Lentil and mushroom bourguignon with thyme and pearl onions

Serves - 4

You’ll need

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 250g pearl onions or small shallots, peeled
• 300g chestnut mushrooms, halved or quartered if large
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 carrots, cut into thick slices
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 250ml dry vegan red wine
• 500ml vegetable stock
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 thyme sprigs
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 1 x 400g tin green or brown lentils, drained and rinsed
• 1 tsp red wine vinegar
• Small handful flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
• Sea salt
• Black pepper

Method

1. Brown the pearl onions

Heat 1 tbsp of the olive oil in a large casserole over a medium heat. Add the pearl onions with a small pinch of salt and cook for 8–10 minutes, turning now and then, until golden in places.

Add a small splash of water, cover with a lid and cook for another 5 minutes until nearly tender. Lift them onto a plate and set aside. They will finish cooking later, so there is no need to pursue complete softness just yet.

2. Give the mushrooms some colour

Add the remaining olive oil to the casserole and turn the heat up slightly. Add the mushrooms and cook for 7–8 minutes until their liquid has evaporated and they are properly browned.

Cook them in batches if the pan looks crowded. Mushrooms need room to colour, not a communal steam bath.

Lift them out and set aside with the pearl onions.

3. Build the base

Turn the heat down to medium and add the chopped onion and carrots with a small pinch of salt. Cook for 8–10 minutes until softened and beginning to colour.

Add the garlic and tomato purée and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring until the purée darkens slightly and loses its raw edge.

4. Thicken the sauce

Sprinkle over the flour and stir for a minute so it coats the vegetables. Pour in the red wine gradually, stirring and scraping up anything caught on the bottom of the casserole.

Let the wine bubble for 2–3 minutes. This gives it time to soften and settle into the sauce rather than tasting as though it has merely been poured in at the last moment.

5. Start the bourguignon

Add the vegetable stock, bay leaves, thyme and soy sauce. Return the pearl onions and mushrooms to the casserole, then bring everything to a gentle simmer.

Cover loosely and cook over a low heat for 25–30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the carrots and onions are tender and the sauce has thickened.

6. Add the lentils

Stir in the drained lentils and simmer uncovered for another 8–10 minutes until heated through and nicely coated in the sauce.

The lentils are already cooked, so they need enough time to absorb some flavour without being reduced to a brown and worthy-looking paste.

7. Finish and balance

Stir in the red wine vinegar, remove the bay leaves and thyme stalks, then taste and adjust the seasoning.

The sauce should be rich, savoury and gently glossy, with the vinegar bringing just enough lift to keep the whole thing from becoming too heavy.

8. Serve

Spoon into warm bowls and scatter over the parsley. Serve with creamy vegan mash, butter-free noodles or crusty bread for dealing with the sauce properly.

A couple of helpful notes
- Check that the red wine is labelled vegan, as some wines are made using animal-derived fining agents.
- Green or brown lentils hold their shape best here. Red lentils will soften too far and change the texture of the dish entirely.
- Like most slow, saucy things, this is excellent made a day ahead and reheated gently once the flavours have had time to settle.