If you're like me, you've searched for the perfect spices and savoury flavour for your ground round. The right amount of crispiness to avoid a soggy taco mess; but not so crispy, that it's dry and tough. We've tried a lot of combinations and this one nails it! Our mushroom walnut ground round is:
Full Of Flavour
Textured
Savoury
Crispy
And Moist
Crispy And Moist Mushroom Walnut Ground Round
The secret to a crispy ground round with lots of texture and none of the dryness, is the combination of:
Mushrooms
And
Walnuts!
- Mushrooms make up the bulk of the ground round and soak up all the flavour from the seasonings. They dry out perfectly in the oven but still retain a soft, not chewy, texture.
- Walnuts add a great crispy texture and nutty depth of flavour!
The Seasonings
- Tamari for the savoury, "meaty", saltiness you expect
- Smoked paprika for instant "meaty" smokiness
- And cumin for rich, warm, depth to bring it all together
Recipe Cost
Our recipe makes 2 ½ cups or .5 pound of ground round and costs us: CAD $5.70.
This means, this mushroom walnut ground round is not the thriftiest option. BUT... since it performs so well in the taste department, it is still our preferred ground round.
- Half a pound of extra lean ground beef purchased at a grocery store price would be roughly: CAD $3.02.
- And purchased wholesale would be: CAD $1.97.
I always bought extra lean to avoid so much liquid coming out of the meat and creating a very drippy taco. BUT... that meant the meat was often dry tasting and I'd end up adding liquid to try and make it tastier. Hence, our preferred mushroom and walnut combo!
If you're looking for meat-free ground round...
- Store-bought soy based products price out lower than ours -- roughly: CAD $2.90.
- But... a pea protein product (like Beyond Meat) will run you roughly: CAD $6.67 for .5 pound.
So this recipe is certainly on the higher end of the price range and making a tofu ground round would be a great, thrifty, meat-free alternative. As far as texture though... this version has our vote.
How To Use Mushroom Walnut Ground Round
- Make it the star of your next taco night.
- Sprinkle it over loaded nachos.
- Or add it to your pastas!
And by simply leaving out the walnuts and red onion, we've added it to our Wallet Friendly Baked Ziti! The seasoned mushrooms still add wonderful "meatiness" to our ziti and our version saves $5 - $10 (or more) compared to a traditional ziti!
Give our mushroom walnut ground round a try and let us know in the comments below if it will become your go to! Make sure to try it on our Queso Taco Mac & Cheese!
Enjoy!
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Vegan Mushroom Walnut Ground Round
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 2 ½ cups (8oz) 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
The search for perfectly spiced, perfectly textured vegan ground round ends here! This mushroom walnut ground round is our favourite!
Ingredients
- ½ cup walnuts
- 340g cremini mushrooms*
- ⅓ cup red onion*
- 3 tbsp tamari or soy sauce (or 2 tbsp tamari and 1 tablespoon vegan worcestershire sauce)
- 1 ½ tsp cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- ¼ tsp salt & pepper
*Fresh ingredients you need that are not part of our pantry and freezer tips.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- Either chop your walnuts, mushrooms, and red onion by hand or use a food processor. If using a food processor, pulse your walnuts to break them down but don't over process, otherwise they will become a paste. Remove the walnuts and add them to a large bowl.
- Chop your red onion in the food processor. Remove and add to the bowl with the walnuts.
- Next, add your mushrooms in small batches to the food processor. If you add them all at once you may get some that are over processed while others haven’t broken down enough.
- Add the mushrooms to the bowl and stir in your spices.
- Spread on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 30 - 40 minutes to dry them out. Stir at the 20 minute mark. At 30 they will be dry enough but I like to stir them again and leave them in for 40 minutes to most resemble ground beef.
Notes
*Cost Comparison: At CAD $5.70 for .5 pound (2 ½ cups) of our ground round, this recipe is more costly than other alternatives. See the body of the post for a detailed cost comparison. It does however, excel in the taste department! So it is still our favourite ground round and worth the extra cost in our books!
*Omitting the walnuts and red onion, like we do for our Baked Ziti recipe, will still result in a tasty ground round and bring the cost down to CAD $3.96.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Thrifty How-Tos
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Domenico Foglia
Hi Kathryn I made this ground beef alternate for my pasta sauce and in place of drying the mixture on a baking sheet I pan fried with garlic onions peppers snd spices including soy sauce as an bolognese to my pasta sauce. Delizioso 😋
Kathryn Alexandre
Ooo that sounds delicious! Great idea! Thank you so much for letting us know. We're so glad you enjoyed it!
Crystal A
This is a great recipe! I can see adjusting some of the spices to give it a more Italian flare, but it was great for my taco salad and taco as well.
Kathryn Alexandre
Thank you Domenico! I'm so glad you enjoyed it and I'm thrilled you have ideas for how to adjust the spices and use it for other recipes! Thank you so much for trying it and taking the time to leave a review!
Andrée Lavigne
this is so delicious. Thank you for sharing all your recipes It is possible to freeze this mushroom walnut ground round???
Kathryn Alexandre
I'm glad you love it! I actually haven't froze this one yet but I don't see why you couldn't. I should try making a bigger batch and freezing some but let me know how it thaws for you if you give it a try.
Skylin
Hello! I was wondering if this recipe could work good in something like a philly cheesesteak?
Kathryn Alexandre
Yum that's a good idea! I think it totally could. It wouldn't be strips but it would definitely be tasty. You could take a look at my "tofu shaved meat" as well if you haven't seen that option. I'll link you to it here (https://tastythriftytimely.com/easy-tofu-shaved-meat-recipe/) those could make for a good cheesesteak "meat" too. Let me know if you end up giving one of these a try!