I was not expecting to like this as much as I did. It is a fantastic dish, full of flavor. The different varieties of mushroom made the dish texturally appealing to eat, the sauce had real depth of flavor, and the addition of lentils made it a filling dish, perfect for a winter dinner on a cold night. That being said, you could leave out the lentils and, though the dish would be less hearty, it would be just as yummy.
I made changes to the inspiration recipe, mostly in terms of cooking methods, and want to add that -- if you want to make the dish vegetarian -- you can revert to the inspiration recipe's soy sauce. I used Worcestershire sauce instead. I like it with cooked mushrooms and it adds a depth of flavor which I really like in stews, but does contain fermented anchovy.
I served this dish with polenta, into which I chopped a whole mess of chives and which I allowed to cool until firm and then grilled, so that the dish would have some additional texture, but egg noodles, soft polenta, or even a crusty baguette would work well with this dish.
1 lb assorted mushrooms, stems removed (and reserved for soup), cut or torn into different sized pieces. This will make the texture of the dish more interesting. I used a mixture of oyster mushrooms, baby shiitake, Portobello and button mushrooms.
2 leeks, well washed and thinly sliced into spirals
1 large white onion, peeled, halved and cut into thin half moons
2 carrots, peeled and cut into thin rounds, or half rounds if the carrots are big
2 cups cooked lentils (optional)
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
2 tsps finely chopped rosemary leaves
2 tsps chopped thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
2 Tbsps tomato sauce (or 1 Tbsp tomato paste)
1 1/2 Tbsps flour
1 1/2 cups your favorite red wine
1 to 1 1/2 cups water
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsps olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 425.
Line a baking tray with parchment paper and spread the mushrooms out in one layer. Salt well and drizzle with 1 1.2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Place in oven and bake for 20 minutes while you get on with the rest of the dish.
Heat the remaining olive oil in a large Dutch oven. Add the garlic, onion, leeks, carrots, rosemary, thyme, bay leaf and some salt and pepper to the pan. Cook over medium-low, stirring often, for about 5 minutes until the garlic and onion are fragrant and softening, and the leeks are sweating out some of their liquid.
Add the tomato sauce and stir through. Then sprinkle the surface of the vegetables with the flour and cook for a minute or two, stirring often, so that the flour loses its raw taste.
Add the red wine, one cup of the water and the Worcestershire sauce and lower the heat. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring from time to time.
By this time, the mushrooms should be ready so remove them from the oven and tip the contents of the baking tray into the Dutch oven. Some pieces of the mushrooms will be crispy and caramelized, some will be soft and meaty; this is what will make for a really interesting dish in terms of mouth feel. If the sauce looks too thick, now would be the time to add the additional half cup of water.
Cover and cook for an additional 5 minutes before adding the lentils (if using.) Continue cooking until the lentils are heated through and serve, removing the bay leaf first.
Chopped Italian parsley sprinkled over the dish is a pretty touch and adds a bit of grassiness to a very earthy dish.
Inspiration recipe, here.
Comments