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Easy Vegan Smoky Lentil Casserole

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This Vegan Smoky Lentil Casserole with potatoes is a delicious and easy to make one pot vegan dinner for those days where you are craving a comforting meal. It’s loaded with flavors thanks to the spices and the red wine. Think smoky green lentils, carrots, onions, garlic and thyme all topped with sliced baby potatoes that turns deliciously crispy and golden on the outside. It doesn’t get much better than this easy vegan dinner. 

This easy vegan one pot dinner is not only delicious, it’s also healthy and budget friendly. This dish is made using only a handful of ingredients that produces robust flavors and adds lots of texture to this hearty dinner.

I created this vegan stew because I realised I needed a more traditional, hearty autumn/winter recipe for those days where I crave a comfort meal…or for those days where I need a recipe that will satisfy a meat loving friends and make them realise vegan doesn’t just mean salads like they seem to always think. 

This Vegan Smoky Lentil Stew is hearty, comforting and everything you wouldn’t normally expect from a vegan dinner. But even though it’s a comfort meal it’s still a healthy and fairly low-calorie dinner. 

What’s great about this Vegan Smoky Lentil Casserole with Potatoes recipe:

  • Deliciously smoky flavors
  • A super cozy vegan comfort meal
  • Loaded with plant based protein
  • Budget friendly – made with only a few easy to get ingredients that has a lot of flavors
  • Easy to make
  • Meal prep friendly
  • Great to use with leftover potatoes as the lid
  • A crowdpleaser – this recipe is adored by kids and adults alike
  • Vegan, Gluten free and soy free

Decadent cheesy cooking hack

If you are craving a cheesy flavour, I’ve got you covered. Although this recipe does not contain any type of cheese or vegan cheese substitute in its base recipe, you can still add it to the dish if you feel like it. 

If I am in the mood for cheese flavors I like to add 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast to the stew after adding the wine. It gives that deliciously deep cheese like taste to the dish and also has the benefit of adding extra nutrients and vitamins. 

If you want even more cheesy flavors, you can add a sprinkle of vegan parmesan on top along with the spices. It’s so good and takes this comfort food dish to a whole other level. 

What potatoes should you use

I like to use baby potatoes, but any type of potatoes will work in this recipe. You could even use sweet potatoes if you prefer. The cooking process is the same, so don’t be afraid to use whatever potatoes you have at hand. 

You could also easily use any leftover potatoes as the lid in this dish. It reduces the cooking time by roughly 25-20 minutes and the results are still just as tasty. 

Meal prep friendly

This Vegan Smoky Lentil Stew with potatoes is a meal prep friendly easy dinner. You can make it in advance and freeze it for later. When you’re ready to eat, just take it out of the freezer, cover with tinfoil and put it straight into the oven.

Whenever I make this dish as a meal prep, I like to freeze it in the pan it was cooked in to so I can just pop it directly back in the oven without having to worry about anything. 

Reheat it at 350F for 45-50 minutes or until it’s heated all the way through. 

How is this Vegan Smoky Lentil Casserole with potatoes lid made? It’s so easy:

Note: 

If you have leftover potatoes you can easily use those instead of the fresh baby potatoes as the lid for the casserole. 

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350F.
  • Heat the olive oil in a large pan or skillet and add the chopped carrots and onions. Let them cook at medium heat while stirring occasionally for 3-5 minutes. 
  • Next, add the minced garlic and let it cook for half a minute before adding the green lentils. Season with smoked paprika, thyme, salt and pepper and stir together to combine. Mix in the tomato paste and add canned tomatoes and wine. Mix to combine and let the stew simmer for a couple of minutes.
  • While the stew simmers, cut the potatoes into slices and set aside. Next, pour the stew into a baking pan and cover the top with the sliced potatoes (you can arrange them nicely or dump them on top as you prefer). Drizzle olive oil on top and season with salt, pepper, dried thyme and smoked paprika. Cover the dish with tinfoil and bake in the middle of the oven for around 40 minutes or until the potatoes are golden and crispy at the edges. Serve hot and enjoy. 

Vegan Smoky lentil casserole with potatoes

This Vegan Smoky Lentil Casserole with potatoes is a delicious and easy to make one pot vegan dinner for those days where you are craving a comforting meal. It’s loaded with flavors thanks to the spices and the red wine. Think smoky green lentils, carrots, onions, garlic and thyme all topped with sliced baby potatoes that turns deliciously crispy and golden on the outside. It doesn’t get much better than this easy vegan dinner. 
This easy vegan one pot dinner is not only delicious, it’s also healthy and budget friendly. This dish is made using only a handful of ingredients that produces robust flavors and adds lots of texture to this hearty dinner.
Course Dinner
Cuisine American
Keyword vegan
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Servings 6 people
Author Simone – Munchyesta.com

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp Olive Oil
  • 4 Carrots Sliced
  • 1 large Yellow Onion Chopped
  • 3 cloves Garlic Minced
  • 2 15-oz cans Cooked Green Lentils Rinsed and drained
  • 1⅓ lbs Baby Potatoes Rinsed and sliced
  • 2 tbsp Tomato Paste
  • 28 oz Canned chopped Tomatoes
  • 1 cup Red Wine
  • 1 tbsp Dried Thyme
  • 2 tsp Dried Basil
  • 2 tbsp Smoked Paprika
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350F.
  • Heat the olive oil in a large pan or skillet and add the chopped carrots and onions. Let them cook at medium heat while stirring occasionally for 3-5 minutes. 
  • Next, add the minced garlic and let it cook for half a minute before adding the green lentils. Season with smoked paprika, thyme, salt and pepper and stir together to combine. 
    Mix in the tomato paste and add canned tomatoes and wine. Mix to combine and let the stew simmer for a couple of minutes.
  • While the stew simmers, cut the potatoes into slices and set aside. 
    Next, pour the stew into a baking pan and cover the top with the sliced potatoes (you can arrange them nicely or dump them on top as you prefer). 
    Drizzle olive oil on top and season with salt, pepper, dried thyme and smoked paprika. 
    Cover the dish with tinfoil and bake in the middle of the oven for around 40 minutes or until the potatoes are golden and crispy at the edges. 
    Serve hot and enjoy. 

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