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Lentil & Ground Chicken Shepherd’s Pie

Here's a delicious twist on a favourite comfort food. Adding lentils to the ground chicken filling boosts the protein, fibre and nutrients and contains only 290 calories per serving. Yogurt stirred into the mashed potatoes instead of the usual butter and milk is another fun twist on the classic dish.
Serves: 10
Prep Time: 30 min
Cook Time: 45 min

Ingredients

2 cups canned lentils, drained and rinsed
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cups onions, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb lean ground chicken
2 cups carrots, grated
1 green pepper, diced
3 tomatoes, medium, chopped
1 cup low-sodium vegetable juice
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp thyme, fresh
⅛ tsp cloves, ground
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper, freshly ground
8 potatoes, skin on, diced
⅔ cups plain yogurt, 2–4% MF
2 tbsp chives, fresh, sliced
½ tsp paprika

Food Safety

Before you start, wash all surfaces and your hands with soap and warm water, and remember to wash your hands, utensils and cutting boards after they touch raw meat or eggs. Avoid cross-contamination by using a different cutting board for your meat and other ingredients. Make sure you’re cooking to safe temperatures and chilling any leftovers within two hours. For more food safety tips, visit our Food Safety at Home Section.

Steps

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Rinse canned lentils under cold running water to remove starch and some of the salt. Drain and set aside.

  2. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a skillet. Dice onions and mince garlic. Sauté in pan until softened – about 4 minutes.

  3. Stir in ground chicken. Use the back of a wooden spoon to break chicken into smaller pieces. Stir and sauté until cooked through and ground chicken is lightly browned.

  4. Add lentils, grated carrots, diced green pepper and chopped tomatoes. Stir in vegetable juice, Worcestershire sauce, dried thyme, ground clove, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer on low heat while the potatoes are cooking.

  5. Cut unpeeled potatoes into chunks. Cover with cold water, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until fork tender. Drain and mash with yogurt and minced chives.

  6. Spread hot filling into a baking dish. Mound scoops of potatoes over and use a spatula to smooth over pie. Sprinkle top with paprika. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes or until filling is bubbling and top lightly browned.

Helpful Tip

This recipe freezes well.

Nutrition Info

Per 350 g serving Amount
Calories290
Protein16 g
Fat8 g
Saturated Fat0.5 g
Carbohydrate39 g
Fibre6 g
Sugar7 g
Cholesterol35 mg
Sodium210 mg
Per 350 g serving % Daily Value
Potassium30
Calcium8
Iron20
Vitamin A90
Vitamin C90
Vitamin B633
Vitamin B125
Folate51
Zinc13