Lentil Cottage Pie

4.72 from 25 votes

A comforting lentil cottage pie with carrots, peas and sweetcorn in a rich tomato gravy, topped with creamy potato mash. Serves 4 and freezes well.

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Total Time45

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: British

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Servings: People

Author: James Wythe

Equipment

Ingredients

Mashed Potato

750 g white potatoes roughly chopped
3 tbsp vegan butter
50 ml milk (I used vegan)

Lentil Pie

1 red onion roughly diced
3 carrots chopped
1 can sweetcorn
1 cup frozen peas
2 garlic cloves crushed
1 tbsp dried oregano
3 bay leaves
2 tbsp vegetable gravy granules
2 tbsp tamari
1 400g tin chopped tomatoes
2x 400g cans of cooked lentils drained & rinsed

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 200°C fan (220°C conventional, gas 7). Roughly chop the potatoes (no need to peel them) and boil for 12 minutes until soft.
Finely dice the onion and carrots and crush the garlic.
Heat a glug of olive oil in a large pan and fry the onion, garlic, carrots, oregano and bay leaves for 5 minutes until the onion and carrots soften.
Add the peas, sweetcorn, tamari, gravy granules, drained lentils and tinned tomatoes and mix. Simmer for 5 minutes to thicken, then remove the bay leaves.
Drain the potatoes, put them back in the pan with the butter, milk and a generous pinch of salt and pepper and mash.
Spoon the lentil filling into a large baking dish and top with the mash. Bake for 30 minutes until golden.

Notes

Step-by-Step Photos: My blog post includes step-by-step photos to help guide you through making this recipe.

Substitutions and Variations: I have included a list of these in the post above.

Gluten Free and Dairy Free: Choose gravy granules labelled gluten free (many contain wheat), and use dairy free butter and an unsweetened dairy free milk.

To Store: Cool quickly and keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat once until piping hot.

Make Ahead: Assemble the pie, cover and keep it in the fridge for up to 2 days, then bake for about 40 minutes until piping hot.

To Freeze: Freeze before or after baking for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight, then bake or reheat once until piping hot.

Tip 1: If you use a larger dish, you may need more mash to cover the top.

Tip 2: There are a lot of vegetables, so chop them before you start.

Tip 3: Two 400g tins of lentils give about 530g drained. You can use beef mince in place of the lentils if you are not vegetarian, or add tofu.

Nutrition