Five-Spiced Mushroom & Walnut Ragu

This spice mix refers to the five Chinese elements (wood, fire, earth, metal and water). It’s at once earthy, rich, not-hotspicy and ever so slightly sweet. A little goes a long way, so I use a couple of teaspoons to give this ragu a complexity and depth that could only otherwise be achieved from hours of cooking and a lot of layering of spices throughout.