Feel-good comfort food that’s easy to prepare and makes excellent leftovers? Yep, that’s the ticket. This creamy vegan mushroom stew ticks all the boxes for me these days: 10-ish ingredients, minimal time investment (if the farro is pre-cooked), has a creamy and comforting starch component, and it reheats like a dream for a lunch that I do not have to think about or do much work for the next day. My mushroom barley soup recipe is quite similar!
The pre-cooked farro is the key to making this relatively quick. Farro is one of my favourite grains, but it takes a long time to cook. I usually make a big batch, drain it, and then freeze 2-cup portions in Stasher bags. I follow the instructions for cooking farro from the Flourist website. If you live in the US, I think Trader Joe’s even sells fully cooked farro in their freezer section? Please feel free to correct me if this is not the case!
More hearty mushroom recipes:
- Mushroom Gravy Pie with Garlicky Kale Mashed Potatoes
- Instant Pot Mushroom Risotto
- Mushroom and Beet Bolognese
- Mushroom Brown Rice Bake with Caramelized Shallots & Gremolata
- Creamy French Lentils with Mushrooms & Kale
Like the farro pre-cook step, preparation is key. I have been learning this very hard over the past year. Not sure if we’re just trying to support local restaurants with more intention or it’s just a persistent not knowing how to emotionally grapple with *gestures widely* ALL of this, but takeout has been our friend in a consistent way. I don’t mind! But I generally feel a bit better when I take the time to cook.
If you’re in a similar rut and needing something cozy, I hope that this recipe can be there for you. Stay safe and keep looking after your people.
Free Pantry & Kitchen Equipment Guide
Everything you need for flavourful vegan meals that everyone will love, from my kitchen to yours.
Creamy Vegan Mushroom Stew with Farro and Kale
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, small dice
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 lb cremini mushrooms, sliced
- sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- ½ cup raw cashews, soaked for at least 2 hours & drained
- 1 tablespoon light miso
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 4 cups vegetable stock , divided
- 2 cups cooked farro , see note
- 2 cups chopped kale, packed
Equipment
Notes
- I love farro, but it takes a really long time to cook. I usually cook a bunch in one go and freeze it in 2-cup portions for my convenience. For this recipe, you’ll need 3/4 cup dry farro. Bring it to a boil with 4 cups of water and simmer until tender, about 35-40 minutes. Drain it and you’re good to go.
- You can use any cooked grain you like. I find the farro extra lovely because it’s chewy and satiating. Cooked long grain brown rice, wild rice, or wheat berries would all be great.
- I used a very flavourful homemade stock that I had boosted with a handful of dried mushrooms for this stew. There’s a minimal amount of ingredients in this recipe, so you really want to make sure that the stock is flavourful and rich.
- For a soy-free version, seek out a chickpea or rice-based miso.
Instructions
- Heat a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Once the pot is hot, pour in the olive oil and swirl it around. Add the onions and stir. Sauté the onions until translucent and very soft, about 5 minutes. If the onions start to brown on the edges, lower the heat.
- Add the rosemary and garlic to the pot and stir until very fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Add all of the sliced mushrooms to the pot. Give them a quick stir and then let them sit for a full minute. Once the minute is up, stir them up and then let them sit again for another full minute. Stir them up after that and season them with pepper. Let them sit for another full minute. Once they start glistening, season the mushrooms with salt. Keep stirring and sautéing the mushrooms until they are tender, about 3 additional minutes.
- Add the balsamic vinegar to the pot and stir. Let some of the strong vinegar aroma evaporate a bit. The mushrooms should be pretty juicy at this point!
- Remove ⅓ of the sautéed mushroom mixture and place it in an upright blender. Also in the blender, add the drained cashews, miso, nutritional yeast, and 2 cups of the vegetable stock. Blend this mixture on high until completely smooth and creamy, about 30 seconds.
- Pour the remaining vegetable stock into the pot. Add the cooked farro to the pot as well.
- Pour the blended mushroom and cashew cream into the pot and stir. bring the stew to a boil and let it simmer, uncovered, for about 10 minutes—just to let the stew thicken slightly and to let the flavours meld. Then, add the kale to the pot and stir. Keep simmering the stew until the kale is wilted, about 3-4 minutes.
- Check the stew for seasoning and adjust if necessary (more salt, balsamic vinegar, pepper etc). Serve the stew hot!
The first time I made this I substituted thyme for rosemary because we were out and we loved it so much that I’ve still never made it as written, unhulled barley for the grain. It’s so hearty and delicious, like all of your recipes!
Oh my!!! Awesome recipe! The only thing I did differently was use chopped spring garlic (cuz my garden is loaded!) and added smoked paprika. Thanks for sharing! Cheers!
Super delicious recipe! I had to use barley as my local store does not carry farro and it was an excellent substitution. Made this for a meal with my parents and everyone loved it. I’ll definitely make it again.
This blew my expectations out of the water – so delicious, and fairly easy to make.
Wow! This one is incredibly flavorful and comes together quickly. So satisfying on a cold night!
I made a double batch as part of my meal planning for the week – good thing, because my meat-eating, not-a-dairy-fan partner helped himself to two huge bowls We loved it! Although I’m not surprised, I love all your recipes. I’m not even vegan but it really doesn’t matter. Thank you!
Hey Laura! Been following for years, love your recipes
I could not find miso in the grocery store, and was wondering what you think to substitute? I love the flavor of miso as it is very deeply salty and umami…. Also I am not vegan and don’t have cashews and was planning on just using some half and half. Would love your thoughts on both of these amendments! Thank you in advance
-Alisa
Hi Alisa,
You could use a splash of soy sauce in place of the miso. Or if you have parmesan cheese rinds kicking around, I would simmer the stew with one of those for the umami flavour. Subbing half and half will work!
-L
Is this freezer friendly?
Hi Meredith,
I personally don’t love the texture of cooked mushrooms that have been frozen and thawed–I just find that they get a bit more chewy. Also, I find cashew cream-enriched stews can separate a bit after thawing. But some rigorous stirring should amend that!
-L
OBSESSED with this recipe. I didn’t have enough cremini mushrooms so subbed half with Shiitake and it was a huge hit. My partner is not a big Kale fan but he loved this stew. I was ready to have to season it a bunch based off the note at the end and all it needed was a little extra salt and pepper. Seriously delish.
Hi! This turned out to be a little gritty – not sure if it’s the cashews and/or the miso. I blended it for nearly a minute on various speeds – is there something I missed?
Otherwise very tasty!
Hi Grace,
Honestly I’m not sure! It should be pretty creamy. Sometimes you get little flecks of cashew or tiny solids in the miso, but it definitely shouldn’t be gritty–especially if you’re blending at high speed for a full minute. I use a Vitamix for all of my blending and it gets everything super smooth. I know that not all blenders are as powerful, but still the resulting soup definitely shouldn’t be gritty! I’m so sorry that this happened.
-L
Likely a little dust trapped on kale leaves
I had the same thing happen to me. I followed all the instructions with the blender, etc. and mine did not come out “creamy”. It was still delicious and very flavorful! Any tips on how to get it creamier though? Or if you sub in oat milk for the cashews, how much to add? Maybe 1 cup oat milk and 1 cup broth, instead of the 2 cups of broth the recipe says to add to the blender? Thanks!
Hi Katie,
I use a Vitamix blender here–are you using a similarly high powered blender? In all the times testing and remaking this stew, I never got a gritty texture. I am not confident that subbing oat milk completely for cashews will make this creamier. But if you want to try it, I would use 2 cups of very creamy unsweetened oat milk in the blender. And then you’ll just need 2 cups of vegetable stock to add to the pot. Again though, I have to say that I haven’t tried this myself so can’t guarantee that it will be 100% effective!
-L
5/5. I made this recipe and instead of faro I used quinoa it was super tasty thank you !
Cooking the Faro beforehand is key!
This is delicious. It’s literally the best cream of mushroom soup I have ever had, vegan or dairy. Now I’m stoked to try all the rest of the soups in this little packet!!! Thank you!
What are the flecks of red in photo in the soup? I looked for notes on any garnish but couldn’t see any.
Hi Lisa,
Those are dried ground chillies. I garnish so many things with them! I get the Guntur Sannam ones from Diaspora Co.: https://www.diasporaco.com/products/sannam-chillies
-L
This recipe is soo good, especially with bread on the side. It honestly tastes like restaurant quality. Would love more recipe recommendations similar to this!!
Delicious!! The only change I made was adding white navy beans (mashed) to further thicken the stew/soup. Yummy! My entire family loved it!
I’ve been making this for 3 weeks straight to have throughout the week. Thank you for this amazing recipe!!!!! Yum!!!
I’m allergic to nuts. Could I sub coconut milk for the cashews?
Made this for the second time. What an easy and so delicious recipe. I ate it with cooked spelt berries. Thank you for this recipe Laura.
A hug in a bowl, perfect for a rainy day! Subbed button/portobello for the cremini mushrooms and rainbow chard instead of kale based on what I had on hand. Added about a tablespoon of porcini powder which gave it a rich umami flavour and some silk chili for a light heat at the end. Delicious! Loved the idea of using this as a base for shepherds pie as noted in the comments, will keep this in mind. Thanks Laura!
Amazing! Added more salt, pepper, onion salt, and balsamic vinegar
Damn this soup is so good! I’m so happy to have stumbled on it and I look forward to trying more of your recipes! I didn’t change a thing and can’t wait to make it again!
Made this today for my family and it was DELICIOUS
Wow. This soup was AMAZING. It tastes so decadent, and it was hard to believe it wasn’t loaded with cream.
We added extra mushrooms and simmered longer to use for Vegan Shepherds Pie. Fresh cooked string beans on the bottom, layered the Mushroom Stew with Vegan Garlic Mashed Potatoes on top and bake. Exquisite.
Ruth, I love that you turned this into a shepherd’s pie! So smart. Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing this!
-Laura
That sounds amazing. Can’t wait to try!
oops! Forgot to rate!
I made this last night. So creamy and had great flavor. I didn’t adjust a thing! It was delicious…a keeper! I couldn’t resist since you posted it on my birthday!!
Made this soup for dinner tonight. It was incredible! What a fun recipe. Even the meat and potatoes family member loved it.
This was SO delicious! Mine came out a tad bitter for my taste, so I added a splash of maple syrup at the end. This idea only occurred to me because I’ve cooked with so many of your recipes, Laura, and I’ve seen you combine flavors like maple, balsamic, nooch and miso– something I would not have had the confidence to try on my own. Thanks not just for the recipes, but for teaching me how to cook!
I made this recipe last night and it was delicious! Perfect on a cold winter night. I love the use of the cashew cream. Your creamy white bean soup is one of my all time favorites but this recipe is right up there.
Could I use plain oat or coconut milk instead of the cashews for creaminess? My blender doesn’t get the texture right and I only have roasted cashews. Surprisingly, my grocer doesn’t carry raw cashews either!
Hi Jess!
I think plain oat milk would be your best bet here.
-L
Fantastic! I tripled the garlic and used barley instead of farro. Also, sauteed in broth, not oil, as we’re whole plant based. This is a new favorite –
Fantastic recipe! I highly recommend adding one Belgian endive/witloof to the soup (together with the mushrooms). It harmonizes so well with the other vegetables with its slightly bitter flavor. I also added a pinch of tarragon, which also fits very well to the rest of the flavors. Yamm!
Love these additions! Thanks Marijeta :)
-L
Heavenly.
my husband and I loved this stew. And he’s a meat nut. I added some dried rehydrated Lilly Chinese mushrooms.
Delicious!!! I followed the recipe exactly and it was perfection!
I made this today and it was excellent! Will definitely make again Thank you for the recipe!
This was really easy to make and it was super delicious. Never had farro, now I know! So good. Thank you for this great recipe.
Wonderful. I will make this again and again. I had only one cup of frozen farro so I added a cup of frozen black rice.
This was wonderful. I will make it again and again.
Delicious! I added some cannelloni beans too. Another favorite along with the Deep Green Stew.
This is by far one of my favorite mushroom soup/stew recipes I’ve made. It’s creamy without feeling heavy and the fresh rosemary provides incredible flavor!
Yet another success! Made a whole pot and three of us polished it off. I did not have cashews, but subbed in a block of tofu for the creamy sauce. Worked great! Thanks for another winner.
Thanks for this note on your tofu substitution, Joanell! I know it will be very helpful to others looking at the recipe in the future.
-L
Really enjoyed this comforting, hearty meal tonight! I made a couple of substitutions – most notably subbing buckwheat for the farro. I thought it worked well! Thanks for another great recipe, and simple too which is nice! Happy new year Laura!
Tried making this tonight. WOW was it delicious! What are those red chilli flakes in the photo?
Hi Magda! They are the ground Guntur Sannam Chillies from Diaspora Co. Just love that little pop of red and the fruity heat. More info here: https://www.diasporaco.com/products/chillies?variant=30982564610130
-L
Delicious! Love the chewy farro. I added an extra teaspoon of balsamic vinegar at the end.
Is there anything I could sub for the nutritional yeast? Thanks!
This isn’t vegan, but I subbed 1 tablespoon of parmesan cheese because I try to stay away from nutritional yeast (the brands available to me are fortified with excessive amounts of folate and b12, which makes me uncomfortable). The stew tasted amazing.
I purchase Sari Foods non fortified from Amazon.
Sounds delicious.
I’m concerned that non vegan adverts appear on your blog eg KFC and milk chocolate
This looks amazing! Super excited to try it! In the states Trader Joe’s has a 10 minute pre-cooked but shelf stable dried farro which I use all the time. I haven’t seen a frozen option but they may have one!
Thanks for this clarification, Sarah! It’s been a long time since I visited a TJ’s ;)
-L
Do you think I I subbed the grain for riced cauliflower that the soup would hold up?
Hi Heather,
I think you could substitute riced cauliflower, knowing that the end result will be quite different. The farro is starchy and chewy and helps to thicken the broth a bit. Cauliflower rice will not do this, but it will bump up the satiation factor a bit for a grain-free version. You may want to pull back the amount of vegetable stock to start, and then add more if necessary!
-L