A Vegetarian Mushroom Bourguignon

Rich and deeply savoury, this slow-cooked mushroom bourguignon is a vegetarian stew that really makes the most of mushrooms. Mushrooms are seared first for the best texture and flavour before adding generously cut carrots and plenty of onion to slowly cook. A good pour of red wine, tomato paste, soya sauce, and herbs round out the stew. Like most traditional French recipes, it’s not particularly complicated, and uses time to draw out the best taste from good, simple ingredients.

There is big flavour here and it’s a deeply satisfying meal. It does take some time, about an hour and a half altogether, but it’s very much worth it. While some methods call for the stew to be reduced in the oven, I found this to be much less reliable during testing when using different models and types of ovens. Since it is a time-consuming and pricier recipe, I want to make sure it turns out perfectly the first time you try it.

The only real difference in this recipe compared to a traditional bourguignon – other than taking out the meat – is that instead of pearl onions, I’ve used small onions cut into rounds. I tested with several options and while I do still think pearl onions and shallots are best, they’re so difficult for most people to get that this is simply a better, more accessible alternative.

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Ingredients You’ll Need and Why

The ingredients needed aren’t complicated ones, and it does all come down to method for a bourguignon. These are my notes from recipe testing. See below for the full recipe card with complete measurements and instructions.

• Mushrooms: any mushroom will work, but I generally use common button mushrooms. For deeper flavour use a wild mushroom like porcini, which I do prefer when I’ve been out foraging myself. You can also use a mix of different mushroom types.
• Onions: you’ll need two types of onions, or be prepared to dice lots of little onions. Ideally you’ll have one large onion, to cook into the stew, and several small onions (or pearl onions, if you can find them) to add at the end.
• Carrots: peel if preferred. I never do. This is a perfectly acceptable time to use winter carrots.
• Broth: vegetable broth or mushroom broth, depending on whether you prefer a deeper mushroom flavour. If using store-bought broth, try to choose one that you know taste good.
• Beans: it’s big white beans or bust for this recipe. You really want to seek out these giant white beans, which might be called gigante, corona, or butter beans depending on where you live.
• Wine: dry red wine. There is no substitute for wine in this recipe. If needed, use an alcohol-free wine, the type that’s real wine with no alcohol (not grape juice).
• Tomato paste: this adds depth of flavour to the stew and shouldn’t be skipped. It must be caramelised. If you forget to add it when instructed, it’s better to leave it out rather than adding once liquid has already been added to the pot.
• Soya sauce: optional but recommended. A small amount of soya sauce adds another layer of savoury flavour and it does make a noticeable difference.
• Flour: this is to thicken the stew. I use light spelt flour and recommend sticking with a sifted flour as whole grain flour tends to impact the texture in a less pleasant way.
• Garlic: don’t be tempted to increase the amount and overpower the stew with too much garlic.
• Oil: use your preferred cooking oil.
• Herbs: you’ll need dried thyme and a bay leaf. Fresh time is an excellent substitution. If you have fresh thyme, use double the amount.

How to Make Mushroom Bourguignon

I want to be very clear that this isn’t a technically difficult recipe, but you must read it carefully and make sure you’re following each step in order. You want to make sure you’re adding the flour at the right time, not forgetting the tomato paste, things like that.

Step 1: cook the mushrooms on medium heat for about ten minutes, or until the mushrooms are golden and most of the liquid has evaporated. The bottom of the pan should have darkened slightly (called fond) and that’s what you’re going for. This will be lifted (deglaze) with the wine later.

Step 2: add the carrots and onions and reduce the temperature to cook for another ten minutes. The carrots should soften and the onions will be translucent. The carrots will finish cooking in the liquid.

Step 3: cook the garlic, tomato paste, and thyme leaves for a further five minutes before adding the flour, cooking for another minutes. Add the soya sauce, then the wine and stir to lift any fond that’s stuck to the bottom of the pot, then reduce the wine by half before adding the broth and bay leaf.

Step 4: cook for another 30 minutes with the lid off, at a strong simmer to reduce the broth by about half again. When that’s almost done, give the onions a quick cook in a frying pan, then add to the pot with the beans. Cook for another 15 minutes with the lid on, then serve.

Expert Tips for the Best Stew

• Don’t skip the flour: this thickens the stew and if it’s omitted, the mushroom bourguignon will be too thin and missing that glossy thickness that it should have.
• Cook low and slow: you want to bring out the natural sweetness of the carrot and onion, and reduce the liquid to concentrate the flavours. This takes time. Trying to speed it up by increasing the temperature will only make it stick to the bottom of the pot.
• Reduce the liquid: it’s a key element of the recipe, to both reduce the wine by half and then also reduce the broth for 30 minutes on a strong simmer. There will be a lot of steam.
• Season throughout: this is hard to translate into a recipe card, where you have a set amount of salt and it needs to be added at one time to avoid confusion. With that being said, though, for the best result you should do layered seasoning, where salt is added in small amounts throughout cooking rather than all at once. Add a pinch here and a pinch there, then taste.