Mushroom Catsup
Ingredients
Directions
Salt the mushrooms
Break mushrooms into a deep earthen pan.
Strew ¾ pound of salt among the mushrooms, reserving some for the top.
Let sit for 2 days, stirring gently with a wooden spoon often.
Cook and strain
Transfer to a large saucepan and heat slowly.
Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.
Strain the liquid closely from the mushrooms.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Large ripe mushrooms
- Provide the bulk of the liquid and the mushroom flavor that becomes the ketchup.
- Coarse sea salt
- Draws moisture out of the mushrooms and preserves them during the two-day rest.
The step that matters
Let sit for 2 days, stirring gently with a wooden spoon often. Salt needs time to draw liquid out of the mushrooms and dissolve into it. Stirring gently keeps the mushrooms evenly salted and releases juices without breaking them down into a muddy mash.
“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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