Best French Style Mushrooms Recipes

MUSHROOM BOURGUIGNON

Steps:

• Add 2 tablespoons butter or oil to a large Dutch oven or pot and set it over medium heat. When the fat is hot, stir in half the mushrooms and half the pearl onions. (If it doesn't all fit in the pot in one layer, you might have to do this in three batches, rather than two.) Without moving them around too much, cook the mushrooms until they are brown on one side, about 3 minutes. Stir and let them brown on the other side, 2 to 3 minutes more. Use a slotted spoon to transfer mushrooms and onions to a large bowl or plate and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Repeat with another 2 tablespoons butter and the remaining mushrooms and pearl onions, seasoning them as you go.
• Reduce heat to medium-low. Add another 1 tablespoon butter or oil to pan. Add leeks and carrot and sauté until the leeks turn lightly golden and start to soften, 5 minutes. Add the 2 minced garlic cloves and sauté for 1 minute longer. Stir in tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Stir in flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute, then add wine, broth, 1 tablespoon tamari, thyme and bay leaf, scraping up the brown bits at bottom of pot.
• Add reserved cooked mushrooms and pearl onions back to the pot and bring to a simmer. Partly cover the pot and simmer on low heat until carrots and onions are tender and sauce is thick, 30 to 40 minutes. Taste and add more salt and tamari if needed. Stir in the grated garlic clove.
• Just before serving, heat a small skillet over high heat and add 1/2 tablespoon butter or oil. Add half of the sliced chanterelles or oyster mushrooms and let cook without moving until they are crisp and brown on one side, 1 to 2 minutes. Flip and cook on the other side. Transfer to a plate and sprinkle with salt and smoked paprika. Repeat with remaining butter and mushrooms. Serve mushroom Bourguignon over polenta, noodles or mashed potatoes, topped with fried mushrooms and parsley.

FRENCH MUSHROOM SOUP

Steps:

• Cook onions in 4 tablespoons butter in a large stockpot over medium heat until soft, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in flour and cook over low heat for 4 minutes without browning. Add the stock, blending it completely with the flour. Add the parsley, bay leaf, and thyme, and simmer for 20 minutes. Strain into a second pot.
• In a large skillet, heat remaining 4 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add the cremini mushrooms and season with salt. Cook until softened, and then add the shiitake and oyster mushrooms. Season with salt and lemon juice and cook until mushrooms are deep golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Reheat stock mixture to a simmer. Whisk the egg yolks and cream until blended. While whisking, slowly add a cupful of the hot soup into the cream mixture and add back to the soup and heat to just below a simmer (if the soup simmers, the yolks will curdle). Add the cooked mushroom mixture and stir to combine. Serve garnished with parsley.

FRENCH HERB-MARINATED MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Heat 1/4 cup of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are just soft, about 6-8 minutes.
• Remove from heat and stir in the vinegar (or white wine), lemon juice and zest, garlic, herbes de Provence, thyme, and bay leaves. Pour over the remaining olive oil and season with sugar, salt and pepper.
• Transfer to a medium bowl and allow to cool at room temperature; then sprinkle with fresh snipped parsley and toss gently to combine. Cover and chill for at least one hour. -Or- pack mixture into a glass container, seal, and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Serve chilled, warm, or at room temperature. Makes 1 pint.

BUTTON MUSHROOMS à LA CRèME

Steps:

• Trim mushroom stems. If gritty, rinse briefly in a colander with warm tap water and blot dry. (Or wipe them with a damp paper towel.) Halve or quarter mushrooms larger than button size.
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. When it sizzles, add mushrooms and stir to coat. Season well with salt and pepper. Turn up heat and cook, continually shaking pan and stirring with a wooden spoon. The high heat should evaporate any liquid from the mushrooms. Cook until just done, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Add the lemon zest, lemon juice and tarragon, then the crème fraîche, stirring continuously over high heat until the sauce is reduced and somewhat thickened, 2 minutes or less. Turn off the heat, stir in the parsley and transfer mushrooms to a warm serving bowl. Sprinkle with chives and serve immediately.

FRENCH-STYLE MUSHROOM STEW

Steps:

• Combine all four mushroom types in a large bowl with onions; toss gently to mix.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a very large pot over medium-high heat. Cover the bottom of the pot with one layer of the mushroom-onion mixture. Cook, without moving them around too much, until they begin to brown and caramelize on one side, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir and cook another 3 to 5 minutes to brown the other side. Transfer to a large bowl using a slotted spoon. Add 2 tablespoons oil to the pot, and repeat with another batch. Continue until all mushrooms and onions are cooked.
• Season mushroom-onion mixture with salt and pepper.
• Reduce heat to medium-low and 1 tablespoon oil to the pot. Add leek and carrots and saute until leeks turn a light golden color and start to soften, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in tomato paste; cook for 1 minute. Add flour; cook and stir for 1 more minute.
• Add wine, vegetable broth, tamari, cayenne, thyme, and bay leaves, and scrape up the brown bits at the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. Carefully add the mushroom-onion mixture. Bring to a simmer.
• Reduce heat to low and simmer, partly covered, until carrots and onions are tender and sauce has thickened, 30 to 40 minutes.