Creamy Vegan Beef & Shells
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These Creamy Vegan Beef & Shells are the perfect weeknight dinner! Made in one pot and less than an hour. Quick, easy and delicious!
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Let me tell you, this recipe is going to be your new go-to weeknight dinner! It is super easy and totally delicious. A super creamy sauce, vegan beef crumbles and plenty of shells. Serve with a big green salad for a delicious meal!
How to make Creamy Vegan Beef & Shells
The best part about this recipe is that you can make everything in one pot. Start by cooking the pasta shells until al dente. Drain and set aside – if they start sticking together you can always give them a rinse.
Place the empty pot back on the stove and heat the olive oil, onion, garlic, vegan beef crumbles and spices. Cook this down until the vegan beef crumbles start to brown and the onion is tender.
Add the tomato sauce, flour, soy sauce & broth to the pot and bring to a boil. I used vegan beef broth, but you can sub your favorite broth. Lower the heat and let the sauce simmer for 10 minutes.
Bring it together
Now, let’s make it creamy. Add in non-dairy creamer and vegan cream cheese. Whisk until smooth and everything is combined.
Pour in the cooked shells and give everything a toss. Serve the pasta hot with fresh parsley & black pepper.
For the leftovers – the pasta will continue to absorb the sauce as it sits. If you plan to have a lot of leftovers, you should consider keeping the pasta and sauce separately and combining right before eating.
Need more recipe inspo? Check these out:
Creamy Vegan Beef & Shells
Ingredients
- 3/4 pound pasta shells or pasta of choice
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic diced
- 12 ounces vegan beef crumbles or sub cooked lentils
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper plus more for serving
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- red pepper flakes to taste, optional
- 1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
- 2 cups vegan beef broth or broth of choice
- 1/2 cup non-dairy creamer* unsweetened
- 8 ounces vegan cream cheese I used Kite Hill
- fresh parsley for serving
Equipment
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente. Drain and place the empty pot back on the stove over medium heat.
- Add the olive oil, onion, garlic, beef crumbles and spices. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Pour in the soy sauce & flour and cook for 3 minutes. Add the tomato sauce & broth and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add the creamer & cream cheese and whisk until smooth. Pour in the cooked pasta and stir until combined and heated through.
- Serve hot with fresh parsley and pepper on top.
Video
Notes
Excellent! I didn’t have any creamer so I used a cream sauce I make out of cashews and Great Northern White Beans. At the last minute I realized I was out of veggie stock, so I added two cups water, and threw in a low sodium bouillon cube (same thing right?). In any case it was very good. My wife doesn’t like me to use veggie crumbles or processed foods (like vegan cream cheese) but she loved this recipe. Thanks!
I have made this several times now and it’s soooooo yummy. I made this for my omnivore family and they took extras and texted me the next day for the recipe!
Yessss! Love that it was a hit with everyone!
I made this last night. I did half the sauce ingredients- just used 1 cup of broth & 8 oz. tomato sauce- and I skipped the cream cheese because I didn’t have it. It was delicious… my husband & I both loved it, and it truly reminded me of the old Italian Hamburger Helper I used to love before I went vegan. Thanks!
So glad you both liked it Libby!
Idk what I’m doing wrong, but I’ve made this a handful of times and it turns out super soupy if I add the broth. At this point I omit the broth entirely so the texture comes out right. 🤷♀️
Thank you for this. I love it. I had to convert some of the measurements because I’m from Sweden so maybe it didn’t come out perfect. I will definitely do it again. Perfect for mealprep. 🙂
Made this tonight for dinner and it was wonderful! Served it with some vegan garlic bread! I will be adding this to our dinner rotation!
This recipe is now in our regular rotation. Both of my kids LOVED it – so did I! Even my devout carnivore, who takes it personally when I make meatless meals, declared that he would love to eat this dish every day. What I love best about it is the flavor. I have found, since cutting out dairy, that most “cheesy” recipes I try end up being overwhelmed with the flavor of the nutritional yeast. It’s not a bad flavor, but it makes many dishes taste the same. This recipe avoided that altogether, and I couldn’t be more excited to have it added to our favorites binder. Thank you, Rene, for the work you do to provide these recipes and weekly menus. You are hands down my favorite source for vegan meal ideas. I appreciate your work!
This recipe was just okay. I didn’t have tomato sauce so I used ketchup instead and I subbed the cream cheese for Mayo. In the end, it tasted like a hot dog. I like hot dogs, so I’m not too disappointed but it just wasn’t what I expected.
i’d recommend making it with the listed ingredients instead – it definitely shouldn’t taste like a hot dog 😂
Made this for dinner tonight & loved it! Added some finely chopped red peppers because I had to use them up. I used fresh basil as that’s what I had on hand and gluten free pasta. The cream cheese and heavy cream really assist in creating a rich creamy sauce, along with the flavors from the spices (I added some Italian seasoning) Will definitely be making this again 🙂
So glad you liked it Claire!