Mushroom Ragu

This is a warm, satisfying dish for the chilly nights ahead that won’t weigh you down – and it makes for awesome leftovers. What could be better?

Recipe courtesy of Mardi Michels from eat.live.travel.write

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 medium red onions (approx. 450 g total), finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 medium carrot (150 g), diced small
½ cup dry red wine
900g mixed mushrooms, thinly sliced (if using shiitake, you can leave the smaller ones whole)
1 cup vegetable stock (I used mushroom)
½ cup red wine
250 mL (1 cup) canned diced tomatoes, not drained
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Chopped curly parsley, to serve
Freshly grated parmesan, to serve

Method

  1. Heat the olive oil and butter in a heavy pan over medium heat.
  2. Add the onions, garlic and thyme and cook until just the onions and garlic are starting to soften.
  3. Add the carrots to the pan and cook for approximately 5 minutes until carrots are just beginning to soften.
  4. Add the wine to the pan and cook until the wine has just about evaporated.
  5. Add the mushrooms to the pan and cook until they brown and soften slightly and start to release their juices.
  6. Add the stock, increase the heat to high and bring to a boil.
  7. Add the tomatoes and tomato paste and mix to combine.
  8. Reduce the heat to low, partially cover and simmer for about 20 minutes.
  9. Season to taste, serve on top of pasta and sprinkle with a little parsley and parmesan.