Mushroom stroganoff - plant-based, vegan recipe

Stroganoff or stroganov is a classic Russian dish normally containing sautéed pieces of beef served in a sauce with smetana (sour cream). 

According to history books, the first published recipe for stroganoff was in Elena Molokhovets' classic Russian cookbook A Gift to Young Housewives (1861), which involved lightly floured beef cubes (not strips) sautéed, sauced with prepared mustard and bouillon, and finished with a small amount of sour cream: no onions, no mushrooms.

This version, adapted from a recipe in the Forks Over Knives Cookbook, is free from meat or dairy products, contains onions and mushrooms, and is 100% plant-based and vegan, so quite different from the original. Nevertheless it's full of flavour, highly nutritious and very delicious.

Most notably, this recipe contains more than the daily guideline amount of vitamin B12, a nutrient which is typically hard to obtain on plant-based or vegan diets.

Please click here to read more detail about vitamin B12 and plant-based and vegan diets.

The vitamin B12 comes from shiitake mushrooms and nutritional yeast, which is added to impart an umame, savoury, almost cheesy flavour.

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

• 1 tbsp olive oil or 2 tbsp water
• 1 pinch sea salt
• 1 medium onion, peeled and sliced into half moons 
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
• 2 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 250g (8oz) chestnut mushrooms, washed, stemmed and cut into pieces
• 125g (4 oz) shiitake mushrooms, washed, stemmed and cut into pieces
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
• ½ cup dry white wine
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 cup tofu sour cream, made from:
• One 340g/12oz package of silken tofu, drained
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp ground arrowroot powder
• Salt to taste
• 450g (1lb) whole wheat pasta (e.g., fettucine, penne) or gluten-free pasta if you are wheat intolerant

Method

Add oil or water and salt to a large pan and gently sauté onion until soft and translucent. Add garlic, thyme and rosemary and cook for another minute. Stir in mushrooms, nutritional yeast, soy sauce and wine, stir, and cook over a low heat for 20 minutes.

While mushrooms are cooking, prepare tofu sour cream by combining all ingredients in a blender until smooth and creamy. 

Add pasta to boiling water, bring it back to a boil and stir for a few seconds to prevent the pasta from sticking together. Cook according to manufacturer’s instructions. For dried pasta, this is usually 10-12 minutes to achieve an al dente texture. Fresh pasta generally takes less time. Drain.

al dente [al-DEN-tay] An Italian phrase meaning “to the tooth,” used to describe pasta or other food that is cooked only until it offers a slight resistance when bitten into, but which is not soft or overdone.

When the stroganoff has finished cooking, stir in 1 cup tofu sour cream. 

Add the cooked pasta and toss well. Serve garnished with fresh parsley and a side salad.

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Nutrition information