Easy Pork and Mushroom Stew

Easy Pork and Mushroom Stew is full of earthy flavors and fresh ingredients. With sherry and aromatic herbs, this stew is hearty, comforting and delicious, and will quickly become a family favorite!

If you’ve been following Cooking On The Weekends for a while, you know how much I love being in the kitchen — delectable briskets cooking all day, yummy bread puddings that soak up aromatic ingredients for hours, scrumptious casseroles that involve layer after layer . . . and the list goes on.

That said, sometimes I just need to feed my family in a quick and easy way. And while I will cut the time and complexity, I will never cut the deliciousness!

Case in point: this Easy Pork and Mushroom Stew.

Just so you know, this is a skillet-style stew with just enough sauce to coat the pork and mushrooms, not a brothy one. If you love a saucier stew, check out the FAQ below.

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

• onion - Always choose onions that are heavy for their size.
• garlic - Look for firm heads without soft spots or green shoots, which can taste bitter. (If your garlic does have green shoots, slice the cloves in half lengthwise and use the tip of a knife to remove the shoots. The rest of the clove should be good.)
• mushrooms - Cremini (also called baby bellas) give the deepest, earthiest flavor, but button mushrooms work well too. Choose firm mushrooms with smooth, dry caps.
• sherry - The sherry adds a subtly sweet, nutty flavor. Substitutions: I love the flavor of sherry with mushrooms, which is why I almost always use it to deglaze the pan when cooking with them. However, vermouth or dry white wine work well also. If you don’t want to use alcohol, use an equal amount of stock.
• dried or fresh thyme - This adds a delicious lemony-peppery flavor. Use 2 teaspoons of dried or 2 tablespoons of fresh.
• dried or fresh tarragon - Tarragon and mushrooms are an especially delicious combination. It has a subtle licorice, pine-like flavor. Use 1 teaspoon of dried or 1 tablespoon of fresh.
• pork tenderloin - Not to be confused with pork loin, which is a larger, leaner cut that can get tough in a quick stew. Trim off any silver skin (the thin, shiny membrane) before cutting it into bite-sized pieces.
• vegetable or meat stock - Preferably low to no sodium, so you can control the salt.
• peas - Frozen peas are perfect here. Just thaw them first so they only need a minute to warm through. Substitutions: If you don’t have peas, or don’t love them, you can add steamed broccoli or fresh spinach, or any combination thereof.

How to Make Pork and Mushroom Stew

- Coat the bottom of a large skillet (12-inch, at least) with olive oil and place it over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic to the pan. Cook, stirring from time to time, until the onions are soft and slightly golden, about 7 minutes.

- Add a bit more oil, to be sure the bottom of the pan is well coated, turn the heat to high, move the onions to one side, and add about half of the mushrooms to the empty space. Once they've shrunk a bit, mix them into the onions and move everything to the side. Now add the other half of the mushrooms, and continue to sauté until everything is slightly golden and tender, about 10 minutes.

- Now deglaze the pan by drizzling the sherry over the mushrooms and quickly stirring with a flat-edged spatula, scraping anything that’s stuck to the bottom off and back into the mixture. Stir in the tarragon and thyme.

DEGLAZING: Bits of mushroom and onion will likely stick to the skillet. Part of what makes this stew (and so many dishes) so delicious is deglazing the pan. Deglazing is adding a liquid to a hot pan when caramelized bits of food are stuck to the bottom. Doing this releases them and allows them to be mixed back into the dish. These bits that are stuck are packed with flavor and will deepen the overall flavor of the stew. (In this recipe, the liquid is sherry.)

- Season the pieces of pork with salt and pepper and add them to the pan. Mix and add the stock.

- Once the pieces are cooked through, about 5 minutes, add the peas and mix. Season generously with salt and pepper to taste. (Here's How to Season to Taste.)

What Makes It Quick and Easy?

• This stew recipe is made in one pan.
• When cut into bite-sized pieces, pork tenderloin only takes a few minutes to cook all the way through.
• Like most pork stew recipes, it's a bit rustic, so the cuts don't have to be precise.
• The flavors come together very quickly, though it will taste like it took hours because it’s so rich and the flavors are deep.

What to Serve With It

When I make this one-pot, quick and easy stew, I serve it over Garlic Herb Smashed Potatoes, or to keep it lighter, Crispy Smashed Cauliflower or Basil Rice with Roasted Garlic. You can also serve it with pasta or toasted crusty bread. Anything that will easily soak up any extra sauce will be fantastic.

Pork and Mushroom Stew FAQs

What's the best cut of pork for this stew?

I use pork tenderloin because it's tender and cooks through in about 5 minutes, which keeps this stew quick and easy.

Can I use pork shoulder instead?

Yes, but it needs a long, slow simmer to get tender. Brown the cubes first, then cover and simmer them in about 2 cups of stock until fork-tender, about 1½ to 2 hours. Remove the pork from the pan, then begin with the onions and follow the recipe, adding the cooked pork back in where the tenderloin goes in.

How can I make it saucier?

Increase the stock to 1 cup. For a thicker sauce, stir 1 tablespoon cornstarch into 2 tablespoons cold water and add it with the stock, simmering for a minute or two until it thickens. (Cornstarch keeps it gluten-free.) Or, increase the stock to 1 cup and add a couple of tablespoons of mashed potato.

Can you make it ahead?

Even though this pork stew recipe comes together so quickly, you can also make it ahead of time. Let it cool completely before putting it in a tightly sealed container and refrigerating. It will keep nicely for up to about four days. When you're warming it, add a few tablespoons of additional stock, and be sure just to heat it through and not cook it any longer.

Can you freeze stew?

Most stews, including this one, can be made ahead and frozen, and they reheat well. Stew is best reheated on the stove or in the oven. Store the stew in a tightly sealed container in the freezer for up to about a month. Thaw it in the refrigerator, and when you warm it, just do so long enough to heat it through, and not further cook it.

More Scrumptious Pork Recipes

I hope you love this Pork and Mushroom Stew as much as my family and I do!