Mushroom Ragout with Creamy Polenta
Slow-cooked mushroom ragout with red wine, garlic and herbs is a delicious vegetarian dish served over creamy polenta.
Ingredients
Full recipe + amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
- Mushrooms. I used portabellini/cremini/chestnut mushrooms but any mushrooms will work.
- Garlic.
- Thyme.
- Red wine.
- Tomato passata / Tomato puree.
- Tomato paste.
- Cream. (optional)
- Soy sauce. The soy sauce adds serious richness and meatiness to the sauce.
- Salt and pepper.
What is mushroom ragout?
Ragout is a slow-cooked French dish consisting of meat, chicken or simply just vegetables. It’s similar to an Italian Ragu which is mostly made with meat, vegetables and tomatoes.
How to make mushroom ragout
- Cook the mushrooms: In a large, deep pan, cook sliced mushrooms with garlic and thyme until the mushroom liquid has reduced and the mushrooms start to brown.
- Make the sauce: Pour the red wine into the pan and allow to reduce by half before adding the tomato passata and paste. Pour in the soy sauce and season to taste then allow to simmer for 10 minutes on low heat. Add the cream, if using, and allow to simmer for another minute or two.
- Serve: Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary then serve the ragout over creamy polenta or with pasta.
How to make creamy polenta
Bring salted water to a boil over medium-high heat. Whisk in the polenta and continue whisking until it starts to thicken. Reduce the heat to low and cover. Allow to cook for 10 minutes then stir in the cream and butter and cook for another 10 minutes on low. Turn off the heat and allow to steam for anything from 5-30 minutes. The polenta will stay warm so it’s great to make ahead and keep warm with the lid on this way. Before serving, stir one final time and add more butter if preferred.
Can I freeze mushroom ragout?
Yes, you can. Allow the ragout to cool completely then transfer to freezer-safe containers. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw completely before reheating in a pan set over medium heat.
Mushroom recipes
Ingredients
For the polenta
- 6-7 cups water seasoned with a teaspoon of salt (the amount of water depends on how soft and creamy you want the finished polenta to be.)
- 2 cups polenta
- 1 cup cream
- 2 tbsp butter
For the mushroom ragout
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 kg (2lbs) mushrooms sliced
- 4 garlic cloves crushed
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 cup red wine
- 1½ cups tomato passata
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- ½ cup cream (optional)
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- To make the polenta, bring salted water to a boil over medium-high heat. Whisk in the polenta and continue whisking until it starts to thicken. Reduce the heat to low and cover. Allow to cook for 10 minutes then stir in the cream and butter and cook for another 10 minutes on low. Turn off the heat and allow to steam for anything from 5-30 minutes. Before serving, stir one final time and add more butter if preferred.
- In a large, deep pan, cook sliced mushrooms with garlic and thyme until the mushroom liquid has reduced and the mushrooms start to brown.
- Pour the red wine into the pan and allow to reduce by half before adding the tomato passata and paste.
- Pour in the soy sauce and season to taste then allow to simmer for 10 minutes on low heat.
- Add the cream, if using, and allow to simmer for another minute or two.
- Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary then serve the ragout over creamy polenta.
Absolutely delicious! I used ruby port in place of the wine, fresh maitake that I foraged, and low sodium tamari instead of soy sauce. I didn’t use cream, but to keep it vegan I added a chunk of soy cream cheese to the polenta. It took 60 seconds to google passata, and when I found out that it was simple, unadorned tomato sauce, I was thrilled! (It’s a pantry staple in my home.) The mushrooms picked up and retained the flavor of the port beautifully. I will undoubtedly make this again.