Charlie’s Mushroom Bourguignon

Charlie is a keen vegan!

Lots of people think that eating vegan is weird or penitential. It really doesn’t have to be! This mushroom Bourguignon is so thick and rich that you really won’t miss the meat. The perfect Veganuary supper party dish for your sceptical meat-eating friends.

Ingredients (serves 4)

700-800g (usually two boxes) of mushrooms (a mix of varieties makes it more interesting)

2 white or red onions

2 garlic gloves

HERBS and SPICES:

·       1 whole star anise

·       8 juniper berries - crushed

·       1 chopped tablespoon fresh thyme (or half teaspoon of dried thyme)

·       2 bay leaves

1 medium glass full-bodied red wine

1 tablespoon onion gravy granules

Salt, pepper, Balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce

Method

1.      Finely slice onions and chop or crush garlic. Gently sweat in two tablespoons of vegetable oil in a heavy-based pan (a Le Creuset casserole dish is perfect!)

2.      While they’re cooking, wipe and break up / slice the mushrooms – leave button mushrooms whole, slice large open cup mushrooms, break up closed cup / chestnut mushrooms so all mushrooms are in bite-sized chunks. It’s good if they’re all a bit different – it makes it more interesting.

sweat the onions and garlic

3.      When the onions are translucent and you can cut them with a wooden spoon, add the mushrooms and the herbs and spices stir to coat with oil.

mushrooms of different types make this a more varied dish

4.      Add the wine, give it all a good stir, put the lid on and turn down the heat. Check every ten or twenty minutes – keep an eye on the liquid levels. The mushrooms should be releasing lots of water so it shouldn’t boil dry. You can cook this faster on a high heat or slower – slower is better, but faster still works. When the mushrooms still have a bit of bite, take off the lid and see how much liquid has been released. Add in the onion gravy granules – not only will these add some flavour but it will thicken up a bit. If it’s still too watery, let it cook down a bit more with the lid off to release the vapours.

Adding wine to the Bourguignon

5.      When the mushrooms have just the right amount of bite (depending on your taste) add the seasoning – salt, pepper, a dash of balsamic vinegar, a few drops of Worcestershire sauce according to your taste.

Serve with mashed potato. You can make it creamy by adding back some of the potato cooking water in place of milk/butter or add some plant milk/butter. And you can add horseradish sauce or wholegrain mustard to give it more flavour. And some side veg – I do steamed sprouts and roasted parsnips and carrots with a slug of vegetable oil, drizzle of honey and a couple of pinches of chopped, fresh thyme – delicious!

A hearty winter dish

Enjoy. Love, Charlie.