Sunday Night Mushroom Ragu
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
This Sunday Night Mushroom Ragu is the perfect recipe to have on the stove all day. The cooked down mushrooms give this sauce a meaty texture!
This time of year I love a recipe that warms up the house with yummy smells while it sits on the stove. And this Sunday Night Mushroom Ragu is the perfect sauce to make on a Sunday (duh!) and have it simmering all day. If you’re not a mushroom fan, have no fear, this is a mushroom haters recipe. The mushrooms are cut in small pieces and they really melt into the sauce. Serve this over your favorite pasta for the perfect Sunday night dinner!
Here’s what you need
Ingredients
- oil
- yellow onion
- carrots
- celery
- garlic
- white mushrooms
- brown mushrooms
- tomato paste
- Italian seasoning
- pepper
- garlic salt
- balsamic vinegar
- low sodium soy sauce
- broth – or sub red wine
- pasta
Equipment
A nice big stock pot, a cutting board & a knife is all you need for this recipe!
Steps
Step 1: Cook down the veggies
The key to this recipe is dicing all of your veggies finely, and all of them the same size. So, take your time and really get that fine dice!
Add the onions, carrots, celery & garlic to a stock pot and cook down for 3 minutes. Add in the mushrooms and stir to combine. Cook down for 10-20 minutes, stirring frequently – the mushrooms will first release their liquid and then the liquid will evaporate. You’ll know to move onto the next step when the liquid is mostly gone.
Step 2: Make it a sauce
Add in the tomato paste, dry seasonings, balsamic vinegar and soy sauce. Cook down for 5 minutes.
Pour in the broth and turn the heat to low. Allow the sauce to simmer for 30 minutes, or longer if you have time (see notes)!
Step 3: Finish & serve
Give your sauce a taste and adjust the seasonings as needed. Now, it is time to serve it up!
You can really serve this mushroom ragu over any pasta. I went with a short pasta, but a nice fettuccine would be delicious too!
Load up your plate with pasta, top it with the sauce and dig in! If you have some vegan parmesan on hand, that would be tasty on top too!
Tips & Tricks
For the mushrooms I used button and baby bellas. You don’t want to rinse the mushrooms with water since they will just absorb it. I like to clean them by wiping them down with a damp paper towel.
The balsamic vinegar adds a nice sweetness to the sauce. If that isn’t your thing, just omit it.
The longer this sauce cooks, the more intense the flavor. If you let it go longer than an hour, you will need to continue to add more liquid to the pot to keep the sauce from thickening too much. You can alternate between adding more broth, wine or water. Just be sure to continue to taste the sauce as you go and season if needed.
Need more recipe inspo? Check these out:
Sunday Night Mushroom Ragu
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons oil I used avocado
- 1/2 yellow onion finely diced
- 2 carrots peeled & finely diced
- 2 stalks celery finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic finely diced
- 8 ounces white mushrooms finely chopped
- 8 ounces brown mushrooms finely chopped
- 1 4-ounce can tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- garlic salt to taste
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar see notes
- 1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 cup broth or sub red wine
- 1 pound pasta
Equipment
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a stock pot over medium heat.
- Add the onions, carrots, celery & garlic to a stock pot and cook down for 3 minutes. Add in the mushrooms and stir to combine. Cook down for 10-20 minutes, stirring frequently – the mushrooms will first release their liquid and then the liquid will evaporate. You'll know to move onto the next step when the liquid is mostly gone.
- Add in the tomato paste, dry seasonings, balsamic vinegar and soy sauce. Cook down for 5 minutes.
- Pour in the broth and turn the heat to low. Allow the sauce to simmer for 30 minutes, or longer if you have time (see notes)!
- Cook your pasta, add it to plates and top with the ragu – you can also just add your cooked pasta directly to the sauce pot!
Video
Notes
- For the mushrooms I used button and baby bellas. You don’t want to rinse the mushrooms with water since they will just absorb it. I like to clean them by wiping them down with a damp paper towel.
- The balsamic vinegar adds a nice sweetness to the sauce. If that isn’t your thing, just omit it.
- The longer this sauce cooks, the more intense the flavor. If you let it go longer than an hour, you will need to continue to add more liquid to the pot to keep the sauce from thickening too much. You can alternate between adding more broth, wine or water. Just be sure to continue to taste the sauce as you go and season if needed.
Have now made this recipe twice 🙂 I have to make half recipes because I’m just feeding two people that don’t eat a lot 🙂 so I really had to keep an eye on the amount of liquid during the simmering time. I used almost a cup of wine on a half recipe and it was delicious. I wasn’t quite sure how much garlic salt to use. I don’t really remember putting it in the first time I made it, but we’ll see this time around. It’s simmering as we speak.
Thanks so much Judy! So glad you loved it!!
Another winner! I had some red wine that needed to be used, and I think that’s what really elevated the dish. Instead of Italian seasoning, I used fresh oregano. Delish!