Vegan Mushroom Ragu Sauce

This Mushroom ragu features big, bold flavours, a super chunky texture, it is vegan & is just as good on pasta, polenta or even baked potatoes.

And boy does this recipe taste good! It is full of big and bold flavours, and it certainly fills the belly despite its super low calorie count. It cooks in a shade under an hour, and it is super simple.

A Chunky Mushroom Sauce or Stew

If you visit my site often, you may have noticed that I am rather fond of a good ragu sauce.

This mushroom ragu joins dishes as diverse as my sausage ragu, a duck ragu, lamb ragu, tinned-sardine ragu and of course a classic ragu all bolognese.

I am neither vegan nor vegetarian, but find myself cooking "sans meat" on a pretty regular basis. I'm a cook and a greedy eater, so as far as I am concerned, if it tastes good, it goes.

Texturally, this is a full-on celebration of mushrooms, something that apparently some people really do not like... Who knew?

The addition of the balsamic vinegar at the end pulls everything together. It adds a bit of sweetness and tartness to balance the dish.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to use the type of mushrooms mentioned in the recipe?

No, use whatever you can find around; chestnut mushrooms and oyster mushrooms are a relatively common starting point.

But just make the weight with anything from button mushrooms to chanterelle, shiitake to king oyster will work just as well.

The only exception for me would be the dried porcini mushrooms. Yes, they are expensive, but we do not use man,y and they add so much flavour to the dish.

Can I use frozen mushrooms?

I always have a bag of frozen wild mushrooms in the freezer, and they are superb. I use them in my cream of wild mushroom soup. But for this recipe, their water content is too high, so I would say no.

A word of note!

If you are vegan, I am sure you know this already, but not all wine is vegan!

So if keeping this dish vegan is important to you, make sure you read the label on the bottle.

Serving Suggestions

Whilst developing this recipe, I always had one dish in mind as a serving partner. That was a nice cheesy polenta made using gruyere cheese. I did say I wasn't vegan.

If you are sticking with the vegan thing, then subbing the cheese out for nutritional yeast can give you a 'similar' vibe.

But this mushroom ragu is incredibly versatile. Throw it over some pasta, onto a jacket potato, or on some buttered toast, and you are away.

But don't stop there, go wild and crazy. If you cut the mushrooms smaller, you can fill cannelloni, use them as a base for a mushroom shepherd's pie or even stuff pancakes with them.

It would also work well as a side dish for bacon wrapped pork tenderloin or with a steak.

Equipment Used

I only mention brands of equipment if I think that they make a material difference to a recipe. But if you have any questions, feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.

• Hob/stovetop.
• 30cm or 12" frying pan.
• Kettle to boil water to steep the dried mushrooms.
• Stirring and serving spoons.
• Kitchen knife.
• Chopping board.
• A combination of weighing scales, a measuring jug, measuring cups and spoons.