Healthy Eating

Vegan Mushroom Pasta | The Picky Eater

October 9, 2023

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Comforting, creamy vegan mushroom pasta is hearty, warming, and so satisfying! It’s a healthy, easy recipe that comes together in under 30 minutes. Perfect for a weeknight dinner, or a meal to impress your whole family & friends!

There’s just something so cozy and comforting about a big bowl of creamy pasta, and this delicious vegan mushroom pasta is one such dish!

We toss pasta noodles with fresh herbs, sauteed mushrooms, and the most decadent vegan cream sauce to create an easy dinner that’s perfect for the entire family.

Most of the time, you probably associate big bowls of pasta as being packed with fat, calories, and refined carbs. But not this dish! This vegan creamy mushroom pasta recipe has all the decadence of a traditional cream based pasta recipe, with none of the guilt. It’s healthy comfort food at its best!

It’s actually quite similar to an easy vegan mushroom stroganoff recipe – with just a few modifications (mainly the pasta shape, and the lack of sour cream). This recipe is made with whole wheat pasta for added fiber and nutrients, and a non-dairy cream sauce infused with garlic and spices that’s low in fat and calories.

Packed with earthy mushrooms and savory flavors, this is a classic recipe that’s special enough that even meat eaters will love it!

👩🏽‍🍳 Why You’ll Love Vegan Mushroom Pasta

Delicious: This vegan creamy mushroom pasta dish has an incredibly creamy texture and amazing earthy flavors – but is made without cream!
Easy: This is such a quick and simple meal to make. It’s perfect for busy weeknights, and it’s ideal for easy meal prep.
Family Friendly: Our creamy vegan mushroom pasta recipe will be a huge hit for the whole family.
Versatile: While this easy vegan pasta with mushrooms is perfect for a plant-based diet, it’s pleasing for meat-eaters, too.
Customizable: You can switch up the flavors and even make it gluten-free.
Allergen-Friendly: It’s already dairy-free and it’s otherwise free of most other common allergens.

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🥘 Ingredients

This creamy garlic mushroom pasta calls for a few simple ingredients that can easily be found at your local grocery store! For the full ingredient list and nutritional information, see the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Vegan Mushroom Sauce For Pasta

Our creamy vegan mushroom pasta sauce requires olive oil, vegan butter, onions, garlic, mushrooms, all purpose flour, and soy milk. It’s a thick sauce with the perfect seasoning. When it comes to mushrooms, choose your favorite kinds!

Other Pasta Ingredients

Vegan Parmesan Cheese: To add even more creaminess and cheesy flavor to this creamy mushroom vegan pasta.
Sea Salt, Pepper, Crushed Red Pepper: Simple spices add tons of flavor! Don’t skimp on these.
Fresh Parsley: For an herbal note and garnish. Fresh thyme can be added for an additional flavor in the creamy sauce.
Cooked Pasta Of Choice: Any type of pasta will work for this delicious recipe. I used whole wheat penne, but you can make this into a mushroom spaghetti or mushroom linguine. Try it with bow tie pasta, or even gluten-free pasta if you like!

🍲 Ingredient Substitutions

Choose Your Mushroom: You can use any type of mushroom variety you like for this recipe. Try cremini mushrooms, white button mushrooms, brown mushrooms, baby bellas (baby portobello mushrooms), chanterelle mushrooms, white mushrooms, meaty mushrooms like shiitake mushrooms or maitake mushrooms, and/or oyster mushrooms.
Change Your Plant Milk: You can use unsweetened almond milk or oat milk for this easy vegan mushroom pasta recipe. For more decadence, you could also use cashew cream or full-fat coconut milk. And for an alternative sauce, you can use this vegan bechamel sauce!

🔪 How To Make Vegan Mushroom Pasta

Saute Mushrooms: Melt the olive oil and vegan butter in a large skillet or a large pot over medium heat, add the onion and sauté until translucent. Add the garlic and mushrooms, continue to sauté until the mushrooms are cooked through (they will reduce in size, and release their juices when they’re cooked).

Mushrooms sauteeing in a skillet on the stove.

Add Flour: Stir through the flour, reduce heat and cook for 2 minutes, continuing to stir.

Make Roux: Pour half of the soy milk in, stirring continuously to incorporate well.

Mushrooms, onion, garlic mixed with cream sauce in a pan.

Add Milk: Add remaining soy milk, increase heat and stir to combine. Add the garlic and mushrooms, continue to sauté until the mushrooms are cooked through.

Creamy mushroom pasta sauce cooking in a pan.

Finish Creamy Mushroom Pasta Sauce: Mix through the vegan parmesan cheese reserving ¼ to sprinkle on top when serving. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Add Cooked Pasta & Serve: Add the hot pasta to the sauce and stir though. Serve this vegan creamy mushroom pasta immediately, topped with grated vegan cheese and chopped parsley.

Creamy mushroom vegan pasta cooking in a pan, topped with fresh herbs.

💭 Expert Tips

Cook The Pasta Carefully: Cook the pasta fresh, and follow package instructions for best results. Remove the pasta 1 minute before the cooking time on the box has been completed so that it stays al dente before you add it to the mushroom sauce.
Choose The Right Pasta: Make sure to choose an egg free pasta so that it’s vegan-friendly. The good news is every whole wheat pasta and chickpea/lentil pasta I’ve seen are naturally egg-free!
Cook Off The Flour: Be sure to cook off the flour completely to ensure the sauce doesn’t taste “flour-y”. This also helps to thicken the sauce.
Make A Roasted Mushroom Pasta: For a deeper, more earthy, and savory flavor, try roasting your mushrooms before adding them to the creamy mushroom pasta sauce.

📖 Variations

Change up this dairy free mushroom pasta in a few ways to make it your own!

Add Spice! Feel free to add some spice like extra crushed red pepper flakes, a pinch of cayenne, or extra black pepper to give this vegan mushroom creamy pasta a kick! You can also try adding paprika or nutritional yeast for additional flavor or fresh chives for a different garnish.
Add Protein: Feel free to toss in some diced tofu, pine nuts, white beans, or even cooked brown lentils for a protein boost.
Add Extra Veggies: Add some leafy greens like baby spinach or baby kale for added nutrients. You can also add in other vegetables like cooked broccoli, cherry tomatoes, cauliflower, zucchini, or eggplant. Add the veggies in right when you add the pasta to the mushroom pasta sauce.

🍽 Serving Suggestions

There are plenty of ways to serve up this tasty pasta!

🙌 Dietary Adaptations

This healthy mushroom pasta recipe is already dairy free and vegan! To make this recipe gluten-free, use a chickpea or lentil based pasta, or your favorite gluten free pasta.

🫙 Storage Directions

To Store In The Fridge: Allow the dairy-free mushroom pasta to cool completely before transferring it to an airtight container. It will keep for 3-5 days in the fridge.
To Freeze: You can freeze this completed dish, just keep in mind that this vegan pasta with mushrooms tends to soften a bit when frozen and defrosted. The creamy mushroom sauce will freeze and defrost really well, though – so that shouldn’t be an issue. When freezing, allow the dish to cool, then transfer to an airtight freezer-safe container. It will keep for 2-3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight, then reheat in the oven at 350 degrees until warmed through.

❓Recipe FAQs

How many calories are in creamy mushroom pasta? Is mushroom pasta healthy?

Typically, one serving of a cream based pasta sauce is going to run you around 500 calories per serving and is also going to be high in fat.

Mushroom pasta can be healthy, but it depends on what you put in the sauce and what pasta you use! If you use a whole grain or high protein / gluten free pasta, and a dairy free cream sauce, you’ll end up with a healthy recipe that makes a great lunch or dinner.

This vegan mushroom pasta recipe is super healthy because it’s low in fat and calories (only about 300 calories per serving), it uses whole grain pasta, and is high in fiber.

How do you thicken creamy mushroom stroganoff sauce?

This vegan stroganoff-type pasta is thickened with all-purpose flour. You can also use cornstarch, arrowroot flour, potato starch, gluten-free flour, or tapioca starch to thicken a mushroom cream sauce recipe.

What is stroganoff sauce made of?

Most traditional stroganoff recipes are made from a butter and flour roux and then finished with sour cream. This healthier version is made with non-dairy milk and vegan butter, and is thickened with all-purpose flour.

Vegan creamy mushroom pasta in a white bowl with a fork, topped with fresh herbs.

🍲 More Healthy Vegan Recipes!

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📋 Recipe Card