In Vancouver there is a restaurant called The Naam. It’s a quirky vegetarian institution, open 24/7, and is the perfect place to meet friends for an inspired and healthy meal regardless of the hour. One of the most popular dishes is the Dragon bowl, made with the secret-recipe Naam miso gravy. The popularity can’t be understated; it’s even sold by the bottle.
The Sails & Spices take on this addictive, easy, and healthy vegan gravy recipe is here for you to enjoy on a dragon bowl, smothering roasted vegetables, or alongside apple-walnut dressing for a wonderful Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner.
Vegan gravy is boring? Not a chance.
When we are invited over to someone’s house for thanksgiving we always find it helpful to offer to bring the gravy if they are not vegetarian, and everyone loves trying this miso gravy and discovering how tasty it is!
One year I accidentally I made this gravy exceptionally spicy (a few too many tablespoons of sriracha), and even though everyone found it quite delicious it gave quite the kick. Since then the running joke in our family is don’t make the gravy too spicy! Unless that’s what you like of course.
Absolutely Delicious Miso Gravy
This healthy and delicious miso gravy is great for Thanksgiving dinner, over roast veggies, with poutine or fries, and Dragon or Buddha Bowls!
- 1/2 large onion, diced
- 5 small white or brown mushrooms
- 1.5 tsp. chopped or grated ginger
- 1.5 tbsp. chopped or crushed garlic
- 1 tsp. rosemary
- 1 tsp. thyme
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tbsp. (optional) sesame oil
- 1/2 tbsp. Sriracha (or another chili paste)
- 2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
- 2 tbsp. tamari or soy sauce
- 1 tbsp. agave nectar or maple syrup
- 3 cups low sodium vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup white flour ((could substitute for 1/4 cup cornstarch) )
- 1/2 cup cold water
- 1/4 cup miso paste
- Dice the onion and sauté with 2 tbsp of the olive oil in a medium saucepan for 5 minutes, until translucent.
- (Optional) Dice the mushrooms and add to the onions, and saute for another 5 minutes until they start to release their juices. Don’t worry non-mushroom lovers, this is all going to blended up together to contribute to the beautiful umami taste.
- Add ginger, garlic, rosemary, thyme, and continue to sauté until golden. Add the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil to help sauté everything together.
- Add the sesame oil (optional), Sriracha (to taste), apple cider vinegar, tamari or soy sauce, agave or maple syrup, and broth. This is such a versatile recipe, the more flavours you have to add the better it will taste, but if you need to substitute something generally you will still get good results.
- Whisk it all together, bring to a boil, and simmer on med-low for 15 minutes (or longer if you have time). Note that most of the flavour is going to come from the miso that is added at the end so you are aiming for a nice base flavour to accompany the saltiness of the miso.
- In a small bowl, mix the flour and water together until smooth, making a slurry. Add the slurry to the gravy in a thin stream while whisking, and simmer for an additional 5-10 minutes until thickened. Slurry can be tricky to work with since it changes consistency depending on how long you heat it for, once the gravy cools down, and the type of flour you use. Add more if necessary after boiling for 5-10 minutes (or when reheating to serve).
- Remove from the heat, and stir the miso paste into the gravy. To make your life easier you can loosen the paste in a bowl with a little liquid before adding to the gravy. By adding the miso paste at the end of cooking you preserve more of the nutritional value.
- Blend the gravy together in a blender or using a stick mixer to make it smooth.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary.
For this recipe it’s helpful to note that 4 tbsp = 1/4 cup to help with measuring out ingredients.
Servings – some people suggest 1/3 cup of gravy per person, so this recipe could serve 10 people.
This recipe also freezes well so we will often do a double batch and freeze it in 2 cup servings to use later over a bowl of veggies and rice. A quick blend will help get the right consistency when you are reheating it.
[…] generous helping each of delicious miso gravy and homemade cranberry sauce are essential, and together round out a new and wholesome take on […]