Vegan Cottage Pie

Why is a cottage pie named so? In short, because it was an affordable and easy meal for the masses. It was a warm and wholesome dish that was accessible to those who you would find residing in a dwelling such as a cottage, and much like what a plate of haggis, neeps and tatties is to the Scottish.

Our vegan cottage pie is made up of hearty, everyday ingredients perfect for a satisfyingly filling dinner meal. This is such a historic dish that we’re certain that every family, every recipe book or chef will have their individual takes on this pie.

You will most likely cook this dish once as well and then tweak it for yourself the next time, and that’s the beauty of cooking, it could be as simple as a few extra cracks of pepper, or as adventurous as using sweet potatoes instead of the conventional option.

And if you have a few leftover potatoes or carrots don’t sweat it, you can always make some potato cakes and carrot and coriander soup, or for that summer picnic how about a potato salad? 

If you are looking for more great seasonal recipes then take a look at Nutriciously’s 7 day vegan meal plan for fall and winter (affiliate link), and enjoy healthy, colourful, and cosy meals and snacks! Perfect for the colder weather.

Vegan Cottage Pie Ingredients

1 kg of potatoes (King Edward or Maris Piper)

500 g vegan mince

2 carrots

1 cup of frozen garden peas

1 yellow onion

1 tsp of wholegrain mustard

2 Tbsps of vegan butter

500 ml of boiling water

Vegan gravy granules (Bisto’s Best onion gravy or similar)

Vegan stock cube (Oxo vegan beef flavoured or similar)

1 Tbsp of olive oil

Granulated salt

Ground salt and Pepper

Vegan Cottage Pie Recipe

It all starts with the potatoes. Peel and chop them all into large cubes ready for boiling. Next, peel and dice up your onion. Then the final item on your prep list is to peel and chop up the two carrots into small cubes. Returning to the potatoes, place them all into a large pan and cover with water and season with a sprinkle of salt. Now turn up the heat, get the water boiling and simmer those spuds for 15 minutes.

Grab a large frying pan large enough for your onion, carrot, and your 500 g of mince, then set it over medium to high heat. As soon as it’s good and hot, add a tablespoon of oil, then the carrots and onions. 

Just a side note, it’s good practice to always heat your pots and pans first and then add any oil once they’re up to temperature. This will ensure that the oil does not break down while the pan is warming up, and by the time it comes to throwing in your veggies, the oil has become sticky and would do the opposite of what it’s designed for. Cooking oils help us to avoid our food sticking to the pot or pan we’re frying it in, but to also achieve a higher cooling temperature than is attainable using water alone. 

Fry the carrots and onion for five minutes until they start to soften, but you aren’t trying to crisp or brown them so adjust your pan heat if you need to, and as soon as they’ve softened up add your 500 g of vegan mince to the pan as well. With a wooden spoon break your plant-based protein and just get it browning, giving it a mix-up now and again until you can see that darker colour just over all the mince, this shouldn’t take much more than another 5 minutes.

During the 10 minutes or so that’s all simmering away, boil roughly half a litre of water in your kettle, find a jug and add the appropriate amount of gravy granules and stock for the 500 ml of boiling water (the packaging will give you spoons per ml mix ratio). Stir the water and gravy mix well, making sure there are no lumps and then pour this into the frying pan with your cottage pie filling.

Add the cup of frozen peas to the pan now too and let it all simmer gently on a lower heat for a few minutes, and once it’s all warmed through, and the peas have thawed, just set it aside for a moment. You should now go ahead and preheat your oven to 220°C / 200°C Fan / 425°F / Gas Mark 7.

Once again it’s time to give the potatoes some attention. They have been simmering for 15 minutes at least by now and if they’re done they will be soft enough to fall off a fork if you stab one. They may need a bit longer, which is fine, just keep them bubbling on medium heat for another few minutes. As soon as you’re content your spuds are ready, take them off the heat and drain the water away.

Put the potatoes back in the pan you just removed them from and put them back onto the stove over a really low heat while you’re mashing, this will just help to get rid of a bit more water from them, giving you the perfect fluffy result. Add a couple of tablespoons of butter, one teaspoon of whole grain mustard (or more if you want a stronger tang to your mash), and finally a few cracks of salt and pepper to season. Work your mashed potatoes until they are lump free, smooth and creamy, have another taste and get that seasoning right for you.

Finally, it’s build time. Pour your vegetable and mince mix into the bottom of an oven dish, and spread it out evenly. Then on top, fill up the remaining space with your mashed potatoes. Use a smooth spatula to level off the top of your pie with the edge of the oven dish.

Then for a textured finish, that will crisp up nicely, run a fork along the top of the potato, raking in small lines over the whole surface. Very satisfying. Pop this into your preheated oven and set a timer for 20 minutes. The real sign that your pie is ready though will be when the top is nice and crisp. And with that, you have made a delicious, vegan cottage pie. 

VEGAN COTTAGE PIE

This vegan cottage pie recipe will yield a wholesome dish that's full of delicious everyday ingredients. The perfect filling meal at the end of a cold winters day.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 40 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine British, vegan

Servings 4

Ingredients

  

• 1 kg of potatoes King Edward or Maris Piper
• 500 g vegan mince
• 2 carrots
• 1 cup of frozen garden peas
• 1 yellow onion
• 1 tsp of wholegrain mustard
• 2 Tbsps of vegan butter
• 500 ml of boiling water
• Vegan gravy granules Bisto’s Best onion gravy or similar
• Vegan stock cube Oxo vegan beef flavored or similar
• 1 Tbsp of olive oil
• Granulated salt
• Ground salt and Pepper

Instructions

 

• Peel and chop the potatoes into large cubes
• Peel and dice up the onion
• Peel and chop up the carrots into small cubes
• Place the potatoes into a large pan, cover with water and season with a sprinkle of granulated salt
• Boil the potatoes for 15 minutes
• Set a large frying pan over a medium to high heat, then add a tablespoon of olive oil and then the carrots and onion and fry them for 5 minutes until they are softening
• Add the vegan mince and break it up in the pan, fry until its browning, and stir everything around in the pan now and again, this should take about 5 minutes
• While everything is frying in the pan, boil half a litre of water in a kettle and in a jug mix the appropriate amount of gravy granules and stock as per the brands instructions for 500 ml of water
• Pour the gravy into the frying pan and add the cup of frozen peas, stir everything together again and let the peas warm through until they have thawed, then take the pan off the heat and set it aside for now
• Pre-heat the oven to 220°C / 200°C Fan / 425°F / Gas Mark 7
• Check that the potatoes are ready by prodding them with a sharp knife to see that they are soft in the centre, then drain off the water and return them to the pan over the lowest heat possible
• Mash the potatoes smooth with 2 tablespoons of vegan butter and a teaspoon of wholegrain mustard, and a few cracks of salt and pepper
• Finally pour the mince mixture from the pan into the bottom of an oven dish and spread it out evenly
• On top of the mince fill the remaining space in the dish with the mashed potatoes, spreading this out evenly and then rake the surface with a fork
• Cook in the centre of the oven for 20 minutes, until the top of the potatoes are nice and crisp

Keyword carrots, gravy, onion, peas, potatoes

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