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This Vegan Mushroom Pâté makes a fantastic entree. It’s so tasty that even the most hardcore meat-lovers won’t complain. Chestnut mushrooms are combined with walnuts and thyme for rich flavour. And the texture is beautifully coarse. It’s also great for a light lunch smeared over some toast with some herbs scattered over!
Ingredients
You need a few simple ingredients to make this recipe:
- Olive oil
- Onion – brown or white will do, slice thinly but don’t worry too much about the appearance
- Mushrooms – use brown or chestnut mushrooms to get that great rustic brown colour!
- Garlic – whole cloves, peeled and chopped
- Apple cider vinegar – you can also use sherry or brandy instead
- Walnuts – deshelled and roughly chopped
- Thyme – leaves stripped from the stems and chopped
- Parsley – finely chopped
How to make it
This Pâté is really easy to make. You simply need to soften some onion in a pan for a few minutes before tossing in roughly chopped mushrooms, garlic, apple cider vinegar and thyme.
Once everything has cooked for around 10 minutes and the mushrooms are nice and soft, transfer to a blender with chopped walnuts and pulse until you have the desired texture.
It takes around 5-10 minutes of prep and then 20 minutes cooking and blending time.
Can you freeze mushroom pâté?
This vegan mushroom pate freezes really well for up to 3 months. Transfer to a freezer-proof container and cover. Press clingfilm along the surface so that it is touching the pate to stop any ice crystals from forming. You can also transfer into freezer-proof bags and freeze. Squeeze out the air beforehand.
You can also keep this in the fridge for up to 5 days, making it great for advance prep. Especially if you have guests coming round!
What to serve it with?
Traditionally pâté is served with bread. In particular, a crusty french bread goes particularly well, such as a sliced and lightly toasted baguette. I also find this goes just as well with plain old toast.
Pâtés also go well as part of a cheese board and add a little extra variety and interest – which is a great idea if you are entertaining. I’ve also been known to eat this as a dip with some carrot or celery slices.
How many calories?
If you are watching your calorie intake this is a great recipe as one portion has only 140 calories. If you eat with sliced veg instead of bread then this really is a tasty and healthy snack option.
Most of the calories and fat (it has 11g fat) come from the walnuts. If you didn’t include them then the pate would not have the same great texture. You could use chestnuts instead (see below).
Substitutions
If in season, you can use roasted chestnuts instead of the walnuts in this recipe – the texture will be smoother but it will be equally as delicious. You can also use different herbs. Rosemary is a good swap for the thyme, as is sage. If you are serving this at Christmas time then the sage and chestnut option will definitely add a little extra festive flavour!
Sherry or brandy can also be used in place of the apple cider vinegar for a bit of a taste variation.
If you are a fan of pâté then check out this smoked mackerel pâté (not vegan). This beetroot hummus or this Arabic moutabal dip made from aubergine are also great vegan options to serve with some toasted bread!
Products that work great for this recipe
Russell Hobbs 3-in-1 Blender
Bamboo Lotus Serving Board
Cole & Mason Herb Keeper
Vegan Mushroom Pâté
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
This vegan mushroom Pâté blends in walnuts, garlic and thyme for a beautiful flavour with a fantastic coarse texture. Perfect for a starter or a light lunch smeared over some crispy bread.
The default recipe makes 4 portions of around 1/4 cup each.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 medium onion, sliced (75g or 2.5oz)
- 200g (or 7 oz) brown or chestnut mushrooms, roughly chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp fresh finely chopped thyme
- 50g (or 1/2 cup) roughly chopped walnuts
- 1 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
Instructions
1. Add the olive oil to a frying pan/skillet over a medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook for around 4 minutes until they have started to soften
2. Add the mushrooms and garlic to the pan with the apple cider vinegar and thyme. Cook for a further 8-10 minutes until the mushrooms have browned and reduced in size.
3. Transfer the mushrooms to a blender along with the walnuts and season well. Use a slotted spoon so you don’t add all the juices from the pan. Pulse for a couple of minutes until you have a coarse Pâté texture. Every so often use a spoon to loosen any mixture that sticks to the side of the blender.
4. Serve with the parsley scattered over the top.
Notes
You can also use sherry or brandy instead of the apple cider vinegar
Chestnuts make a great alternative to the walnuts if you are making this when they are in season
Sage is also a great alternative to the thyme
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Starter
- Method: Hob
- Cuisine: French
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 (1/4 cup)
- Calories: 140
- Fat: 11g
- Carbohydrates: 6g
- Protein: 4.5g
Keywords: pâté, starter, french, side, lunch, bread, walnuts, mushroom, vegan, vegetarian
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