Vegan Menudo
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This vegan menudo rojo is the perfect winter soup! The broth is slow cooked from an infusion of blended chiles, roasted onions, and garlic – and the dried snow fungus mushrooms make the perfect substitution for tripe! Make a big batch to last the entire week!
What Is Menudo Rojo?
In Mexican cuisine,Menudo is a traditional Mexican soup, made with tripe in a brothwith a red chili pepper base. Hominy, lime, onions, and oregano are used to season the broth.
According to TasteAtlas, although menudo is undoubtedly a Mexican dish, it is still unknown in which part of the country it was invented. The northern area claims it came from their farmers who made the dish from leftover parts of their cows. Others claim that it was invented in central Mexico. Regardless of the geographical point of origin, the fact remains that there are two versions of this soup;menudo rojoandmenudo blanco.
My vegan version is adapted from menudo rojo, and uses rehydrated snow fungus mushrooms in place of tripe!
Grab a drink and let’s get to cookin’ some delicious vegan menudo rojo!
What Goes In Vegan Menudo Rojo?
For the Base:
- Dried Chiles: where I’m from, I find dried chiles very accessible. I typically buy them at my local supermarket – found in the spices aisle or the “International” aisle (I hate that they still call it this!). If you have a local Mexican or Latin market, even better! You can also find a wide variety of dried chiles onAmazon.Additionally, if you can’t accessallthe dried chiles, you can substitute equal portions of one out for the other.
- Aromatics: garlic and onion
- Seasonings: Mexican oregano, ground cumin, salt & pepper
For the Menudo:
- Dried Snow Fungus Mushrooms: these are a fantastic sub for the tripe in menudo! Snow fungus, also known as white fungus, silver ear fungus, white wood ear, white jelly mushroom, and tremella from its scientific name, is an edible fungus that grows on trees in Asia. Mostcommonly, dried snow fungus is provided in stores. The dried snow fungus should be soaked in clean water until soft, and the density of the dried mushroom determines how long the mushrooms should be soaked – although I’ve found 30 minutes to be an overall good soaking time.I find dried snow fungus mushrooms at my local Asian market or onAmazon.
- Aromatics: onions, garlic, and jalapeño (I like my menudo with *a little bit of spice*)
- Vegan Beef Broth: I typically buy this in powder or cube bouillon form, then mix with water to create a very flavorful broth. I can find artificial beef powder or bouillon at my local Asian market, specialty health food stores such as Whole Foods and Sprouts, or onAmazon. If you can’t access it, you can substitute with mushroom powder, or vegetable bouillon.
- Veggies: carrots and hominy
- Seasonings: Mexican oregano, cumin, salt & pepper
How to Make Vegan Menudo Rojo?
The base for this menudo rojo is the real star of the show, so make sure not to burn them. Here’s how to make vegan menudo rojo:
1. Soak the Mushrooms:
Cover dried mushrooms with enough warm water so that they are fully submerged. Set aside for 30 minutes to rehydrate.
2. Make the Base:
Remove stems and as many seeds as you can from the dried chiles. Broil chiles for 1 to 2 minutes on the middle rack of the oven. Make sure not to broil the chiles too long, or they will burn and ruin the base of your menudo. Remove from oven and set aside.
In a pot on high heat, add oil and pan fry onions until they become crispy on the edges. Add garlic and toss until fragrant. Add broth, dehydrated chiles, and seasonings. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat and set aside to cool, about 15 to 20 minutes.
Once cooled, add all ingredients to a blender (including broth). Save the pot aside for menudo. Blend on high until you reach the smoothest consistency. In a fine mesh strainer, strain chile liquid into a bowl of any extra seeds, skin, ect.
3. Make the Menudo:
Once your dried snow mushrooms are rehydrated, chop roughly and set aside. In the same pot you used to rehydrate your chiles, add oil on medium high heat. Once oil is hot, sauté onions, jalapeño and garlic.
Add broth, menudo base or chile paste, rehydrated snow mushrooms, oregano, and cumin. Stirring constantly, bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, add hominy and simmer for 10 minutes. Add carrots and simmer another 10 minutes or until carrots are cooked through.
Garnish with desired toppings, serve and enjoy!
Vegan Menudo Rojo for the Soup Season Win!
If you give my vegan menudo rojo, let meknow! Snap a photo, take a video, or make a story and post it toInstagramorTikTok, and tag me at@eat_figs_not_pigsand#EatFigsNotPigs.I love seeing your recreations of my recipes!
Til next time, friends!
xo!
Vegan Menudo Rojo
This vegan menudo rojo is the perfect winter soup! The broth is slow cooked from an infusion of blended chiles, roasted onions, and garlic – and the dried snow fungus mushrooms make the perfect substitution for tripe! Make a big batch to last the entire week!
5 from 2 votes
Print Recipe
Prep Time 30 minutes mins
Cook Time 45 minutes mins
Course Holiday-Inspired, Main
Cuisine Mexican-Inspired
Servings 8
Ingredients
Menudo Base
- 6 dried guajillo chiles
- 2 dried cailfornia chiles
- 1 dried pasilla pepper
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 small yellow onion, minced
- 4 cups vegan beef broth or vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon ground oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- Salt and pepper to taste
Menudo
- Menudo base recipe above
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 3 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 – 3 oz package of dried snow fungus mushrooms
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 jalapeno, minced
- 6 cup vegan beef broth or vegetable broth
- 1 -29 ounce can of white or yellow hominy, drained
- 1 tablespoon ground oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- Salt and pepper to taste
Garnishes (optional)
- Sliced radish
- Avocado
- Cilantro
- Jalapeno
- Cabbage
- Red onion
Instructions
Cover dried mushrooms with enough warm water so that they are fully submerged. Set aside for 30 minutes to rehydrate.
Turn oven broiler on high.
Menudo Base
Remove stems and as many seeds as you can from the dried chiles.
Broil chiles for 1-2 minutes on the middle rack of the oven. Make sure not to broil the chiles too long, or they will burn and ruin the base of your menudo. Remove from oven and set aside.
In a pot on high heat, add oil and pan fry onions until they become crispy on the edges, about 2-3 minutes.
Add garlic and toss until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
Add broth, dehydrated chiles, and seasonings.
Bring to a boil for about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool, about 15-20 minutes.
Once cooled, add all ingredients to a blender (including broth). Save the pot aside for menudo.
Blend on high until you reach the smoothest consistency. For us, it took about 2 minutes.
In a fine mesh strainer, strain chile liquid into a bowl of any extra seeds, skin, ect.
Menudo
Once your dried snow mushrooms are rehydrated, chop roughly and set aside.
In the same pot you used to rehydrate your chiles, add oil on medium high heat.
Once oil is hot, saute onions, jalapeno and garlic for about 5-7 minutes.
Add broth, menudo base or chile paste, rehydrated snow mushrooms, oregano, and cumin.
Stirring constantly, bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to low, add hominy and simmer for 10 minutes. Add carrots and simmer another 10 minutes or until carrots are cooked through.
Garnish with desired toppings, serve and enjoy
Keyword holiday, Mains, Menudo, Mexican-Inspired, Soups/Stews
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Tags:
- Gluten Free
- Holiday
- mains
- Menudo
- Mexican-inspired
- Vegan
49 Comments
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Share Your Thoughts
Where can I get the dried snow mushrooms?
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Hi Mariah!!! You can find dried snow mushrooms at most Asian stores!!!
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So I’m prepping for our New Year’s Day menudo again using this recipe. It’s amazing and identical to the OG menudo minus the stinky tripe when cooking. We went vegan 7 years ago. I’m going to try adding the carrots to the blender. Last year I left them out because I was going for authentic that I had growing up. Also I will double the recipe from the start. I had to make a second pot last New Year’s Day because my husband wanted more and ny sons who still eat meat ate it it all up! Thank you for an amazing authentic recipe. Happy 2023!Reply
I have found some on Amazon but I would love to have a tip from Ashley if she is familiar with any of the brands/types they advertise. Some might be much better than others. Snow fungus mushroom, Cauliflower mushroom, tremella mushroom – they all come up in the search.
Ashley… or anyone else who tried Ashley’s recipe – do you have a tip on any of those? Thanks!
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Hi Mariah!
This recipe calls for dried Snow Fungus Mushroom. I find it at most specialty Asian markets, as well as Amazon. Hope this helps!
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You are my holiday she-ro, Ashley! My thanks to your wifey for sharing!
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Thanks so much, Candice!!! Hope you enjoy!
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Thanks so much, Candice!!! So happy you enjoyed the recipe ❤️
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I am currently sitting here watching my husband eat a giant bowl of menudo lol my mouth is watering. LMAO. So I decided to find a vegan recipe since I have been vegan for months now and luckily I found this. I’m also from the central valley, Madera. So I know anyone from the central valley has a great sense of taste when it comes to authentic Mexican food. So when I try this recipe out I will let you know, I’m sure it’s going to be great!!
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to broil the chili, what temp did you set the oven? this recipe looks amazing!! i cant wait to try it!!
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Hi Bree! Our oven broiler is set to only 2 features…high and low. We usually broil on high, but keep a very close one on the chili to ensure they don’t burn. It will severely affect the taste of your menudo.
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When do you add the carrots?
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Hi, Connie! Add the carrots when you add the hominy 🙂 We really hope you enjoy the recipe!!!
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I made this for Christmas and I was told that it was amazing. Thank you for the recipe!!
I actually finely chopped the carrots and blended them in the chilie sauce, they desolved into the sauce and the kids didn’t know they were there. I made this in the crockpot. Reheats great too!Reply
Connie, so happy you enjoyed the recipe! Good idea sneakin’ those veggies in 🙂 I’ll have to try making it in our crockpot next time, so smart!
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Just tried this recipe yesterday and it was insanely good! I had a difficult time finding the fungus mushrooms, visited 4 different asian markets and none had them. Finally decided to buy it off amazon so ill be making some more this coming weekend!
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That’s so great to hear Joy!!! Thank you so much for the feedback ❤️ Hopefully you love the recipe even more with the snow mushrooms ????
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I went to a local vegan/vegetarian Chinese restaurant and had the snow fungus in a stir fry and immediately thought that it could potentially be a good tripe substitute for a vegan/vegetarian menudo. Glad I found this recipe! I’m definitely give it a try someday soon! My husband scoffs at the idea, but I think he might like it.
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I hope you love it, Rene!!! It’s one of my favorite recipes on the blog ????
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This menudo is absolutely incredible. It is so worth ordering the mushrooms and the mushrooms surprisingly hold their texture for days of yummy leftovers! Even if you don’t feel like finding this special ingredient the soup base is sooo flavorful you could put literally anything in there and it would be a banger
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I totally agree Ashley — the broth is sooo flavorful! It’s not of my favorite recipes!
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Is tripe what makes it menudo?? This is like having chicken noodle soup without chicken. Perhaps you should just call it something else.
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Hi Rena. Thanks so much for your feedback. I like to call it vegan menudo as it’s my blog and my recipes — plus it’s a VEGAN version, and the snow mushrooms replicate tripe.
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This recipe is pure genius and absolutely delicious. I made this for a friend, I have never had menudo because the thought of tripe nauseated me but with the mushroom (purchased at local Asian market) I was willing to try it. My friend is not veggie but had 3 bowls. I will make this again!
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Barbara, I’m so happy you loved it!!! And even happier that your friend who isn’t vegan loved it too!!!
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I love this recipe! Been making it religiously for my family and I and the meat eats in my family love this as well! I was unable to find the mushrooms I went to several Asian markets and haven’t came across them yet but I swapped it with some canned jack fruit and it’s amazing!!
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Joy, I’m so pleased to hear you enjoy this recipe — and that your family enjoys it too! If you’re able to order the mushrooms on amazon, I highly recommend! They’re seriously a GAME CHANGER!
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I have made this recipe 3 times now and each time it is amazing. I am vegan but my husband is not. He enjoys this more than normal menudo with tripe (he would trade his tripe for his brothers hominy). Each time I make it I skip a few steps to make it easier, like blending all the garlic together omitting one or so (I was low on garlic that time). I found a lot of the ingredients for the soup can be blended with the base to save on time finely chopping ingredients. We add extra hominy and carrots to ours as well. Again, beautiful recipe and I plan to keep making this at least once a month
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I’m so happy you and your husband love the recipe, Molly!! Great idea to blend more of the ingredients together to save time 🙂
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You may find this weird, but I totally made this to have for breakfast this past Thanksgiving. Usually, anything with hominy in it I refer to as pozole, but I know some recipes for menudo call for hominy. I dubbed it menu-pozole. I prepared the menudo base the night before. The snow mushrooms really grow a lot, so I only used two of them. Once rehydrated, they retain a slightly soft cartilage-like (sorry) texture, and they really hold broth nicely for a good wholesome spoonful. I also added pieces of pan fried oyster mushroom, as well as some canned oyster mushrooms I got at the Asian grocery store (which really have a weird texture–as does regular menudo). I loved it!
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DUDE!!! This is amazing, I’ve been looking for a replacement for tripe. I appreciate you so much. Thank you for your inspiration!
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You dont have a video? That would be extremely helpful
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Hey Dominique! Unfortunately I don’t have a video.
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I am currently switching to plant based diet and was worried I’d have to give up menudo only eat posole. Then I found this recipe. Thank you so much for sharing this. I do have a question though. In NM we usually don’t put carrots in out menudo. do they serve a specific purpose or just used to make it a more filling dish?
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Hey crystal!! I know carrots aren’t traditional in Menudo, but even before we were vegan, my wife and I would always add them into my menudo, so that’s how we decided to keep the recipe. If you’d like, you can omit them ???? I really hope you love this recipe as much as we do!
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Holy S**t! Is all I really have to say. I’ve had vegan menudo (that was REALLY good btw) but I’ve never had menudo like this before. The way the recipe builds the flavor from beginning to end is beautiful and honestly artistic af. The menudo was amazing, beat I’ve eve had vegan or not.
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Hi, i found this recipe, and cant wait to try it! I feel like im totally over looking something. The instructions says to add bullion, but the ingredients doesn’t say bouillon. I really don’t use bullion, and since there’s already broth to the recipe would salt be fine? If not do i use vegan bouillon?
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Hi Danielle! I just recently updated the recipe and must’ve made a mistake, sorry about that! That broth is fine … and you don’t need bouillon at all. Hope this helps ????
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Is it the dried snow fungus mushrooms that look like tripe? Are you using those for texture or does it add a distinct flavor?
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Hey! They add a nice texture, but they also absorb a bunch of flavor! Hope this helps 🙂
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My cousin sent me this recipe knowing that I’ve been doing my pozole with mixed veggies. She wanted to know if I had tried the mushrooms in this recipe. I had not. I went out and searched for them and finally found them. This made me think of beef tendons when I first tried it wow! I love this recipe it was amazing!!
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Amazing! Thank you for the tip! These mushrooms made all the difference ❤️
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Hi there, I am curious to try this recipe (now that I know where to look for snow mushrooms!) my question is- is there a type of root that replaces the ham knuckle? I could have sworn I saw a recipe with something called kujac root or something but I can’t remember! Anyways- I’m going to make this recipe how it is and let you know! So far positive reviews, so hoping my wife loves it!
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Hey Rebekah! I haven’t heard of a root that replaces ham knuckle, but if you find one, I’d love to know 🙂
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This is the third recipe I have made from Ashley’s blog. I can truly say I will continue to make this menudo recipe for my family. Loving the depth of the flavors. I used Not Beef bouillon (according to their measurements) for the broth. Loved it!
Thank you, Ashley. Can’t wait to buy your recipe book!
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It got below 80 degrees so of course I made soup and this was delicious!! So flavorful and not spicy at all which is nice so I can control the heat with the jalapeños I added as a topping. I actually didn’t go out to get the mushrooms so I used yellow potatoes. I know this is totally not the same thing but with the carrots it was so hearty and filling. 100% recommend!
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Your recipe inspired me to try my own vegan menudo. The snow fungus really looks like honeycomb tripe! That was key. I also added slices of oyster mushrooms which have a very similar texture to flat tripe and are much more “meaty” than the snow fungus. The combination is awesome.
I used my own usual menudo recipe, which is very similar to yours. I didn’t add the other ingredients which aren’t typical of menudo (carrots, avocado, cabbage), but I can see how they would help make the meal more substantial. I might try it next time.
Some additions I added to really pump up the flavor and texture; though some of these ingredients might be controversial to some: 1) adding more oil really improved the broth, 2) MSG…need I say more, 3) I dissolved some cornstarch in water and added that just to thicken the broth a bit.
Thank you for this recipe! I never would have thought a vegan menudo was possible.
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So good!!! And very authentic. We live in a border town and my husband said it tastes just like what he used to eat but veganized. Super recommend. I didn’t have snow mushrooms but I did use carne de soya. I’m about to go eat like 3 more bowls of it. Lol.Reply
