Ragout of mushrooms with puff pastry shells
Some old-fashioned dishes are absolutely worth making, and this mushroom ragout is one of them. So much tastier than what you can buy in a can at the store.
Make your own mushroom ragout
The secret to making a really tasty mushroom ragout is to make it with mushroom broth. This makes it really mushroomy (nice word huh. Haha).
What can you find in this post?
Growing up we used to eat mushroom ragú at home on a regular basis. Always out of a can, by the way, because you know, my mother was definitely no kitchen princess. But even out of a can I still liked it. There was always something special about a crispy puff pastry shell with a nice creamy ragout inside. I believe you would call it a vol-au-vent. It can sometimes be a little tricky to find the right translation for certain items, but if you check the photos I’m pretty sure you can guess what they’re called. Please let me know if there is a specific name for these puff pastry shells.
Puff pastry trays or vol-au-vent
First, of course, the puff pastry shells or vol-au-vents. These are made out of puff pastry. I just buy these ready made. I once participated in a challenge to make my own puff pastry and then use it to make a vol-au-vent, but to be honest, I found it too much work. If you want to know how it went, you can find the post about making vol-au-vents here. That’s what it’s called in French.
So you buy the puff pastry shells ready made and heat them in the oven while you make the mushroom ragout.
Baking the mushrooms
The first step in making the mushroom ragout is to bake the fresh mushrooms. For that you heat a large skillet with a generous amount of butter. Add a dash of olive oil to the skillet as well so it doesn’t burn so quickly. What mushrooms you use is up to you but I generally make a combination of shiitake mushrooms, cremini mushrooms, white button mushrooms or you can add dried mushrooms like porcini mushrooms to the mix as well. The flavor of those is quite intense, so it makes the end result even better. Oyster mushrooms are also a good addition or if they’re in season fresh wild mushrooms are possible too.
When you’ve soaked dried porcini mushrooms you can use the soaking liquid in the end product as well. Or use a part of it as the flavor is intense.
Sautée the mushrooms with the fresh thyme and rosemary and remove them from the pan when they are cooked. Continue to make the mushroom sauce in the same pan.
Making the roux
Basically, mushroom ragout is little more or less than making a roux and then flavoring and filling it. Roux is a base for all kinds of sauces, like this bechamel sauce, but it can also be used to thicken something.
It is a combination of melting butter and adding flour. You bake the flour briefly in a pan on medium heat so that the rawness of the flour is gone. Just give it some time but make sure it doesn’t get burned in the pan. So stay with it.
Add the liquid
Once you’ve made the base, you finish it by adding a liquid. For example, if you are making a cheese sauce, you add milk or cream. In this case, you add mushroom stock.
You can use freshly made mushroom broth, but you can also use a stock cube or if you can’t find mushroom stock, go for vegetable stock instead. You add the stock in portions. I usually add a little bit at a time and stir with a wooden spoon until it thickens. Then I add the next bit of liquid. When it reaches the desired thickness, check to see if it continues to thicken.
What I usually find with a roux is that the flour takes a while to bind with the liquid. So if you stop too soon, it will continue to thicken later and may become too thick. If that happens you simply add a bit more liquid to the pan.
When the consistency is to your liking you add the mushrooms to the sauce
With chicken or beef
If you’re not into mushrooms at all you can definitely make this into a chicken or beef ragout instead. I love making this mushroom ragout recipe but also sometimes transfer it into another version.
How long can I keep the ragout?
The ragout will keep in the refrigerator for about two days. Keep in mind that it thickens considerably in the refrigerator, so you will have a thick blob of ragout. Warming it up will thicken it, and you can add more stock if necessary.
If you have more, you can freeze it. The ragout is also delicious on bread. Reheating is no problem.
Is Salpicon also a ragout?
Yes, but a thicker one. You can use it to fill a croquette, for example.
My mushroom ragout is too thin. What do I do now?
Don’t panic. If you accidentally added too much liquid to the ragout, you can easily thicken it by adding some extra flour or cornstarch. It is handy to mix it with a teaspoon of broth first, then stir well to prevent lumps.
My mushroom ragout is too thick. What should I do?
Basically the same as above, except now you don’t add cornstarch, but you add some stock to make it a little thinner.
Additions
If you want to add some additional flavors to the ragout of mushrooms you can do so by adding for instance a tablespoon of tomato paste. A little splash of red wine also works great in this recipe as well as adding red pepper flakes to give it a bit more punch. The hearty sauce is filled with earthy flavors but can be freshened up a bit by adding a splash of lemon juice. Don’t overdo it with the lemon though. Instead of the dried porcinis you can also use porcini mushroom powder. And alternate with the fresh herbs you’re using.
Mushroom ragout in puff pastry shells
Ingredients
- 400 grams mixed mushrooms cleaned and sliced
- 2 shallots chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 50 grams butter
- 60 g flour
- 400 ml mushroom stock cooled
- 4 sprigs thyme chopped
- 1 sprig rosemary poached and chopped
- 2 sprigs tarragon plucked and coarsely chopped
- 4 puff pastry shells or vol-au-vents
- 1 sprig parsley
- Heat a little oil in a frying pan and sauté the mushrooms with the thyme and rosemary over a fairly high heat. Remove from the pan and transfer to a plate.
- In the same pan, melt the butter and brown. Add the chopped shallot and garlic and sauté gently. Then add the flour all at once and mix well. Cook gently for a few minutes, stirring constantly. Then add the mushroom stock in 3 parts, making sure it is well absorbed before adding the next part.
- Stir in the mushrooms and tarragon and season with salt and pepper.
- Bake the puff pastry shells according to the instructions on the package.
- Fill with the ragout and garnish with parsley.
Nutrition Information per portion
Disclaimer
The nutritional values above are calculated per portion. The details are based on standard nutritional tables and do not constitute a professional nutritional advice.
