A flavorful, piping hot bowl of Mushroom Stew is food to crave on a cold, wintry day. This recipe is meaty and hearty with a mix of mushrooms, leeks and savory herbs, and it needs just one pot and under 30 minutes to make. Serve it over pasta or with crusty bread.
The cooling weather sets off a voracious craving for vegan stews, like a cozy vegetable stew or a deeply satisfying chickpea stew. When I am in a rush and wanting to eat something that's satiating and comforting, this easy vegan mushroom stew recipe is a go-to. I am so excited to share it with you.
The mushroom stew delivers more flavor than you thought possible in less than 30 minutes and with a handful of ingredients that you likely already have in your pantry.
This is a versatile recipe. Use whatever mushrooms you have on hand: a mix of mushrooms works, as does just one kind of mushroom. I love mixing wild mushrooms like shiitake and maitake with cremini or white button mushrooms, but go with whatever you have in your fridge.
Adding savory herbs, like sage or rosemary, creates an explosion of flavor in this stew. You can use dried herbs or fresh herbs: I typically use sage or rosemary and, sometimes, edible lavender.
Table of Contents
Why you will love this recipe
- Flavorful and cozy. This is a hearty, meaty stew and it is loaded with so much flavor despite a short ingredient list.
- Easy weeknight recipe. The recipe comes together in one pot in under 30 minutes, making it perfect for weeknights. Although it's special enough that you can serve it to impress guests.
- Make-ahead friendly. Stews usually taste better the day after, once the flavors have had a chance to merge, and this mushroom stew is no exception. You can make it ahead and store it in the fridge for up to four days before serving.
- Healthy recipe. There is no cream or butter or even gluten in this recipe, just good-for-you veggies and herbs and heart-healthy olive oil.
- Nut-free, gluten-free and vegan. You can make the recipe soy-free by skipping the soy sauce.
Ingredients
- Extra virgin olive oil. This heart healthy oil adds flavor and deliciousness to the mushroom stew.
- Vegetables: leeks, mushrooms and tomatoes. You can substitute the leeks with onions or shallots. Use any mushrooms you have on hand, including portobello mushrooms, cremini mushrooms and wild mushrooms, like oyster mushrooms, lion's mane mushrooms and chanterelles. I used a mix of cremini mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms and maitake mushrooms. You can also use dried mushrooms. See FAQs for more details.
- Herbs: garlic, dried rosemary, thyme, marjoram and fresh parsley. You can also use sage and lavender in this recipe.
- Dry white wine. This is an optional ingredient and you can skip it. The alcohol cooks out of the recipe, but leaves behind amazing flavor.
- Umami ingredients: tomato paste and soy sauce (or tamari or liquid aminos).
- Rice flour. The flour helps thicken the stew. If you would prefer to use all-purpose flour, substitute with an equal quantity.
- Mushroom stock or vegetable stock. Water is fine if you don't have either. If you use dried mushrooms, use the stock from reconstituting the mushrooms.
How to make mushroom stew
Place olive oil, leeks and garlic in a large saute pan or skillet. Season with salt and ground black pepper. Saute until the leeks are soft, about five minutes, over medium heat.
Stir in the diced tomato and tomato paste and the wine, if using, and mix well.
When all visible liquid in the pan has evaporated, add the rice flour to the pan and mix it in. The vegetables should quickly absorb all the flour.
Add the mushrooms to the pan and mix well. Let the mushrooms cook for about five minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the dried herbs, soy sauce and mushroom stock or vegetable stock or water. Mix well, cover, and let the stew simmer for 5 minutes to thicken and for the flavors to meld.
Stir in the parsley and mix it in. Serve hot or warm.
Five-star review
We call it the “divine” sauce in our house. It is sooo delicious and we make it almost every week. Highly recommend it!
-Petra
Serving suggestions
- With crusty French bread, Italian bread or no-knead sourdough bread.
- Over a ribbony pasta, like fettuccine or pappardelle.
- Over a bed of quinoa or basmati rice.
- With a leafy side salad, like a vegan Caesar salad.
Recipe FAQs
Yes. Dried mushrooms add wonderful, chewy texture to the stew. Reconstitute the dried mushrooms in a cup of hot, boiling water for 30 minutes, then drain them but reserve the stock for use in the stew.
You can definitely substitute fresh herbs, if you have them on hand. The rule of thumb is to replace a teaspoon of dried herbs with a tablespoon of fresh herbs.
You can add celery, carrots and bell peppers to this stew. Saute them with the leeks or onions.
You can add a can of white beans to the recipe or cubed tofu to bump up the protein in this recipe.
Storage instructions
- Refrigerate: Store the stew in the fridge for up to four days in an air-tight container.
- Freeze: You can freeze the stew in a freezer-safe container for up to three months.
- Reheat: Thaw and reheat the stew on the stovetop or in the microwave.
More delicious mushroom recipes
If you make this recipe, be sure to leave a comment and a star rating below. Or tag us on Instagram #HolyCowVegan.
Mushroom Stew Recipe
Equipment
- Wide saucepan or skillet
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 leek (white and green parts finely diced, You can use a finely diced onion instead.)
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 heaping tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 medium tomato (finely diced)
- ¼ cup white wine (optional)
- 1 tablespoon rice flour
- 2 teaspoons dried herbs (I used a mix of rosemary, thyme and marjoram. For substitution ideas see the ingredients list above. If using fresh herbs, use two tablespoons of fresh herbs).
- 16 oz mushrooms (Sliced. I used a mix of cremini mushrooms, maitake mushrooms and shiitake mushrooms. See ingredients list above for substitution ideas).
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce (or tamari or liquid aminos)
- 1½ cups mushroom stock (or vegetable stock or, if using dried mushrooms, the stock from rehydrating the dried mushrooms).
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoon parsley (chopped, for garnish)
Instructions
- Place olive oil, leeks and garlic in a saute pan or skillet. Season with salt and ground black pepper. Saute until the leeks are soft, about five minutes, over medium heat.
- Stir in the diced tomato, tomato paste and wine, if using, and mix well. When all visible liquid in the pan has evaporated, add the rice flour to the pan and mix it in. The vegetables should quickly absorb all the flour.
- Add the mushrooms to the pan and mix well. Let the mushrooms cook for about five minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the dried herbs, soy sauce and mushroom stock or vegetable stock or water. Mix well, cover, and let the stew cook for 5 minutes to thicken and for the flavors to meld. Check for salt and peppers and add more if needed.
- Stir in the parsley and mix it in. Serve the mushroom stew hot or warm.
Megan T
This recipe was so, so good and super easy—thank you for sharing! I had everything on hand except for a tomato which I omitted. I added a can of great northern beans to add some bulk, and served it over oven fries. Delicious!
Betsey L Lebow
This is a wonderful recipe. Honestly, for thanksgiving I eat this (over rice or mashed potatoes) and a few minor (not turkey) items and am as happy as can be. Not too full, satiated, nourished....AND it's very easy to make. Make it!
rs
Delicious, and so easy. Thanks! (A small request: it would be great if your measurements were in weights as well as volumes. Measuring mushrooms by the cup is, well, so imprecise, given those irregular shapes and sizes. Weight is the standard for measuring foods all over the world; I became a much better cook using it. Especially, but no only, for baking.)
rs
so sorry. mea culpa. You did use a weight measure for the mushrooms. I was looking at another recipe on my screen and confused the two. apologies. And your recipe is the one I chose.
Thanks
Terri
This is delicious! I omitted the oil because I follow the McDougall diet and served the stew over mashed potatoes. I’ll be making this recipe again.
Vaishali
So happy you loved it!!
Lisa Velez
Recently made this (used slightly less garlic because it was just for 2). It was delicious!! Making again.
Vaishali
So happy to hear, Lisa!
Ally
I cannot believe how delicious this was! And easy to make. I happened to have fresh rosemary to use, and it was the perfect complement to the other flavors in this dish. Thank you!
May
This stew was great served over mashed potatoes with a side of Brussel sprouts. I might dry sauté the mushrooms first next time to get them a little browner. Adding some mixed veggies would be yummy too.
Sheindl
Absolutely delicious... and easy to make! We will be making it again!
Vaishali
So happy to hear!
meow
it looks delish
Petra
We call it the “divine” sauce in our house. It is sooo delicious and we make it almost every week. Highly recommend it!
Vaishali
Petra, so lovely to hear!
Pablo
Was better than i expected. I added canned baby cotn at the end and habanero powder for heat and spice and vs parley i used asian chives for garnish
Evelien
Hi, does anyone know if and how this coupd be adjusted for the slow cooker?
Tessa Bowater
Delicious and so quick and easy! I made some minor changes based mainly on what I had available at the time - dried herbs instead of fresh (one teaspoon sage, 1/2 teaspoon rosemary and 1/2 teaspoon thyme) and because I don't cook with oil I sauteed in vegetable stock. A splash of Apple cider viniger instead of wine.
It turned out great and we had it with mashed potatoes and broccoli. This recipe went down well with my carnivore husband too. Thanks
Vaishali
Awesome, so glad you liked it.
Jacqui B
My husband steamed a small bag of vegetables and did eat them so I pan on making this tomorrow and adding the vegetables ( broccoli and cauliflower) at the end.
Emma
Tried this recipe, so delicious. Used cornflour instead of rice flour as I didn’t have and used a small amount (1 cup) canned chopped tomatoes I had leftover in the fridge. Easy and tasty recipe. Will definitely make again.
Vaishali
So happy to hear, Emma!
Cicely
Really delicious, thank you. We used a mixture of fresh chestnut and shiitake mushrooms and as we didn't have any wine used a tiny bit of apple cider vinegar instead. We had dumplings with parsley which we cooked in with the mushrooms.
Vaishali
So happy you liked it!
Joanna
Wow, so delicious! Thank you! My 11yo loved it and called me a ‘culinary genius,’ so this one will be a keeper. We had it over baked potatoes—first time I didn’t miss the sour cream. I used corn starch instead of the rice flour, 8oz tomato sauce instead of the tomatoes and paste, water instead of the broth (still a very rich, intense flavor, just be sure to add enough salt), and garnished with green onions. Delightful!
Sarah Barlow
This is absolutely delicious and so filling too. I've recommended it to so many people. Thank you 🙂