Home |
Search |
Today's Posts |
![]() |
|
Historic (rec.food.historic) Discussing and discovering how food was made and prepared way back when--From ancient times down until (& possibly including or even going slightly beyond) the times when industrial revolution began to change our lives. |
|
LinkBack | Thread Tools | Display Modes |
|
|||
|
|||
![]()
Here is a recipe for Mushroom Ketchup using American measurements.
I haven't tried it myself but all these posts have inspired me to give it a try. The recipe does not give an amount for the vinegar -- I think that must be a typo -- so I guess the best approach is to add vinegar little by little until the desired piquancy is achieved. BTW, someone in another thread was talking about early catsups in terms of condiments. My impression from reading old cookbooks is that they were used to flavor sauces and gravies. I didn't think they made it to the table for individual diners to use as condiments. Anyone think otherwise? Mushroom Ketchup 3/4 ounce (1 package) dried boletus (porcini or cepes) (optional) 3 pounds mushrooms 2 tablespoons sea or pickling salt 1 whole pod cayenne pepper, or 1/4 teaspoon crushed hot red pepper flakes 1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns 1/2 teaspoon whole allspice 1/2 teaspoon whole cloves 1 or 2 blades mace, broken up, or large pinch of powdered mace 1/2 nutmeg, crushed 2 bay leaves 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root 2 large shallots 4 to 6 garlic cloves Red wine vinegar 2 tablespoons red wine I. If you are using the dried mushrooms, spread them in a heatproof bowl. Bring 1 cup of water to a full boil, and pour it over them. Let them steep for half an hour, then lift the mushrooms out carefully, dipping them in the water to loosen any sand that may be attached. Put them in a saucepan that will hold all their soaking water comfortably. Pour the water over the mushrooms, through a coffee filter or an undyed paper towel, and turn on the heat to medium. Cook the mushrooms until the liquid has evaporated and been absorbed, stirring frequently to keep them from sticking or scorching. Turn off the heat and let them cool. 2. Wipe the fresh mushrooms with a dry towel to remove any grit that may be clinging to them. If they are very large, break them into several pieces. Put a layer of them in the bottom of a ceramic or stone crock with the reconstituted wild mushrooms, if using, and their juice. Sprinkle them liberally with salt. Put on another layer of mushrooms and salt, continuing until all the mushrooms and salt are used. 3. Cover the crock tightly and set it in a cool, dark place. (If your house is particularly warm [more than 70° F.], this had better be the refrigerator, because the mushrooms will mold on the top if allowed to sit for too long at too high a temperature.) After the mushrooms have steeped for only a few minutes, they will begin to wilt. Within an hour or two, the contents of the crock will have reduced by half. Let them steep for at least 24 hours, pressing on them from time to time with a clean spoon. 4. After the mushrooms have steeped for the allotted time, set a food mill or large wire sieve over a stainless-steel or enameled kettle large enough to hold the contents of the crock. Force the mushrooms through the mill or sieve, along with all their juices that have accumulated, into the saucepan. (Don't use a food processor; it will puree the mushrooms too fine.) 5. Add the cayenne or pepper flakes, peppercorns, allspice, cloves, mace, nutmeg, bay leaves, and ginger. Crush the shallots and garlic and add them to the kettle. Turn on the heat to medium. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook uncovered for about 45 minutes, until the ketchup is fragrant and somewhat reduced. Turn off the heat and let it cool completely. 6. Strain the mixture through a fine wire sieve into a measuring cup, pressing hard to get all the liquid extracted. Discard the solids. Wipe out the kettle, then measure the juice and return it to the kettle. If there is more than 1 3/4 cups, bring it back to a brisk boil and reduce it to that amount. Add the vinegar and wine, then reduce the heat to medium. Let the ketchup simmer gently for about 5 minutes more. Turn off the heat and pour it, while still hot, into a sterilized heatproof jar or bottle. 7. Seal the jar or bottle and let it cool, then refrigerate it. Stored in the refrigerator, it will keep for several months. Makes 16 ounces (1 pint) NOTES: This recipe sounds time-consuming, but actually it is not. I estimate that, all totaled, only about three-quarters of an hour of my time is required. The rest of the time (steeping, simmering, etc.) is pretty much unattended. On the ingredients: Too much salt will make the mixture coarse and banal, not enough will invite spoilage, so be judicious. Many English recipes specify white wine rather than red, which makes a distinct difference in flavor. If you elect to substitute it, also use white wine vinegar. As to the mushrooms: remember that early cooks used only wild mushrooms. If you can get wild mushrooms, please feel free to use. The little white button mushrooms from the supermarket are lost in this strongly flavored sauce unless you combine them, as Bill Neal suggested, with dried Boletus edulis as outlined here. All the old recipes used allspice and ginger; most Southern recipes included cayenne and either nutmeg or mace and, occasionally, both. Less frequently used were black pepper, cloves, shallots, and garlic, though they were usual in eighteenth-century English recipes. --- This recipe comes from Classical Southern Cooking by Damon Lee Fowler. |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
Display Modes | |
|
|
![]() |
||||
Thread | Forum | |||
Mushroom ketchup | General Cooking | |||
Ketchup + + | General Cooking | |||
Mushroom ketchup | General Cooking | |||
Any mushroom hunters here? REC wild mushroom ragout | General Cooking | |||
Ketchup | Recipes (moderated) |