Go to the Recipe: Cream of Mushroom Base
Hey Tammy. Man I hear you on mushroom prices, sometimes they can be wild high. It really can depend on the region and the time of year. In Seattle I see the price fluctuate between $20 - $50 a pound for Matsutake/pine mushrooms. Personally I really love the flavor of them and there isn't a flavor like them.
But that being said it does warrant the question, "is this the right occasion" before paying those prices. Personally I would just substitute king oyster or cremini mushrooms. Adding a few Matsus might work but likely the delicate flavor will get lost. I personally would make this recipe as written with matsutakes for an occasion that it's not serving along side a million other competing flavors. I hope this answer helps.
Was thinking of making the green bean casserole so I looked at the recipe of the mushroom base. Genuinely curious - are Matsutake mushrooms a lot more affordable in certain regions? It's routinely $50-$70/lb here (California) and sold shrink wrapped in ones/two's, maybe. Is there flavor value in maybe using a few Matsutake mushrooms and subbing king oyster for the rest?
Water, milk and eggs a pint a pound the world around 😁
Thanks for the reply.
You should be good to omit.
Hi guys! If I use homemade chicken stock in which I've added some beef bones and pigs feet. This broth when cold solidifies. Do you believe I would need the additional gelatin mentioned in the recipe? Thanks in advance!
I Roy, all of our recipes will be by weight. But yes in general 1 pint( 2 Cups) of water weights 1lb. 2lbs would be 1 quart, 4 cups.
Am I measuring the chicken stock by weight of volume? The recipe calls for 2 lbs of stock. But does it mean 2 cups? I've never measured stock by weight.
Just start with the 500g. But make sure to use the amount of bouillon for 1kg worth of stock.
Thank you, I wasn’t even thinking about the salt! In terms of how much water to start with. Can I do 500g of water and skip the reducing step since I’m using bouillon? Or do I need to still make 1kg worth of stock (using bouillon) and reduce it down?
OHH, good question. The bouillon will add more gelatin plus a bunch more salt to the mix. I would say the additional gelatin will be nice, but I would wait to add any salt to the recipe until after the cubes are added, then adjust the seasoning from there.
If I’m using the bouillon cubes recipe as my stock can I skip the stock reduction step and just use double the cubes? E.g. use 2 cubes for 500g of water?
This stuff is the bomb - so delicious with so many applications.
I made it last year and spent forever reducing the cream. This year I did the reduction in my largest pot and that kept the time required to 25ish min
It just adds a silky mouthfeel that is really optional.
Is the gelatin required if I am using home made stock that already sets?
Turned out great. Thanks!
Hi Richard, best is just to omit it. It really is just adding a richness and mouth feel. It might be worth trying out pectin as well.
Is there an easy sub for the gelatin here? I'd like to make this vegetarian for a guest. I'm sure the vegetable stock sub works for chicken stock, but not sure how to replace the gelatin. I know there's the vegan version, but I love this one so much and don't have the dairy or gluten requirements
I made this (prob only reduced the cream about 25%) and added it over the stuffin' muffins & BOOM wonderful twist on biscuits and gravy..
I just finished my batch from last Thanksgiving (a little over a year) vacced in the freezer. Still good
1-2 weeks in the fridge.
how long can this be chilled and kept?
I read the response also...
Wow 15 minutes vs 1 hour and 15. Sounds good to me. At that temp Kyl cited I assume the cream is bubbling or a rolling boil!...?
I guess I could plan out tossing the result but do the reduction in 15 - 20 and see where it ends up.
20 minutes to reduce 32oz cream by half? I don't think so.
I used a 12 inch skillet and it took hours. I think the 20 minute version is the TV version where there is an already reduced pan waiting under the counter.
Today, mine took over 2 hours to reduce by half. But, it's fabolous and I now just alot the needed time.
Just whisking. The only chunks come from the mushrooms you add. Otherwise it's smooth.
explanation above.
Hi DJB. Time and temp will vary greatly depending on the pan you choose, the cream, and your altitude. But just to be be helpful, I reduced a pot of cream with the same pan and the control freak as I did in the recipe above. There should be no risk of scalding the cream if you have a heavy bottom pan. thinner cheaper pans will heat up to fast and inconsistent of induction and could burn. With that being said there is also no one temp to set the control freak at either.. we use it as a stove replacement and are constantly watching the pot and making adjustments as needed.. but here we go.. this is what I use did. 250°f for 4 minutes and 30 seconds while stirring. then drop to 223°f for 8 minutes, keeping an eye on it and giving a stir and a spat down around the rim. Then up to 225°f for 4 minutes and 30 seconds. at this point I no longer needed to stir, it would not boil over. Next, up to 230°f for the final stage of reduction which took me a total of 22 min. And I was trying to be more cautious here to give you a guide. I typically will do this in 15-20 min, watching the whole time. on a higher heat.
I have the same question. It took me over an hour to reduce it by half and that was with continuous stirring. Continiuous. And I did the same as you with temperature...225 max but as it reduced I lowered that to about 215.
Of course it will. King oyster mushrooms work very good as a substitute as well.
Any blending or straining required, or is this chunky?
At $70 a pound for Matsutake mushrooms (I followed your hyperlink) this is a very expensive soup base! If I try this I hope Crimini or some other mushroom works well.
How high of a heat do I dare heat this cream? I've had it at 225 degrees (just over water boiling) for an hour and have reduced it by 1/6 or so. Using a Hestan Cue burner. I really don't want to scorch it..
I froze it...vacuum packed and it worked GREAT. Its so thick that it wasn't hard to get all the air out. Kept for quite some time, though its so tasty, you won't want it frozen for long.
I ended up going with shitake which was easier to find and somewhere in between. Fantastic!
Took me a while to even find the King Oysters...but a different Asian market than I normally use had them.
criminal or mistake mushrooms😂😂😂
Has anyone made this with just criminal mushrooms? I could not find mistake or oyster mushrooms in store. Any suggestions?
we didn't attempt that. but I would assume it would be fine.
we used mochico rice flour in the vegan and gluten free version. use that one as a base of measurement for gf.
for this application I would just use the same measurement of weight.
Hello. How should I proceed If using 160 bloom gélatine leaves? Thank you
How long would the extra keep in the refrigerator?
Can anyone suggest a substitute for the flour to make this gluten free?
I am curious if this would freeze well?
Something got lost in translation here...sorry for the confusion. It should only take about 10 minutes to reduce this amount of stock in a 3qt sauce pot. 30 min to complete the entire recipe, depending on the time you need to clean whatever mushrooms you decide to use.
sounds super tasty to me
It's probably not magical thinking, but it's not accurate either. I think they're counting the actual interaction time with ingredients and cooking; or it's human error. This feels like a ~60-90 minute process to me. Looking forward to trying it, though!
What about using turkey broth? Made a ton from the butchered turkey carcass!
How in the world do you have an estimated time of 20 minutes for this recipe when the first step after mise en place is reduce for 30 min...
I'm thinking of using this as a base for some Thanksgiving pizza! Green bean casserole "pizza sauce" topped with roasted turkey and dollops of cranberry sauce... after baking the pizza, crumble over crispy turkey skin
Whatever size you prefer is fine, Greg.
Make sure you choose the right pot to reduce the cream. I went with a tall 2qt All Clad. I’ve been reducing for over an hour...
Should have went with a larger pot with more surface area to speed the reduction.
Thanks!
What size dice are we talking here on the mushrooms? Closer to 5mm or 10mm?
Many thanks, Greg!
thanks Greg!
OMG!! YUMMM!! I will never buy cream of mushroom soup again! Thank you for the insight to the recipe pic. I am going to serve that along side of the green beans. My house is divided, not everyone is a fan of bean casserol. Thank you for your help...
I just want to give credit to your website team; the interaction level with commenters since the reboot is fantastic! Thank you, y'all!
Hi Helen, You’ll still need the amount of gelatin indicated in the recipe for good results.
re the gelatin included in the recipe. If I use chicken bone broth (homemade of course), would that be equivalent? Thanks ChefSteps!
You can wash any mushroom you want, but they should be air dried to try to lose some of the liquid before you cook them.
We just halved some of the Matsutake mushrooms that we used in the recipe, roasted them in a pan, covered with the base and Parmesan and baked. You could also do this with the king oyster mushrooms.
Anything you like to eat works, we just like to use firmer mushrooms so they don’t just go to mush.
Whichever option you normally use as a substitute should work fine, just don’t reduce it, and use the reduction amount in the recipe.
Different taste but you could use coconut milk. Other nut milks will also work, but obviously tastes will differ. I dont find almond milk works well but it's easier to control the texture if you make your own. Oat milk may work well and will likely i.part more of an earthy flavor. The other option would to be to go w a mushroom stock. You wont get the creaminess (without a good hydrocolloid) and it will be more mushroom...ee....
My wife and son are lactose intolerant and I don't think there is enough lactaid to compensate. Is there a workable substitute for the heavy cream?
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I thought it's a myth that mushrooms absorb any water and it's always good to properly wash them (multiple articles online) - any thoughts ?
Does it matter what mushrooms you use? Can I use Shitakes, for example?
What recipe is the featured picture of? It looks delicious.
