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Mushroom Ragout

A savory mushroom ragout made with dried and fresh mushrooms, onions, garlic, tomatoes, parsley, and balsamic vinegar.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 9 ingredients
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Why it works: Onion and garlic match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 29,058 recipes. Both carry furaneol, which smells caramel, strawberry. The science ↓

Mushroom Ragout

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the dried mushrooms

  1. Soak dried mushrooms in warm water to cover for at least 45 minutes or until softened.

  2. Remove the mushrooms from the liquid carefully and rinse them well under cold running water to remove any sand clinging.

  3. Roughly chop the mushrooms and drain them thoroughly.

  4. Strain the soaking liquid at least twice through a sieve lined with cheesecloth and reserve the liquid.

Cook the ragout

  1. Heat a couple of teaspoons of the reserved mushroom liquid and the diluted balsamic vinegar in a heavy skillet.

  2. Saute the onion in the skillet until translucent and tender, about 10–15 minutes.

  3. If the onions start to stick, add additional mushroom liquid.

  4. Add the garlic and all the mushrooms to the skillet, turn the heat to low, and cook, stirring intermittently, for up to 20 minutes, until tender.

  5. Add the tomatoes, parsley, salt, and pepper to taste.

  6. Continue cooking for another 5 minutes.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

125Calories
6 gProtein
1 gFat
27 gCarbs

Counts 9 of 10 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 9 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Plum1 medium (66g)30
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Mushroom1/2 cup sliced (35g)15
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Parsley1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)1
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Porcininot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together29,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  2. Garlic + tomatotop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together14,076 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  3. Garlic + parsleytop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together9,308 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  4. Plum + tomatotop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,480 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  5. Mushroom + garlictop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,700 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Dried porcini mushrooms
Concentrate deep, savory mushroom flavor and liquid used to moisten the sauce.
Red onion
Softens into a sweet base that gives the ragout body and aroma.
Fresh brown mushrooms
Provide the bulk and meaty texture of the ragout as they release and reabsorb their juices.
Plum tomatoes
Add moisture and gentle acidity that brightens the mushrooms.
Balsamic vinegar
Adds acidity and a sweet, tangy depth that balances the mushrooms.

The step that matters

Sautéing the onion without letting it stick. Onions cook slowly and can scorch before they turn sweet and translucent. Adding mushroom liquid as needed deglazes the pan and keeps the onion moist, so it softens and browns evenly.

Swap the plum

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (mushroom, vinegar, onion, garlic, clove, tomato, parsley):

  1. Avocadofits better
  2. Limefits better
  3. Cherryfits about as well
  4. Plumthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against mushroom, vinegar, onion, garlic, clove, tomato, parsley. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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