This is one of my all time favorites!! Serve this buttery mushroom ragu with polenta or as a surprising veggie spaghetti sauce for dinner! See, vegetarian food doesn’t have to be boring at all. Yum!
What is mushroom ragu?
Lord almighty, this dish looks absolutely scrumptious!
That is what I was thinking that evening a couple of days ago when I put plates of this rich mushroom ragu on our dinner table… That lovely mix of mushrooms for one, but then it is served over a scoop of the most buttery polenta ever!
Comfort Food
Mushroom ragu and polenta.
Top notch Italian comfort food at its best, no doubt about it.
A good glass of red wine right next to it…
I am definitely in.
Heavenly!
Best Buttery Polenta with Mushroom Ragu Recipe
Some of you might like this too: it is vegetarian.
One look at my mushroom ragu recipe with polenta and you have to admit that vegetarian food doesn’t have to be boring at all.
You can replace the polenta here by a good portion of freshly cooked al dente pappardelle and use the mushroom ragu sauce as a spaghetti sauce!
Mushroom ragu pasta, delicious!
How to Make Polenta
Do you like polenta?
Find the full step by step recipe on how to make polenta here.
What I like the most in this mushroom ragu are the different textures because a bunch of different mushrooms makes the ragu very interesting. And then I am not even talking about the strong flavors! I used white mushrooms, the ones you can find everywhere.
And I also added two types of dried mushrooms: dried porcini and dried morel mushrooms. But go ahead and add whatever mushrooms you like best!
Morel Mushrooms
Do you love mushroom recipes?
Then you should also check out my mushroom and ricotta spaghetti. Or my Japanese mushroom soup!
Enjoy!
Best Polenta with Mushroom Ragu Recipe
Serve this buttery mushroom ragu over creamy homemade polenta or as a surprising veggie spaghetti sauce for dinner!
- 2,5 oz polenta cornmeal (70 g)
- 1 ¼ cup chicken or vegetable stock (300 ml)
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 10 large white mushrooms
- 6 to 8 dried morel mushrooms
- ½ oz dried porcini mushrooms (15 g)
- 2 medium garlic cloves chopped
- 1 small onion chopped
- ¼ cup dry white wine (60 ml)
- 10 sprigs thyme
- 2 to 3 tbsp ricotta
- 1 tbsp parmesan cheese grated
- olive oil
- pepper
- salt
- Transfer the dried mushrooms to a small bowl and add half a cup (120 ml) of cold water. Let them soak for 30 minutes at room temperature.
- Prepare the polenta first, it takes 30 minutes. Place the vegetable or chicken stock over medium heat until boiling. Then stir in the polenta cornmeal.
- Season with pepper and salt. Cook the polenta for 2 minutes until boiling again. Then turn the heat as low as possible and put a lid on the pan. Leave the polenta to bubble, simmer and thicken for 20 to 25 minutes. Stir regularly to make sure that the polenta isn’t sticking to the bottom and burning. Stir in the unsalted butter in the end.
- Cook the polenta for another 5 minutes. Check the seasoning and add extra pepper or salt. Add some olive oil to a large non-stick pan together with the fresh thyme and chopped onion and garlic. Season with a little pinch of pepper and salt alsol.
- Gently cook the onion and garlic in the hot oil for about 5 minutes until softened a little. Stir regularly. Brush, trim and clean the white mushrooms. Chop them into bite-size chunks. Add them to the onion.
- Stir the mushrooms and onion and fry the ingredients for 3 minutes. Then add the soaked mushrooms, the soaking liquid and white wine.
- Stir well again and cover the pan. Let the mushrooms simmer in the liquid for 6 to 8 minutes. Then add 2 tablespoons of the ricotta.
- Stir the mushrooms well and turn the heat lower. Check the seasoning and add extra pepper or salt to taste if necessary. Add more ricotta to taste if you want the ragu to be extra creamy. Scoop the buttery cooked polenta onto deep plates. Top with the creamy mushroom ragu and sprinkle with some grated parmesan cheese. Serve hot.
Easy Grilled Mushroom Crostini
I hope you liked my mushroom ragu recipe!
These mushroom crostini are a great hearty breakfast, crunchy appetizer, appetizing starter or a quick snack! You can even turn them into a healthy lunch idea if you adjust the portions and make it more like a classic mushroom toast with a fresh green salad on the side.
Simple, clean and light – what a delicious vegetarian mushroom treat!
This is a nice way to incorporate a couple of leftover white mushrooms.
Leftover Mushrooms
I don’t know about you but I very often have this handful of buggers in my fridge after a week of cooking my heart out. The same happened after preparing my mushroom ragu I just talked about.
Most of the time other leftover herbs end up in it as well, like tarragon or basil. I sometimes even add salted capers or balsamic vinegar because those give it an extra touch.
Crunchy mushroom crostini with fresh thyme and balsamic vinegar… A delicious and veggie appetizer that I am sure everyone will love!
Enjoy these mushroom crostini!
Easy Grilled Mushroom Crostini Recipe
These mushroom crostini are a great hearty breakfast, crunchy appetizer, appetizing starter or a quick snack!
- 6 white mushrooms
- 2 small garlic cloves peeled
- 1 tbsp thyme
- a handful parmesan cheese grated
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 6 slices French bread
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- pepper
- salt
- Rub a garlic clove on one side of the French bread slices. Don’t exaggerate, the garlic flavor is strong.
- Grill the bread under a hot grill for about 3 minutes until crisp and a little golden. Don’t burn them! In the meantime chop up the other peeled garlic clove finely and add it together with the olive oil to a medium non-stick pan.
- Place the pan over medium heat and gently fry the garlic for 5 minutes in the hot oil. Don’t let it burn! In the meantime carefully brush and clean the white mushrooms using a soft brush and trim them if necessary. Chop up the white mushrooms into smaller bite-size pieces. Then add them to the fried garlic in the hot pan together with the fresh thyme leaves.
- Stir and bake the mushrooms for 6 more minutes or until brown and cooked through. Then pour in half of the balsamic vinegar. Season with a pinch of pepper and salt.
Stir the mushrooms well and cook them for another minute until the balsamic vinegar is fully absorbed. Then take the pan off the heat and check the seasoning of the mushrooms. Add extra pepper, salt or balsamic vinegar to taste if necessary. Then let the mushrooms cool a little. Then top the lightly grilled slices of French bread evenly with the cooked balsamic mushrooms. Sprinkle some grated parmesan cheese on the mushrooms. Season with extra pepper to taste if you like.
- Grill the crostini for another couple of minutes under a hot grill until the parmesan cheese has melted nicely. Then place the warm crostini onto a clean plate and serve immediately while still hot.
Bonus Recipe!
Here is another recipe with mushrooms for you.
What an easy appetizer this marinated mushroom recipe is! It is simple to make, with very little ingredients and delicious. And by the way: this marinated mushroom recipe have to be prepared at least a day in advance.
Prepping food ahead, that is something I love when I throw a dinner party at home.
Appetizers
Never underestimate the time you need to prep dinner and appetizers on the day itself.
Some unexpected problems might surface and if that happens while you still have a bunch of things to do, it will stress you out.
I get grumpy when things don’t go the way I planned them to go when I am cooking dinner for my guests. That is one hell of a recipe for disaster!
So nothing easier than plating up nibbles and appetizers you prepared the day before.
Easy Marinated Mushrooms
I picked this idea for marinated mushrooms up in a restaurant in France a while ago when we were on holiday near Nice. They served this fresh and zesty little bite (the chef used oyster mushrooms back then) together with the glass of white wine we ordered for pre dinner drinks.
Great match!
The heartiness of the garlic and baked mushrooms goes extremely well with the freshness of the vinegar and lemon.
I just had to try this appetizer out at home.
Enjoy this one as well!
Easy Marinated Mushrooms Recipe
What an easy appetizer these marinated mushroom are!
- 9 oz white mushrooms (250 g)
- 1 tbsp fresh herbs
- 1 small garlic clove chopped
- 2 slices fresh lemon
- 1 ¼ cup water (300 ml)
- ½ cup white wine vinegar (120 ml)
- olive oil
- pepper
- salt
- In a large non-stick pan pour a little olive oil and place it over medium heat until hot. Then add the garlic and fry it for about 4 minutes until fragrant. Stir regularly. Don’t burn it! In the meantime clean the mushrooms using a soft brush (don’t rinse them in water). Keep the smaller ones in one piece, chop the larger ones up into bite-size chunks. Add the mushrooms to the garlic.
- Fry the mushrooms for about 5 minutes. Stir regularly. Then take the pan off the heat. Add the lemon slices and herbs (I used a tablespoon of fresh tarragon).
- Stir well and put the pan aside. Let he mushrooms cool for 5 minutes. In the meantime pour the water and vinegar in a small saucepan and place it over medium-high heat. Season generously with a good dash of pepper and salt. Bring it to a rolling boil. Transfer the cooled mushrooms and lemon to a clean and dry glass jar. Pour the hot vinegar water on top.
- The mushrooms should be submerged fully. Put the jar aside to cool. Don’t close the jar until it has reached room temperature! Once fully cooled, close the jar and put it in the fridge overnight to marinate. The day after remove the jar from the fridge 30 minutes before serving. Transfer the mushrooms to a clean bowl and serve.
It looks awesome! Your pasta idea sounds fantastic, and we also wonder how this would pair with mashed potatoes or even fava!:)
Exceptional recipe dear! Have an amazing weekend ahead! xoxoxo