Wild mushrooms, onions and garlic in wine — a rich, hearty Greek-Cypriot stew full of savoury warmth.

very small or baby onions 600g
wild mushrooms 1kg
garlic cloves 4
olive oil 4 tablespoons
ground allspice 1 teaspoon
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
thyme sprigs 4
bay leaves 3
cinnamon stick 1
red wine 200ml
tomato passata 200ml
red wine vinegar 2 tablespoons
  1. Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Remove from the heat and add the unpeeled onions. Leave for 2 minutes, then remove. This makes them easier to peel; peel carefully, leaving them whole if possible.
  2. Trim and wipe the mushrooms clean, tearing any large ones in half. Peel and finely slice the garlic.
  3. Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/gas mark 6. Place a large flameproof casserole on medium-low heat and add the olive oil and peeled onions. Fry for 5 minutes, then add the sliced garlic and allspice. Fry slowly for another 5 minutes until everything is lightly golden.
  4. Add the wild mushrooms to the pan, season well, pick in the thyme leaves, and fry for 5–10 minutes until the mushrooms release their moisture and begin to turn golden. Allow them to get some colour.
  5. Add the bay leaves, cinnamon stick, and red wine. Turn up the heat and bring to the boil, letting it bubble for a couple of minutes to reduce slightly.
  6. Add the passata and red wine vinegar. Bring to the boil again, then cover the casserole with a lid and transfer to the oven. Cook for 35 minutes, removing the lid for the last 15 minutes, until the onions are soft and the sauce is rich and reduced.
2025-11-09
pretty delicious! definitely take note of the viscosity of the sauce while it's still in the pan, ended up taking another 10-15 minutes in the (convection) oven to cook down (which wasn't necessarily a bad thing).