Here’s a meal that will set every heart, adult, teen and child, racing when you bring it to the table on a Saturday afternoon–or a weeknight: a bubbling, creamy and savory vegan French Fry Casserole with a creamy filling of veggies topped with golden, crunchy French fries. It’s a delicious and easy dish, one with universal appeal, and it’s also healthyish. Yes, sure the French fries steal the spotlight here. But underneath those crispy gold slivers is a gluten-free filling of veggies and vegan “beef” in a creamy, herby oat-milk-based sauce. If you’ve had my vegan Tater Tot Casserole, you will almost certainly love this casserole. As mom to a teen who’s always voracious but also always highly opinionated about what he’ll eat (usually something crunchy out of a packet), I try to balance food that’s healthy with some that will appeal to his tastebuds. It’s much better than hearing, “I’m not hungry, mom,” or “Can I skip dinner tonight?” With this recipe, there’s no chance of that happening. The French fries get baked here, so you are not deep frying them. And for the sake of convenience I use storebought French fries, although you can make the fries yourself from scratch if you want to. You can also use my air fryer French fries in this recipe: air-fry them until they are about three-fourths done, for 10 minutes, then layer them in the casserole and bake!
Why you will love this Vegan French Fry Casserole
It’s delicious. A creamy, savory filling topped with French fries. What’s not to love? It’s easy to make and weeknight-friendly. You can use frozen veggies and frozen potatoes for this dish, which would further cut down the prep time. It’s one-pot if you have a 12-inch cast iron skillet or oven-safe skillet that can go from the stovetop into the oven. If not, you can transfer the sauce to a baking dish, layer on the fries, and proceed with baking. It’s everyone friendly. Everyone is sure to love this dish, of course. And there are no nuts, no soy and no gluten in this recipe and it is vegan, so everyone can eat it too. It’s veggie- and protein-packed. The filling for this vegan French Fry Casserole is mostly veggies with some vegan meatless meat or sausage mixed in for flavor, deliciousness and protein. There are 14 grams of protein and 7 grams of fiber in each serving. You can use tofu or tempeh to replace the meatless meat.
How to make Vegan French Fry Casserole
Heat the oil in a 12-inch cast iron skillet. Add the garlic and onions, celery and carrots. Season with salt and ground black pepper, and cook over medium heat until soft but not brown.
Add the sweet potatoes and stir in. Cover and let the sweet potatoes cook about 3-5 minutes until almost tender. Stir in the bell peppers, cumin and rosemary (or sage) and saute another couple minutes. Add the meatless beef to the skillet, breaking it up as you add it. Saute for a couple of minutes until it begins to brown.
Add the flour to the skillet and mix well until the flour is absorbed by the veggies. Add the oat milk and stir it in. Bring to a boil, then turn off the heat. Check seasoning and add more salt and pepper if needed.
Layer the frozen French fries over the creamy sauce. I put one layer down first and then another on top of that. The bottom layer soaks in the sauce and the top layer becomes crispy and golden-brown, offering a nice texture contrast. Place the skillet in the oven and bake 1 hour. Remove the skillet from the oven and let stand 5 minutes before serving.
Make-ahead and storage instructions
Make the creamy sauce up to 2 days ahead and store in refrigerator. Layer on the French fries before baking. Check to get new recipe updates by email.
It’s highly unlikely you will have any leftovers the day after, but if you do, store them in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat before eating, preferably in the oven, so the fries crisp up.
Recipe card
