Mushroom Confit
Appetizers Simple Recipes Fasting Recipes Gluten-Free Recipes Mushrooms
Mushrooms prepared to be on hand all week. The advantage of this method is that you can prepare large quantities of mushrooms in advance. The recipe is scalable to any quantity you want that will fit in your oven. They are practical when you get home late or have several guests.
I learned this idea from Casa Urola in San Sebastian where I ate the silkiest and most aromatic champignon mushrooms. Those were probably made sous-vide, but cooking in oil at low temperatures led to a similar result. The mushroom flavor concentrates intensely and the oil becomes deeply infused with their aroma. If you remember, 3 years ago I similarly prepared broccoli, which turned out just as concentrated and aromatic.
You can use this method with any type of mushrooms, including porcini, oyster mushrooms, etc. If the mushrooms are very large, they can be cut into pieces.
Ingredients
500g mushrooms (I used brown cremini)
500ml olive oil
1 garlic clove
2 sprigs thyme (can be dried)
salt
How to prepare mushroom confit
- Remove the mushroom stems. Wipe the caps with a damp cloth. Put them in a wide oven-safe dish. The mushrooms can be slightly crowded, because in the oven they will shrink a bit and settle into a single layer. Sprinkle with salt and mix. Place garlic slices and thyme sprigs among them. If you wish, you can also add a sprig of rosemary, tarragon, or a bay leaf.
- Pour enough oil to cover the first layer of mushrooms. The amount of oil varies depending on the dish, but for this quantity and dish diameter, you will need about 2 cups of oil.
- Place the dish on the stove and heat the oil just until you see small bubbles rising around the mushrooms.
- Immediately place the dish in the oven preheated to 90°C for 1 - 1.5 hours. To know when they are done, taste one and it should be soft all the way through, somewhat buttery. The time depends on the size of the mushrooms. Turn off the oven and let them cool in the oven.
- Put the mushrooms in a jar and pour oil to cover them. On the bottom of the dish, you will see a dark-colored liquid, that is the mushroom juice, try not to put it in the jar, it will reduce the shelf life of the mushrooms. The remaining aromatic oil can be frozen.
- Use the mushrooms whole or sliced. They can be quickly reheated using some of their oil. The aromatic oil that remains can also be used in various dishes (rice pilafs, on bruschetta or when toasting bread, in sauces, in omelets). They keep in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks.
