This cozy vegan mushroom bourguignon is the deeply savory and comforting dish you’ll want to eat all winter long. Mixed mushrooms offer a hearty texture and umami in addition to high nutritional value. The mushrooms are stewed with red wine, garlic, pearl onions, and herbs. Serve the hearty mixture over mashed potatoes, polenta, toast, or a cooked whole grain.

When I tasted my first bite of this vegan mushroom bourguignon, I exclaimed “yum” out loud, alone in my apartment.

I’d been intimidated to create my own, vegan version of this ultra-classic recipe. What would I use in place of the boeuf? I thought about tempeh or tofu, but I worried about both proteins falling apart in a stew.

In the end, I turned to mushrooms. And they were a perfect choice: rich in umami, with a hearty texture, and accessible to many home cooks.

Mushroom bourguignon can be enjoyed at any time of year, but I can tell you that I think it’s especially great in the wintertime. It’s so warming and cozy, and it makes a crowd-pleasing holiday dish for friends and family.

Whether this is your first time trying homemade bourguignon or you’ve only had the omnivorous version, this recipe will be a great discovery. It’s truly delicious, and it’s relatively easy in comparison to other bourguignon recipes.

The basics of bourguignon

When you see a recipe for bourguignon, your might immediately hear Julia Child’s lilting voice, exclaiming “boeuf bourguignon!”

In fact, bourguignon isn’t a specific recipe, but rather a preparation style. It includes onions and mushrooms that have been simmered in red wine.

Usually that wine is red Burgundy, hence the classification of this recipe as a Burgundian dish. And the simmering liquid is usually seasoned with a bouquet garni: a cluster of bay leaves, parsley stems, and thyme sprigs.

A protein, like beef or veal, can be added to the stew. Alternatively, if one simmers mushrooms and onions in a savory red wine sauce and pours it over a filet of beef, then the meat becomes beef “à la bourguignonne.”

What stands out to me here is that the vegetables, mushrooms and onions, are what give bourguignon its character. Bourguignon may have become associated with meat over time, but it’s fundamentally a mushroom dish.

This is why a plant-based expression of the recipe makes so much sense and feels so authentic.

Mushroom bourguignon ingredients

The veggies

My bourguignon calls for a pound and a half of mushrooms. This is a lot of mushrooms, of course, but remember that mushrooms shrink considerably during cooking.

You can use a mix of your favorite mushrooms for the mushroom bourguignon. I almost always use chopped portobello caps, sliced baby Bella, and sliced white mushrooms. Shiitake mushrooms and oyster mushrooms are also delicious additions to the stew.

Mushrooms aren’t the only veggies present in the mushroom bourguignon. My recipe also calls for pearl onions, a traditional addition. I like to purchase these frozen because they’re available that way year-round. If you find fresh pearl onions during the holiday season, so much the better.

The seasonings

The main source of seasonings in my mushroom bourguignon are tomato paste, Bragg liquid aminos (or soy sauce), herbs, and red wine.

The tomato paste is a traditional addition. It offers extra umami to this already umami-rich recipe, as does the liquid aminos or soy sauce.

As far as the wine goes, there’s no need to use your red Burgundy in the recipe—you can save it for savoring at the table! Any dry red wine with medium or full body will work nicely. The recipe card includes an option for omitting the wine if it’s not for you.

I think it’s also worth calling out that broth plays a significant role in unifying the dish and adding to flavor.

Vegetable broth is the type of broth that I keep in my house most regularly. Yet I find it very helpful to also store vegan chicken-style and beef-style broth or bouillon as well.

I think that a beef-style broth works best for mushroom bourguignon. Orrington Farms a good one, as does Better Than Bouillon.

How to make vegan mushroom bourguignon

This isn’t an ultra-quick recipe to make, but it’s not a difficult recipe to make.

As with making risotto or caramelizing onions, the key is to relax, to summon up some patience for stirring and simmering, and to enjoy the process.

Step 1: Sauté onion, carrot, and celery

Mushrooms and onions aren’t the only veggies in the bourguignon: a traditional soup base of onion, carrot, and celery is included, too.

These vegetables should be sautéed for about six minutes, or until just tender.

Step 2: Add and cook down your mushrooms

Next, you’ll add your many, many mushrooms to the skillet or pot that you’re using (I like my sauté pan for this).

Cook them down until they’ve released most of their juices and are greatly reduced in size. Next, you’ll stir in the tomato paste, and then deglaze everything with red wine.

The wine should be simmered until it’s reduced by about three quarters. If you aren’t cooking with wine, then you can use a quarter cup of broth to deglaze the pan and move on with the recipe.

Step 3: Add onions, broth, and seasonings to the stew

Next, you’ll add your pearl onions, broth, liquid aminos, and herbs to the skillet. Bring everything to a gentle simmer.

Cover the bourguignon and cook for about 10 minutes, or until the onions are tender. Then, uncover the skillet or pot and allow the stew to simmer for five minutes more. This will thicken the dish a little before you serve it.

If you’re using pearl onions that are frozen, be sure to thaw them before you make the mushroom bourguignon. If they’re not thawed and drained, they might dilute the stew and prolong its cooking time.

Step 4: Season to taste and serve

Finally, taste the stew and add black pepper. If you like, you can add a little extra liquid aminos.

If the stew is too thick for your liking, you can add a splash of broth. And if you’d prefer it to be thicker, you can simmer it for another five minutes or so, allowing more liquid to reduce.

Serving suggestions

There are many ways to serve the mushroom bourguignon. An especially cozy option is to pile it over a bed of vegan mashed potatoes or soft polenta.

It’s also fine to serve the recipe with a nice, thick slice of focaccia or your favorite rustic bread. And if you have some cooked whole grains on hand, like quinoa or farro, they make a good “bed” for the mushroom bourguignon, too.

There’s so much satisfaction in creating a vegan version of a recipe that seems on first inspection to be almost defiantly un-vegan.

While I don’t doubt that mushroom bourguignon is different from the beef recipe that inspires it, I can promise you that it has so many of its own merits to offer: lots of nutrient-density thanks to the mushrooms, great texture, and flavors that evoke tradition.

I hope you’ll feel the same!

xo