This vegan mushroom stew is luxuriously creamy, comforting, and flavorful, yet surprisingly light. It's packed with umami and made with nutritious ingredients, including fresh and dried mushrooms, potatoes, carrots, garlic, and rosemary. Serve this mushroom stew with a side salad, over rice, or with your favorite crusty bread for dipping. Trust me, everyone's going to LOVE it! Bonus - it's not only dairy-free and vegan, but gluten-free and oil-free/WFPB, too!
If you're a mushroom lover like I am, this creamy stew is going to make you SO happy. The mushrooms lend a tender and meaty bite, while the potatoes, onion, and carrots create a perfectly comforting stew with just a hint of vegetable sweetness.
Initially, I had planned to share a vegan Irish stew, since St. Patrick's Day is right around the corner. But after one test batch I just wasn't feeling the vibes of tomatoes combined with the same ol' veggies and herbs.
So I decided to switch gears and take inspiration from one of our favorite soup recipes, this Vegan Cream of Mushroom Soup.
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The creamy base of this mushroom stew? Oh friends, it's totally crave-able! It's satisfying in all the ways you want a creamy soup or stew to be, but without dairy or loads of fat to weigh you down.
All of the creaminess in this vegan stew recipe comes from just ⅓ cup raw cashews. No flour or starch needed.
And finally, the stew is finished with a splash of balsamic vinegar for brightness plus mellow white miso (optional) for more umami and saltiness.
Enjoy this vegetarian stew as-is, or make it even more filling with the addition of cooked beans, lentils, seitan, beef-less tips, or this protein-packed vegan ground beef recipe.
Start to finish this dish takes just under 1 hour to prepare. So let's make a pot!
Ingredient Notes
- fresh mushrooms - use any combination of mushrooms you enjoy and have access to; more on this below. I used 16 ounces baby bella (or cremini) and 8 ounces white button mushrooms. For varieties with woody stems, such as shiitakes, be sure to pluck out the stems.
- dried mushrooms - shiitakes are great because they have a naturally smoky aroma and flavor. Porcinis are also delicious. I often buy dried mushrooms online because they have a long shelf-life and are more affordable in bulk. You can also find them in small packages at the grocery store, usually near the produce section.
- rosemary - fresh rosemary really gives the stew amazing flavor, but dried rosemary works in a pinch. Feel free to use thyme instead.
- potatoes - I chose yellow potatoes. Reds or russets are great, too.
- broth - use your favorite store-bought or homemade vegetable broth.
- raw cashews - raw sunflower seeds may be substituted if you avoid cashews. The natural starch in cashews is what thickens the stew during cooking; if not using a high-speed blender see notes below regarding soaking.
- white miso - optional; when the stew is done, taste and decide whether you'd like more saltiness. Usually you'll find miso near the tofu in grocery store coolers. Some stores carry a shelf-stable variety on the aisle near other Japanese ingredients. If you don't have miso, feel free to add soy sauce or tamari, to taste.
Check out this post to learn more: What is miso?
See recipe card below for quantities and full recipe.
How To Make Mushroom Stew
- Cover the dried mushrooms and rosemary with 1 cup of boiling water. Set aside to steep while you begin the stew.
- On the stovetop, preheat a soup pot over medium heat. Saute the onion and fresh mushrooms for about 8 minutes. The mushrooms will release their moisture during this time. Add the carrots and garlic, and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.
- Combine the dried mushroom mixture (including the water), cashews, and 2 cloves of garlic in a high-speed blender. Blend until completely smooth.
- Next, add the potatoes, salt, pepper, blended mixture, and broth to the pot. Bring to a boil.
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- Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook until the potatoes are barely fork tender but not quite done, about 10 minutes.
- Remove the lid, add balsamic vinegar, and increase heat to a simmer. Cook for another 5 minutes or until the stew has thickened and reduced slightly.
Now it's time to taste! For more saltiness and umami add the miso. To do this, scoop about ⅓ cup of the liquid part of the stew into a bowl, whisk in the miso until dissolved, then add it to the pot.
Tip!
Keep in mind that the smaller you cut the potatoes the more quickly they'll cook. We really enjoy them large and chunky for this recipe.
How to Serve Mushroom Stew
Garnish with chopped fresh parsley and serve alongside a green salad or kale salad and toasted bread.
And though there are potatoes in the stew, there's nothing better than mushroom stew ladled over mashed potatoes. To serve this way, you can omit or reduce the amount of potato in the stew, and add more veggies, such as turnips, parsnips, or an additional carrot.
RELATED: If you love healthy stew recipes, check out this rustic potato stew. It's loaded with nutrients and has a rich, fire-roasted tomato base.
Variations
As mentioned above, this mushroom stew is fairly light. If you'd like to make it more filling, while still keeping it plant-based, there are plenty of easy ways to do that. Here are some possible additions:
- cooked beans, such as chickpeas or white beans
- pre-cooked chunks of seitan, either homemade or store-bought
- steamed or baked tempeh or tofu
- pre-seasoned soy curls
- beefless tips, vegan ground beef, or chick-un strips
How to Store
Store mushroom stew in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
To freeze, let cool completely, transfer to a freezer-safe container, and freeze for up to 2 months.
Recipe FAQs
Pretty much any type of mushroom will work in stew, but some varieties do lend more depth of flavor than others. Cremini mushrooms (also known as baby bella) are a solid choice because they're both easy to find and affordable. Baby bellas, white button, and portobello mushrooms are the same variety, but vary by maturity. Since white buttons are the youngest, they are the softest and least flavorful of the three. Portobello, porcini, shiitake, and oyster mushrooms are also delicious, though usually more expensive.
Yes, of course. If you don't have dried mushrooms on hand, increase the amount of fresh mushrooms to 2 pounds. I still recommend steeping the rosemary in hot water (in Step 1) because it adds such amazing flavor.
More Vegan Mushroom Recipes
This stew truly is one of our favorite dishes, and I hope you love it, too! If you give it a try be sure to comment below and let us know.
Recipe
Creamy Vegan Mushroom Stew
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ ounce dried mushrooms - I used shiitakes
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary - or 1 teaspoon dried
- 1 cup boiling water
- 5 cloves garlic, divided - mince 3 cloves and leave 2 whole
- ⅓ cup raw cashews - sub raw sunflower seeds if needed
- 1 large yellow onion, chopped
- 1 ½ pounds mixed fresh mushrooms, cut into thick/chunky slices - remove any woody stems
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into coins or half moons
- 1 ½ pounds yellow potatoes, cut into large, equal-sized pieces
- 3 to 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 teaspoons mellow white miso, optional - or a dash of soy sauce/tamari
Instructions
- Place the dried mushrooms and rosemary in a bowl, and cover with 1 cup of boiling water. Set aside to steep.
- Preheat a large soup pot over medium heat. Cook the onion and the fresh mushrooms for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add a generous pinch of salt once you hear the mushrooms sizzling (releasing moisture). Add the carrots and minced garlic, and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. The mixture should still be fairly moist from the mushrooms, not dry.
- Pour the steeped mushroom-rosemary mixture (including the water) into a high-speed blender (see Notes). Add the cashews and 2 whole cloves of garlic. Blend until completely smooth.
- To the soup pot add the potatoes, 1 teaspoon salt, black pepper, contents of the blender, and 3 cups broth. If needed, pour some broth into the blender to help remove all of the mushroom-cashew mixture.
- Make sure the potatoes are submerged, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until the potatoes are barely fork tender, about 10 minutes (possibly less, depending on their size). Stir in the balsamic vinegar, and increase heat to return to a simmer. Cook uncovered for another 5 minutes or until the stew has thickened and reduced slightly.
- Turn off the heat and taste for seasoning. If including miso, scoop about ⅓ cup of the liquid part of the stew into a bowl, whisk in the miso until dissolved, and add to the pot. Serve hot with crusty bread and a side salad.
Notes
Estimated Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is an estimate and will vary depending on the exact amounts and ingredients used.
Noreen says
Delicious comfort food! Although I couldn't add the cashews or sub with sunflower seeds (my husband can't have the fat from them), we very much enjoyed this dish. I did add red lentils to it for heartiness, and this worked well. Not having the dried mushrooms on hand, I used umami powder and this worked well. I did use the rosemary -- don't think it'd be the same without it. Thank you for this and for all your recipes!
Sherene says
This is delicious - creamy, mellow, and really satisfying. The dashes of balsamic and miso added at the end of the cooking are key - they zip up and deepen the flavor. I was lucky enough to find a package of gourmet mushrooms marked down at the store, so I decided then and there to combine those with the button mushrooms I had at home and try this recipe tonight. Even my husband, who doesn’t think soup is a “real” dinner, raved about this!
Rose_Anne says
Simply scrumptious, Lori! Thank you very much!
I also appreciate the fact of no oil required.
Michelle says
Lori,
I am indebted to you! This mushroom stew is beyond delicious. I subbed barley for the potatoes & didn’t have rosemary so used herbes de provence. Great recipe to add the cooked to death cannellini beans & kale to. Thank you as always!
Suzanne says
What about using beans instead of cashews?