Vegan friendly

Mushroom “Irish stew”

published

Apr 2026

March is the month of one of my favorite holidays, St. Patrick's Day. When I was growing up, we always celebrated the day by listening to Irish folk and trad records and eating soda bread and stew. When we got a little older we added green food coloring to our beverages, and we still do that for fun. Over the years, corned beef and cabbage replaced the stew, probably because that's how everyone else celebrates the day. But actually, I prefer the stew.

This is my update of what I remember we ate — though Mom made it with lamb or pork.

The main changes I make are to substitute mushrooms for meat and to roast some of the vegetables rather than boil them. And I cook the potatoes in Guinness; Mom would likely have used the lamb drippings. Unless you add butter, the stew is vegan. I find that the olive oil from roasting the vegetables adds enough fat to bring out the flavors.

Ingredients

  • Portobello mushrooms (4-6 large caps)
  • Potatoes (about 2 lbs)
  • Turnip (1 large, peeled)
  • Carrot (1-2 cups chopped)
  • Cabbage (about ½ large head; we like Napa cabbage)
  • Sweet white onion (1 large)
  • Olive oil
  • Balsamic vinegar, a splash
  • Guinness Stout (2 cans; 28 ounces)
  • Water (about 4 cups; 32 ounces)
  • Poultry seasoning  (1- 2 tablespoons) divided
  • Garlic powder (1 tablespoon)
  • Flour (1/2 to 1 cup, sifted)

Instructions

  1. Cut mushrooms into large chunks, toss in olive oil, garlic powder, and poultry seasoning. Roast at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
  2. Slice carrots, cabbage, and onion into small chunks. Toss in olive oil, garlic powder, poultry seasoning (1 TB), a splash or two of balsamic vinegar, and roast at 350 degrees until carrots are softening and onion and cabbage beginning to caramelize (around 20 minutes). The carrots can be roasted separately from the cabbage and onion if convenient.
  3. Cut potatoes into chunks and place in a large pot. Cover with Guinness and water. Bring to a boil, then simmer until the potatoes are soft.
  4. Cut up turnip into chunks and add to potatoes about when potatoes are starting to get soft.
  5. When the potatoes and turnips are cooked add the mushrooms and their broth. Add roasted carrots, onions, and cabbage, and 1 tablespoon poultry seasoning. To thicken the liquid, sift flour in gradually.
  6. Serve in a bowl of over Champ (mashed potatoes with cheese, milk, butter, garlic, and chives), and a wedge of soda bread. The soda bread here is from my adaption of the family recipe to use sourdough instead of buttermilk.

Enjoy!

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