However you can definitely serve with a salad or with grilled, sautéed, roasted or steamed veggies! Try it with:
FAQs
Kept in an airtight container in the fridge, leftovers will last for up to 4 days. You can reheat them in the microwave or in a 350°F oven for 5 minutes.
After baking, let the dish cool completely, then cover it tightly with foil. You can freeze the pie for up to 3 months and cook it straight from frozen, keeping it covered with the foil and cooking for an hour at 350ºF. If you’re freezing it, I would recommend baking the shepherd’s pie in a casserole dish.
I wouldn’t! This will cause the mashed potatoes to be gummy. Instead, I’d use a potato masher, fork, or whisk.
Comments
Made this as a double batch TWICE this month! Two for eating and two for freezing! (Expecting our third baby soon and can’t get enough of this comfort dish as the colder weather sets in).
Adjustments we made:
Added about 2 cups of cooked green lentils to the final base mixture for protein (about half a cup dried lentils, then cooked and drained) and doubled the quinoa to 2 tbsp to soak up the extra liquid. Perfection! Best mashed potatoes as well, can’t get enough!
Love these ideas! And congratulations!
Didn’t care for it at all. This is a recipe that I will not be using again.
Oh no, I’m sorry to hear that! Is there anything specific you didn’t like?
Made this for my book club tonight and everyone LOVED it!!!!
Amazing!! So happy it was a hit! Thank you!!
This sounds delicious! Do you think I could substitute lentils for the mushrooms? We have a mushroom allergy
Yes, I think that would work! Please let me know how it turns out.
See All Comments