May 11th, 2022Recipes with Jen Clarke

Mushroom Bourguignon

Rich and flavourful, this autumnal dish showcases the wonderful local mushrooms coming into season in the Macedon Ranges. You won’t believe that there is no meat in this dish.

Serves 4

• 3-4 tablespoons butter and/or olive oil
• 3 shallots or one large brown onion, cut into wedges
• 1 kg mixed mushrooms, roughly chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 1 leek, cleaned and chopped
• 2 small carrots, chopped into chunks
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon plain flour
• 1 cup full-bodied red wine
• 1 cup beef stock
• 1–2 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce
• A few sprigs of thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• Chopped flat leaf parsley, to serve

Heat a large, heavy-based casserole and add 2 tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add half the mushrooms, making sure they are in a single layer. Cook for about 3 minutes, allowing them to brown on one side, then flip them over and cook for a further 2–3 minutes. Remove to a plate and repeat with remaining mushrooms. When they are done, season them with salt and pepper.

Reduce the heat to medium low and add 1 tablespoon butter and 1 of oil to the pan. Add the onions and cook gently for about 10 minutes until they are soft. Add the leeks and carrots and saute until the leeks start to soften, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, then tomato paste and cook for one minute, before stirring in the flour and cooking for 1-2 minutes.
Add wine, stock, tamari or soy, thyme and bay leaf, scraping all the brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Add mushrooms and bring to a simmer. Partly cover the pot with a lid and simmer on a low heat until the carrots and onions are tender, 30-40 minutes. Season to taste and add more tamari if needed. You can cook this for longer for more flavour.
Open a nice bottle of local red and serve the mushroom bourguignon over mashed potatoes, polenta or noodles, topped with chopped parsley.