If you're looking for a healthy, vegan gravy, you've come to the right place! This Easy Mushroom Gravy is made with minimal, real-food ingredients and is free of gluten, corn, soy and refined sugars. Not to mention, it's ready in under an hour!

When it comes to comfort foods, Sunday dinner and holiday meals, gravy is a must! However, it can be challenging to find a healthy gravy recipe if you're vegetarian, plant-based, or gluten-free. And trust me, I feel your pain in missing out on one of the best parts of holiday dinners! It's never fun to watch everyone else enjoy their gravy-soaked meals while you sit there picking at your dry mashed potatoes.

That's why I set out to find a simple vegan, gluten-free gravy made with real food ingredients. After a few failed attempts using starches as a thickener, I decided to go a different route and learn how to make vegan mushroom gravy. After a little more tweaking and perfecting, this delicious, healthy recipe was born!

This Easy Mushroom Gravy is just the right amount of creamy, has a subtle mushroom flavour and is the perfect match for any holiday dinner, poutine and of course, mashed potatoes.

How to Make Vegan Mushroom Gravy

First and foremost, making this vegan, gluten-free mushroom gravy requires fresh cremini mushrooms.

How To Select & Store Cremini & Portobello Mushrooms

• Choose mushrooms that are firm, plump and clean. They should not be slimy or wrinkled.

• Cremini mushrooms get darker as they age, so it's best to pick out those that are lightest in colour.

• The best way to store most mushrooms is in a paper bag in the refrigerator. If they are pre-packed, they should last up to seven days in the fridge. 

• To preserve the freshness longer, you can place the mushrooms in a glass container and cover it with a damp cloth or directly wrap the mushrooms in a clean, damp cloth.

Making Vegan, Gluten-Free Mushroom Gravy

Making Vegan mushroom is surprisingly simple and is ready in under an hour!

Heat the Oil & Cook the Mushrooms

First, heat one to two tablespoons of avocado or olive oil in a medium saucepan. Then throw in the chopped onion and garlic and cook for a few minutes. Once the onion and garlic become fragrant, add a heaping (and I mean heaping!) cup of chopped cremini mushrooms and a teaspoon of thyme. Continue to cook until onions are transparent and mushrooms are soft, stirring often.

Bring to A Boil

Once the mushrooms become soft and are beginning to brown, pour in the vegetable broth and water. Cover and bring to a boil.

Let Simmer

Once boiling, turn down the heat to medium-low and let simmer for about ten minutes, stirring intermittently.

Cool

Next, remove the pot from the heat and allow it cool for a few minutes.  

Blend

Once cool enough to handle, you can add the gravy to a blender. 

For a smooth gravy - add it all to a blender and blend until smooth.

For a chunky mushroom gravy - remove half of the mushrooms with a slotted spoon, place in a bowl and set aside. Add the remaining mixture to a blender and blend until smooth.

Reheat / Thicken

Once your plant-based mushroom gravy is blended, pour back into the saucepan and heat over medium-low heat for fifteen to twenty minutes or until the gravy is thickened to your liking.

This Plant-Based Mushroom Gravy isn't as thick as some traditional gravies. If you prefer it thicker, you can add a tablespoon or two of arrowroot starch. Whisk in the arrowroot starch once the gravy is blended and heating over the stovetop. 

If you're making this a chunky mushroom gravy, you may need to add a little arrowroot since the mushrooms contribute to the thickness.

Ways to Use Your Plant-Based Mushroom Gravy

Use this vegan, gluten-free Mushroom Gravy to pour over mashed potatoes, stuffing and roasted tempeh. It also makes a great vegan poutine gravy and can be used in any other recipe that calls for gravy!

What Makes This Mushroom Gravy Healthy

Real Food Ingredients

When learning how to make plant-based mushroom gravy, I found it challenging to find recipes that only use real food ingredients. This mushroom gravy uses minimal, mainly fresh ingredients, making it easy and accessible.

This Easy Plant-Based Mushroom Gravy is also free of gluten, corn and refined sugar! 

Cremini Mushrooms

Did you know cremini mushrooms are, in fact, baby portobello mushrooms!? I just recently learned this fun little fact and have a new appreciation for little creminis!

Both cremini and portobello mushrooms are an excellent source of B vitamins, which is great for those who eat a plant-based or plant-heavy diet. Incorporating these mushrooms (both cremini and portobello) into your diet is a great way to increase vitamin B levels through food. They contain six of the B vitamins, including B12! The B vitamins play crucial roles in many metabolic and neurological functions in the body and are also great for the skin, hair and nails!

Garlic

The mineral sulphur is responsible for garlic's pungent odour and flavour. We can also thank it for making garlic a purifier! Sulphur stimulates the elimination of toxins from the lymph and blood.

On top of that, garlic has long been used for its immune-supporting qualities. It's a well-known protectant against the common cold and flu.

Onion

Onions are similar to garlic in the fact they are high in sulphur. They, too, have antiseptic qualities, helping our immune systems fight off pathogens. If onions are grown in healthy soil, they can also be a great source of zinc and selenium.

Coconut Aminos (Soy Free)

Coconut aminos is a soy-free seasoning sauce that is simply made from fermented coconut sap and salt! It tastes just the same as soy-sauce, except slightly milder. It still gives a perfect salty, savoury flavour with lots of umami. To be honest, I much prefer the coconut aminos!

I should add, if you don't have coconut aminos and don't have any allergies or sensitivities to wheat or soy, you can always substitute soy sauce or tamari.

Avocado / Olive Oil

Avocado and olive oil are quite similar. Of all the oils, both contain the highest amounts of monounsaturated fat, making them the most heat-stable (besides coconut).  

They are both rich in oleic and linoleic acid, which help lower LDL (bad cholesterol) while increasing HDL (good cholesterol). And both are also great sources of mixed tocopherols (vitamin E) and flavonoids (antioxidants).

Vegetable Broth

Many vegetable broths only contain powdered spices, herbs and vegetables, along with a ton of sodium and artificial flavours. If you buy your vegetable broth, try to go with organic and read the label to ensure it only contains clean ingredients. 

On the other hand, making homemade vegetable broth can boost the nutritional value of many dishes.

More Plant-Based Recipes You Might Enjoy!

• Vegan Poutine
• Homemade Vegetable Broth
• Homemade Cashew Yogurt
• Plant-Based Sweet Potato Corn Chowder
• Almond Thyme Savoury Sweet Potato Muffins (WFPB, GF)

If you've tried this Easy Mushroom Gravy recipe, let me know how it was by leaving a comment and/or a rating below! And make sure you're following along on Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook for more wildly nutritious recipes!