Vegan Mushroom Stroganoff

I love to make this Vegan Mushroom Stroganoff when I’m craving something hearty, comforting, and ultra-savory. This dish is super nostalgic comfort food to me, since my mom used to make beef stroganoff whenever we had leftover meat. The plant-based version is just as delicious, and it comes together in about 30 minutes start-to-finish!

What is Mushroom Stroganoff?

Stroganoff is a Russian dish traditionally consisting of sautéed beef in a mustard and sour cream sauce with mushrooms. To make it plant-based, we omit the beef and use a beef-style vegetable broth so we still get that rich and savory flavor. We’ll also use a dairy-free sour cream; I’ll show you how to make your own using cashews, or you can simply use a store-bought vegan sour cream to make this recipe extra quick and easy.

Equipment

• Cutting board and knife. To slice your mushrooms and onions and mince garlic. You can purchase pre-sliced mushrooms to save time.
• Nonstick skillet. And something to stir with.
• Large pot & colander. To boil and strain your pasta.
• High-powered blender. Only if you’ll be making your own cashew sour cream for this recipe.

Ingredients for Vegan Mushroom Stroganoff

• Mushrooms. Typically I just grab cremini or white button mushrooms since they’re easy to find and affordable. But you can use any combination of mushrooms you like! I like adding some shiitakes into the mix if I’m feeling fancy. They add extra flavor and texture.
• Onion & garlic. Our savory aromatic base.
• Vegan butter or olive oil. I like the extra flavor that butter lends to this dish, but feel free to use olive oil or any cooking oil you prefer.
• Flour. This will help to thicken our sauce. I use regular all-purpose but you can use rice flour to make it gluten-free.
• Beef-style veggie broth. I always keep Edward & Sons Not Beef Broth bouillon cubes in my pantry. They’re great for making savory soups, stews, and things like seitan. Better Than Bouillon No Beef Base is another alternative but it is a bit more expensive and I typically have to order it online. If you only have regular vegetable broth available to you, I recommend adding in about a tablespoon of soy sauce to get that umami flavor.
• Dijon mustard.
• Sour cream. Typically I whip up my own cashew cream to use in this recipe, adding in a squeeze of lemon and some apple cider vinegar to give it the familiar flavor of sour cream. However, you can pick up some vegan sour cream from the store and use that in this vegan stroganoff as well.

Which Vegan Sour Cream to Use?

Tofutti Better Than Sour Cream is probably the most widely available option in the states. Many chain grocery stores stock it. Check in the plant-based section (where you typically will find tofu and vegan cheese), or sometimes it’s stocked alongside regular sour cream.

My personal favorite is the Plant Based Sour Cream Alternative by Simple Truth Organic, which is available at many Kroger family stores (Ralph’s, King Soopers, Fred Meyers etc.).

Follow Your Heart, Forager Project, and Kite Hill also offer nondairy sour cream options. I think certain brands of unsweetened, plain vegan yogurt could also be utilized in a pinch — for example, Culina Plain & Simple.

How to Make Your Own Sour Cashew Cream

I like to make my own sour cashew cream for this vegan stroganoff. It’s quick and easy and requires just a few simple ingredients: raw cashews, soaked for 4+ hours or boiled for 10 minutes, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, and plant milk (or water). Blend until it’s as smooth as you can get it.

The ratio provided produces a vegan sour cream that’s a little less thick than the store-bought kind, just so that it’s easier to get everything moving in the blender. It still works beautifully in the sauce because cashew cream tends to thicken a bit when cooked.

How to Make Vegan Mushroom Stroganoff

This Vegan Mushroom Stroganoff comes together so quickly once you start cooking, so make sure you have all your ingredients prepped and nearby.

Heat oil or vegan butter in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté onions for a few minutes until they start to brown slightly. Then add in mushrooms and sauté for 5-8 minutes, until all the excess liquid from the mushrooms cooks off. Adding a little bit of salt with the mushrooms will help draw out the moisture faster.

Add in the garlic and sauté for a minute, then stir in the flour to act as a thickener. Once you’ve stirred the flour into the mushroom mixture, deglaze the pan with beef-style vegetable broth. (Feel free to sub in about 1/3 cup dry red wine for a portion of the veggie broth.) Once the broth starts to thicken, add in your vegan sour cream substitute of choice, along with mustard and (optional) Worcestershire sauce.

Taste and adjust salt and pepper to preference.

Serve this over buttered noodles, rice, or mashed potatoes.

Make it Meatier

If you’d like to up the protein content of this vegan stroganoff, you can beef up this recipe (pun intended) by adding in a package of beef-style crumbles, such as Gardein Ground Be’f, Impossible Beef, or Beyond Beef Plant Based Ground. If you are using one of these, I recommend browning it first in the skillet, then removing it to a plate and proceeding with the recipe as written. Add the crumbles back in at the end along with the sour cream. You can add a little extra splash of water if needed to stretch the sauce to coat all the beefy crumbles.

Serving Suggestions

We typically like to serve this Vegan Mushroom Stroganoff recipe over pasta or mashed potatoes. Eric prefers it over pasta since his family used to serve it over egg noodles when he was a kid.

I prefer it over mashed potatoes! The way the creamy sauce blends with the fluffy potatoes is just a perfect combination.

Top your stroganoff with some freshly cracked black pepper and some fresh parsley and you’re ready to eat!

Storage and Reheating

Simply store your leftover stroganoff in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To reheat, place in the microwave for a few minutes, stirring occasionally.

Need More Easy Vegan Dinner Recipes?

• Gochujang Tofu – Spicy, savory, and high-protein.
• Butternut Squash Curry – Comforting and full of veggies.
• Vegan Zuppa Toscana – A hearty one-pot dinner.
• Easy Tofu Lettuce Wraps – If you’re craving something light and refreshing.
• Vegan Stir-Fry Noodles – Colorful veggies, pan-fried tofu and noodles in a garlic-ginger sauce.