A creamy and hearty vegan sausage stew made with vegan sausage, sweet potatoes, leeks and red kidney beans. This stew is the perfect vegan comfort food.

I caved!

You all have convinced me!

For the first time on my blog, I bring to you a recipe that uses vegan sausage!

Thank you for pushing me to use it because it wasn’t as bad as I had imagined. Vegan sausage actually made this a delicious recipe.

Top view of vegan sausage stew in a grey bowl on a turquoise plate with 2 spoons on the side

Tips for making this vegan sausage stew

Use an enameled Dutch oven to make this vegan stew because the Dutch oven really knows how to cook the ingredients to perfection
Make sure you spray the inside of the Dutch oven with oil. Otherwise, all the ingredients will stick to it and you will have a hard time cleaning it.
If you can find baby sweet potatoes, use regular sweet potatoes
Use fresh herbs in this stew recipe, if you have them. I wish I had fresh Rosemary or Thyme to add to the soup. It would have a heavenly aroma and delicious flavor.
If you don’t have coconut milk, you can use Almond milk or hazelnut milk. Regular cream will work too and it will become a vegetarian stew.
Whole sausage works in this recipe, but you can also use crumbled sausage.
I used Field Roast’s sausage, but, it’s really easy to make it at home, if you have time. Try Food Network’s vegan sausage recipe with black beans.
Make sure you cook the sausage for at least 30 min because it will taste better.

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Making the case for vegan sausage!

When we were growing up, we never used artificial meats. In fact, it wasn’t until I was in my teens that we heard of tofu. Our vegetarian Indian diet always contained vegetables, rice, pasta, lentils, etc.

So, whenever I see imitation meat that uses seitan, soy-based, soy curls, etc, I tend to run in the other direction. They taste too salty to me and they are tough to cook.

I do have a truckload of respect for the companies that make imitation meats because they help people transition from a meat-eating diet to veganism. That is a tremendous feat to achieve and the companies have always made great products.

Top view of vegan sausage stew in a grey bowl on a turquoise plate

So, when readers like you started asking for more “meatier” recipes, I felt that I should experiment. It was not an easy mind shift to make (took me 6 years of blogging before I posted a vegan sausage recipe, lol), but, I loved the experimenting process.

I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. The vegan sausage wasn’t the worst thing I had tasted and it wasn’t salty.

Two huge pluses!

First, I tried a breakfast recipe and it wasn’t successful, lol. But, this vegan sausage stew turned out great after I tweaked the ingredients. The spices and sweet potato are the perfect complement to the vegan sausage.

If you like vegan sausage, why not try a vegan cauliflower rice and sausage recipe or an easy vegan stuffing recipe

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What’s in the vegan sausage?

These are the ingredients in the Field Roast Vegan Sausage. To make this vegan sausage stew, I went with the Smoked Apple Sage flavor.

Vital wheat gluten
Safflower oil,
Dried apples
Mashed potatoes (Yukon gold)
Yeast,
Liquid smoke flavor

You can also use Field Roast’s vegan Italian sausage flavor. It will work great with this recipe. All their products are plant-based so you can eat without guilt. Plus, they have the perfect sausage shape so it looks like you are eating the real thing.

If you want to make this a vegan beef stew, use a celebration roast.

P/S: This vegan sausage can also be used in a minestrone soup.

Closeup view of vegan sausage stew in a grey bowl

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Common questions about making this stew?

As you make this recipe, you might come across some questions. I aim to answer the questions below. If you have other questions, please feel free to comment below.

I don’t own a Dutch oven, so, what else can I use to make this stew?

Dutch ovens are really affordable to buy, but, I understand that they can be expensive sometimes. If you don’t have a Dutch oven to make this vegan sausage stew, try any one of these devices. You will have to experiment with the amount of time.

Slow cooker/crock pot (my 2nd favorite option)
Pressure cooker / instant pot
Large saucepan (cook stove top or in the oven at low to medium heat)

Can I make this stew without coconut milk?

Yes, you can absolutely make this stew without using any coconut or nut milk. This stew is perfect as a regular stew with a tomato base. The stew is perfect for a cold day, even if you don’t add the coconut milk.

You can also use nut milk like almond or hazelnut.

Closeup view of a vegan suasage round piece on a top of the stew

Can I freeze this vegan stew?

Yes, this stew freezes perfectly. If possible, freeze the stew without adding the coconut milk. When you thaw it out and heat it, add the coconut milk at that time.

Make sure you put the date you made the vegan sausage stew on the container. I like to use all frozen foods within 6 months of freezing.

Is this stew spicy?

The only spicy thing I used in this vegan stew is red pepper flakes. If you can eat them on your pizza, then, you will not find this stew spicy.

All the other ingredients in this recipe take over the taste of the stew, so, you won’t find it spicy at all. Or, go the Southwest route by adding chili powder and smoked paprika.

Vegan stews have come a long way since the days of just veggies. Now, our stews can have hearty nutrients like dumplings! Try this vegan stew with dumplings and you won’t even notice that there is no meat in it!

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How to make vegan sausage stew?

1) Preheat the oven to 400°. You can put the Dutch oven inside the oven while it’s heating. This way, the Dutch oven is also preheated

2) Spray the inside of the Dutch oven with oil

3) Cut the vegan sausage into about 1″ thick rounds. After cutting them, add the sausages to the heated Dutch oven

4 vegan sausage cut into 1" thick rounds

4) Wash and chop the baby sweet potatoes. I like to keep the skin on.

The author holding a grey plate filled with chopped baby sweet potatoes

5) Add the red chili flakes, salt and pepper (optional), and spices (Rosemary, thyme, oregano, and ginger powder).

Red chili flakes added to the other ingredients in the dutch oven

Salt drizzled over the ingredients in Dutch oven

6) Drizzle the melted vegan butter over the sweet potatoes and vegan sausage. Do not stir. Optional: Add 1 bay leaf

Melted vegan butter being drizzled over the ingredients in the dutch oven

7) Close the lid to the Dutch oven and place it in the preheated oven

8) Cook for 30 minutes or until you can easily mush the vegan sausage, it’s ready

9) Remove the Dutch oven (It will be very hot, so, be sure to use oven mitts). Open the lid and remove bay leaf, if using.

10) Stir well and you can mash some of the potatoes and sausages. This is optional, but it will thicken the vegan stew.

The author mixing the contents of the dutch oven using a black plastic spoon

11) Add 1 can of red kidney beans (Be sure to drain and wash them thoroughly first)

Drained and rinsed red kidney beans have been added to the dutch oven

12) Add 1 can of diced tomatoes (15oz can or 2 cups)

A can of diced tomatoes added to the dutch oven ingredients

13) Add 6 cups of water to the Dutch oven

Water from a grey bowl is being poured into the dutch oven

14) Wash and finely chop 2 leaks. Add to the Dutch oven and mix well

A colorful plate filled with chopped leek. The chopped leek are being poured into the water in Dutch oven

15) Close the lid and place the Dutch oven back into the main oven

16) Let the vegan sausage stew simmer for 75 min in the oven. I did open the Dutch oven a couple of times to make sure that there was enough water.

A slightly transparent white rectangle with the temp and time information typed on top and the dutch oven visible behind the rectangle

17) Remove from the oven and open the lid. Add 1.5 Tbsp of Lemon Pepper and mix well

The author drizzling lemon pepper over the vegan sausage stew

18) Serve as is because it tastes delicious

completed vegan sausage stew served in a white bowl. Sweet potoates, kidney beans and vegan sausage visible

19) Or, add 1 cup of coconut milk to the Dutch oven

coconut milk being poured in the dutch oven and a black spoon used to stir it.

Serve this vegan sausage stew immediately or let it cool to room temperature before freezing.

The finished stew visible in the Dutch oven with a black serving spoon in it.

If you are a huge fan of the Dutch oven, like me, you are going to love these recipes. They are easy to make and the Dutch oven churns out a delicious meal.

What recipe would you like to see me make in the Dutch oven?

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