A rich and velvety vegan pate made with mushrooms and lentils! There are many versions of this classic Vegan Mushroom & Lentil Pate around, but this is the one I make over and over, to serve to guests and to snack on over the festive season.
If you want a delicious and kind alternative to foie gras or traditional pâté , then this lovely vegan pate, combines rich chestnut mushrooms and puy lentils in a smooth, luxurious tasting (but quite thrifty in reality!) blend that is perfect for winter snacking. In fact, it's so luxurious tasting, we call it faux gras at my house! Make a batch to take to a friend's house as a fancy get-together gift for Christmas or New Year's eve.
This delicious vegetarian pâté is perfect for making and serving during the holidays. It would be perfect to make as an option for a vegan charcuterie board or vegan cheese board. Or as part of a lovely Vegan Canape spread for a party. It goes particularly well with these Super Seed Crackers. Or why not serve with these Christmas Tree Charcuterie Appetizers?
If you love all things mushroom for making canapes and snacks, definitely also check out my Mushroom Tapenade recipe for another perfect party appetizer!
Jump to:
🍄Ingredients
Here are the ingredients to use to make the perfect vegan mushroom pâté recipe!
- Chestnut Mushrooms: these are also known as cremini mushrooms. I love the taste of chestnut mushrooms, but you could use portobello mushrooms, white button mushrooms or field mushrooms, or any type of mushrooms you can find at your local market.
- Puy Lentils: Puy lentils have a lovely peppery, meaty taste that makes this pate really special. If you can't find puy lentils, substitute for green or beluga lentils. Don't use red lentils, it won't be the same.
- Dried porcini mushrooms: or a mixture of wild mushrooms: dried mushrooms that are soaked then added to the mixture, add a depth of savory mushroom flavour that is just perfect.
- Brandy or Marsala wine: Added when cooking the mushrooms, a splash of brandy or wine adds a flavour that really brings out the mushroomyness of the mushrooms. (See substitutions section for notes on alternatives or alcohol free options)
- Fresh Thyme and Fresh Rosemary: Both these herbs pair particularly well with mushrooms and lentils, and add their fragrance to the whole, rounding it out. Fresh is best but dried also will work.
- Fresh Garlic: To add a little depth of flavor. Garlic is always yummy when paired with mushrooms!
- Olive Oil: Good Extra Virgin Olive oil for sautéing the mushrooms.
- Sea Salt and Black Pepper: Both are essential to balance the flavours for a savory flavor.
- Optional Vegan Butter or Vegan Spread: to melt, then cool on top, for a traditional pate look. You can use a little of the butter when spreading onto your crackers or bread, to make the pate taste extra luxurious.
See recipe card at the bottom of the post for quantities for the vegan mushroom pate recipe.
👩🍳Instructions
For the full recipe and how-to instructions for the Vegan Mushroom & Lentil Pâté, please head to the recipe card below. These visual prompts are here to help you with the steps and how the recipe should look as you go along.
1. Soak the dried mushrooms in boiling water.
2. If you are cooking your own lentils, cook in plenty of water with half an onion and a teaspoon of salt until tender. About 20 mins.
3. Chop the fresh mushrooms and mince the garlic.
- Get a large frying pan or large skillet nice and hot and add the mushrooms in dry to the pan. They'll roast and start to release their juices.
-Once the mushrooms get juicy, golden brown and roasted, sprinkle over salt, then add the garlic, the fresh herbs, and the olive oil.
- Cook a little longer, then add the marsala wine. Cook the wine down so the mushrooms are juicy but not wet.
4. Drain the lentils and add to a blender along with the soaked mushrooms in their water and the sauteed mushroom mixture.
5. Blend until smooth. Taste test and add more salt/pepper if needed.
6. To serve, scoop into small mason/kilner jars
7. Top with melted vegan butter. Put a sprig of rosemary on top and put in the fridge to set.
Serve with your favourite gluten-free crackers or crusty bread or as part of a vegan charcuterie board.
Hint: The vegan butter layer is optional. I like to add it for the festive season but leave it off when making it for every day use.
🌶️Substitutions & Variations
This vegan pate recipe is pretty versatile, so you can use the items you have available to you:
- Canned or pre-packed cooked lentils: I make my own pre-cooked lentils in batches so used those when making this recipe, however you can choose to use tinned or pre-cooked lentils from a packet instead.
- Dried Mushrooms- choose a wild mix of dried mushrooms or shitake mushrooms instead of the porcini mushrooms.
- Fresh Mushrooms- it doesn't really matter if you choose white, chestnut or portabella mushrooms. You can even choose to use shiitake mushrooms or oyster mushrooms for extra flavor. Any mushroom you can find at your local market or supermarket is fine.
- Alcohol Free- if you do not want to add wine or brandy to this recipe, you can use a little apple cider vinegar or a squeeze of lemon mixed with a teaspoon of sugar. This gives the acid balance and sweetness that the rich mushrooms and lentils need. You can also use your favourite alcohol-free wine- just check it isn't super sweet.
- Extra rich: Blend toasted walnuts or cashew nuts along with the pate for an even richer pate.
- Enhance the umami flavor of the mushrooms by adding coconut aminos or soy sauce, or a tablespoon of nutritional yeast.
🔪Equipment
You'll need a saucepan and a large skillet to cook the mushrooms and lentils. To create the smooth pate, you'll need a high speed blender or food processor.
🫙Storage
Store the pate in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 7 days. You can choose to store the pate in a pretty jar like a mason or kilner jar, or just use a tupperware container.
Top tip
Using different types of mushrooms enhances the rich mushroom flavor of this vegan pate, so you can experiment to see which you like best.
More Vegan Canapes!
Looking for other recipes for a party?
Christmas Party Food
Great party recipes for the whole holiday season!
📖 Recipe
Easy Vegan Pate (Mushroom & Lentil)
Equipment
- Jars or ramekins to serve.
Ingredients Note:
For accuracy, I measure all ingredients in metric as standard, then convert and test the recipe for American cup measurements etc.
(Heads up Aussie and UK readers- your measurements in cups are sometimes different, so please use metric or check you have the correct cup and spoon type!!)
Ingredients
- 250 g (8 ⅞ oz) chestnut mushrooms
- 250 g (1 ⅓ cups) cooked puy lentils
- 3 cloves garlic
- 6 dried porcini mushrooms (you can also use dried shitake or other dried mushrooms. )
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 1 teaspoon rosemary
- 50 ml (¼ cups) brandy, wine or marsala
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste.
To serve
- 50 g (4 tablespoon) vegan butter
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
Instructions
For the Pate
- Soak the dried porcini mushrooms in 100ml water.
- Slice the chestnut mushrooms and garlic
- Sautee the mushrooms and garlic in a pan with the olive oil until they reduce and look a little browned.
- Remove the dried porcini from their water (save the water, you might need it later) and roughly chop.
- Add the soaked, dried porcini to the pan of mushrooms, along with the herbs. Cook a little.
- Add the wine/brandy/marsala and to the mushrooms and let it cook down. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Let the mushrooms cool a little then add them all to your blender. Also add the cooked lentils here too.
- Blend the pate until smooth. If it's a little difficult to blend, add a little of the soaked mushrooms water.
- The pate should be thick and smooth.
- Spoon the pate into clean, dry jars or ramekins that would be nice to serve in.
Optional extra
- Melt the vegan butter and pour over the pate in the ramekin so it forms a layer.
- Pop on a sprig of rosemary and put the pate in the fridge to chill.
To serve.
- Serve with plenty of crackers or fresh crusty bread.
@umami_umeggi says
Make this recipe! It's absolutely delicious and so simple.
I particularly love that you can make it ahead of time. I made a triple batch of this delicious pate and served it in tiny jars at a friend's wedding to cater for a variety of dietaries, and it was a smash hit!
Vegans and non-vegans alike all snacking away - with the meat eaters who were less inclined to read the label, they were genuinely shocked it was completely plant based.
5/5, 10/10, just brilliant! Thank you for sharing this with the world. <3
Louise-Claire Cayzer says
I'm SO happy you loved this recipe (and the guests at the wedding did too!)
Jessica Formicola says
I can't wait to make this for our NYE party! Definitely spreading it on some crostinis!
Sharon says
So delicious and was a great addition to our holiday charcuterie board. We like to add vegan options so everyone can enjoy the charcuterie and this pate was perfect!
Louise-Claire Cayzer says
Everyone loves this pate, not just the vegans, so it's great to share!
Heather Perine says
Oh love that this is a vegan pate! Would make a great appetizer for the holidays...just got to toast up some extra crostini!!
Tawnie Kroll says
Full of flavor and really easy to make, too! Loved the step by step photos, thank you!
Louise-Claire Cayzer says
Thank you! So happy you liked it!
Lisa says
Perfect to eat on crostini!
Louise-Claire Cayzer says
Absolutely!