Instant Pot Mushroom Stroganoff with Vodka
Make this stroganoff your dinner tonight, seriously! Made with caraway-spiked vodka, and a hearty mushroom base, you get all of what you love about mushroom stroganoff, without the all the butter and cream.
If you have an Instant Pot, please make this. Please. Pasta fans especially, this one is for you. It is an Instant Pot Mushroom Stroganoff. And, as many of you know, within the Instant Pot community, mushroom stroganoff is quite popular. You see many versions of it highlighted. Some are over-the-top decadent, others are quite healthy and hearty. This is my take, trying to land squarely in the later camp.
My rogue move? Infuse a bit of vodka with crushed caraway seeds. Use it to spike your mushroom base as it cooks. So, a bit like penne alla vodka, but the mushroom stroganoff version. You can use whatever pasta you like (whole-grain, gluten free, chickpea, rice, etc.), I use creamy nut milk in place of actual cream, and a splash of olive oil to kick things off to start, in place of slabs of butter. You won't miss any of it. This version is vegan, vegetarian, cozy, comforting, simple, and adaptable.
Here's a quick video where you can see how this comes together. There are also more videos here if you're interested:
Serving Suggestions
I'm going to argue that you need to counter all of this brown with a good amount of green. I enjoy this with a sizable green salad, or stir some chopped kale directly into the stroganoff, as it completes cooking. I make note of the specifics down below.
Pasta Selection
One of the great things about this recipe is that you can use whatever pasta you like, and you can experiment with favorite shapes. I've had success with penne, and rotini, but you can absolutely use whatever you (or your family) really likes. I often reach for one of the legume/bean based pastas for weeknight pastas, and play around with more traditional (and homemade wheat noodles) on the weekends. Mix it up some, this recipe is perfect for it.
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Instant Pot Mushroom Stroganoff with Vodka
If your mushrooms look dirty or dusty, wipe them with a damp cloth or paper towel. I used chickpea pasta here, and it works great! (Banza). If vodka is inconvenient, substitute a craft beer (bourbon stout was delicious), or white wine.
- 1 teaspoon caraway seeds, crushed
- 1/3 cup vodka
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
- 1 pound brown mushrooms, stemmed, chopped 1/2-inch
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 3/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt, plus more to taste
- 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, or to taste
- 1 3/4 cup mushroom broth (or vegetable broth)
- 2 cups dried pasta (see headnotes)
- 1/2 cup homemade cashew cream*, or almond milk
- to serve:
- lots of dill, or chives and some toasted almonds
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In a small bowl combine the caraway seeds and the vodka, set aside. Sauté the olive oil and onions in the Instant Pot on the highest SAUTE setting for a minute or two. Stir in the garlic and mushrooms, and cook for a few minutes more, until everything softens up a bit. Stir in the tomato paste, and then the flour, and cook, stirring gently, but constantly for another few minutes, to toast the flour a bit. Add the mustard, salt, and pepper, broth, and pasta. Give one last stir to distribute the pasta evenly, and press CANCEL to stop the SAUTE.
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Close the pot, and secure the lid. SEAL the valve. Select PRESSURE COOK (or MANUAL) and calculate your cooking time. To do this, refer to your pasta package, the time will be half of the shortest recommended cooking time, rounded down to nearest minute. For example my pasta package recommended 7 - 9 minutes. Take the smaller number (7), cut in half (3.5), round down to nearest whole number (3). SET/ADJUST TIME - in my case, to 3 minutes. When finished, carefully QUICK RELEASE pressure by shifting the valve to VENTING. Gently shake or tap the pressure cooker, and then carefully open away from you. Stir in the vodka-caraway mixture, simmer for a few more minutes, and stir in cashew milk. Taste and adjust seasoning, serve topped with lots of dill and almonds.
*Puree 1 cup of cashews, and 2 cups of water in a high-speed blender for a full minute or two. If you don't have a high-speed blender, please soak the cashews in water for at least an hour before blending for smoothest consistency.
Stovetop Version: Follow the instructions, up to the point of adding the pasta, cooking in a large skillet (instead of the Instant Pot). Cook the pasta separately in a pot of salted water, and stir it into the mushroom mixture. Finish with the cashew milk, and toppings.
Kale-boosted Variation: Stir a few big handfuls of well-chopped kale into the mushroom stroganoff just after it finishes cooking. Let it collapse a bit over a couple of minutes, and stir in the cashew cream before serving.
For reference, this is the Instant Pot I used for this recipe: Instant Pot DUO Plus 6 Qt 9-in-1
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Comments
Made this tonight and my 8-year-old said “keep this instant pot recipe, Mum!” Guess he’s a fan (as am I)
Love it!!!!
I've made this 3 times so far, and I rarely repeat recipes! I normally follow it as written although I sub rice flour for the regular flour (1:1) and use a gluten-free pasta (most recently Catelli penne) I've made it with the cashew cream every time as I like the creaminess. It's fairly simple, fast, and delicious! Would definitely recommend it as a 'one pot' Instantpot meal.
This looks very attractive and amazing. I'll definitely try it at my home. Love this dish!
I want to try this so bad, but I absolutely hate the flavor of caraway...is the flavor of it heavy in this dish? Would there be an appropriate substitute?
Hi Jayme - You can leave it out, but I find it interacts with the tomatoes in a really nice way. It evolves into an atypical caraway flavor!
So good and easy! I hate mushrooms, but my kids and husband love them and loved the stroganoff. I even liked it with all the mushrooms picked out. Only problem is the quantity is too small. I'll try doubling next time and let you know if it works.
I've made this recipe three times so far and can say it's one of my all-time favorite IP recipes (not that I've made a ton, but this is at the top of my list). I even received rave reviews from many carnivores at Easter dinner yesterday - and two people asked me for the recipe! I've found it helps to add a couple extra drops of almond milk when heating up leftovers so they don't dry out. I think I could eat this every week! As someone who has digestive issues, it's so exciting to find a satisfying dish that doesn't hurt my insides. Thank you!
HS: So happy to hear it Amy! Thanks for the comment :)!
Not bad. Made exactly as described except used regular milk instead of nut milk. Also used whole wheat fusilli.
The flavor of this sauce certainly harkens to the classic stroganoff your mother made, and if you're into the "one pot" approach to cooking, this ticks all the boxes for a mid-winter treat. But I don't think It's a "must do" in the Instant Pot, particularly when it comes to the Banza pasta range. Banza pasta usually performs best when it's cooked only as long as prescribed (given the math Heidi employs above, to account for the speed of pressure-cooked noodles), and rinsed immediately. If they're swimming in the heated sauce for a minute too long, they fall apart, and the sauce is rich with the starchy water, making it less like a sauce and more like sauce and pasta are a fused unit. That in itself is not tragic, unless you're a stickler for aesthetics. I think the recipe (using Banza) would likely benefit best by cooking sauce and pasta separately, and dressing the pasta before it's served. Maybe heartier durum or semolina wheat pasta would hold up better for the one-pot cooking approach. As I'm less inclined toward those, I'll try this again with the two-pot approach.
HS: I've had really good results with both Banza and conventional durum wheat pastas (I've probably cooked this 6 or 7 times...), with no breakdown of the noodles. Wondering if a different size IP might have been the factor? I'm using the 6 qt. Hmm.
Decently priced Duo IPs are hard to find right now, so I made this on the stove top. The shot of caraway vodka is aromatic brilliance.
Love this dish! I used Trader Joe's whole wheat rotini and thought the pasta came out just a hair too crunchy; leftover, however, it was perfect! Instead of kale I stirred in some spinach before serving and it wilted nicely and added a nice pop of green. I also added a tsp of crushed red pepper flakes and it lent a nice kick. I also used almond flour. I think I reduced the broth by a bit as well and liked that. Wonderful recipe!
Thanks Claire!
This was excellent! I used almond milk and mix of maitake and baby bella mushrooms. Loved throwing the dry whole wheat pasta in the mixture, pressure cooking for 5 minutes and ending up with a delicious creamy dish. Should be called magic pot!
Thanks Elena! Love your maitake/baby bella twist :)!
Looks amazing. Could you substitute soymilk or another non dairy and non nut milk for those with nut (and sesame, so tahina is out) allergies? thanks!
Hmm, maybe a full-bodied oat milk?
I made this tonight. Sophisticated and delicious taste! I will definitely make this again. I grew up eating hamburger stroganoff (likely from a Betty Crocker cookbook recipe). Your recipe is grown up food! My penne package said 8-10 minutes to cook so I did the pressure cook function for 4 minutes. It was still a little too firm so I did it for another two minutes. It wasn't soggy and still had a lovely texture. I guess it depends on the pasta and how al dente people like it. I think this would be lovely with farro too. How long would that need to be cooked--10 minutes or so?
Made this last night & loved it! Hubby loved it too-he's always skeptical of my vegetarian recipes! The caraway adds a nice crunch and interesting flavor. Next time I might add some crushed red pepper.
BRAVO! I am not a big mushroom, dill or caraway fan, but this dish is an absolute knockout! The tastes compliment each other so beautifully... I actually doubled the dill in the leftovers! Also, the chopped almonds add a whole other element with the savory crunch they provide. Superb recipe.
HS: Thanks Pat!
Would a lemon infused vodka be the end of the world?
HS: I imagine that would be brilliant!
Just made this and it was worth the extra effort to make the mushroom broth and run to the liquor store to get a tiny bottle of vodka. Admittedly, I am a mushroom fanatic, but holy wow. I love all your instant pot recipes! Perfect for my grad school time crunch (maybe not as much for my budget, but hey - you've gotta eat good to work good, right?). Thanks, Heidi!
HS: Thanks Satpreet! Glad you're enjoying them.
This dish is savory and flavorful. It was the first time I sautéed vegetables in the Instant Pot. Next time I will add leafy greens (chard, kale, collards, etc). Thanks for another fantastic recipe!
Made this tonight and delish! Used whole grain mustard so added a pinch of sugar to compensate. Seemed super salty after pressure cooking but after adding soy milk (carefully to prevent curdling) was very delicious. Thanks Heidi! I hope I can request a frittata or egg dish in the Instant Pot next :)
I have an 8-quart IP. Do you think this recipe could be safely doubled or even tripled? I'm feeding extra people this week.