Mushroom Cream Sauce

• servings: 4

Ingredients

16 oz mushrooms, sliced (any kind works, experiment to see what you like best)

These will shrink by about half when cooked, so slice twice as big as you want them in the end.

½ onion, diced

⅔ cup heavy cream (use less for a thinner sauce)

½ cup white wine (can vary with red wine)

½ cup chicken broth

2-4 garlic cloves, minced

3 tbsp fresh parsley (1 tbsp dried)

2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp cornstarch (optional)

¼ tsp dried thyme (or 3 fresh sprigs)

Salt and pepper

Directions

Add the butter and olive oil to the pan and turn on medium heat. Once the butter is melted, add in the sliced mushrooms. Lightly salt them to draw out the moisture, then cook until they are browned to your liking, 6-8 minutes.

Once the mushrooms are browned or begin sticking to the pan excessively, add in the diced onion and another small pinch of salt. The water released from the onion should be enough to scrape up the mushroom fond and deglaze the pan, but you can always add 1-2 tbsp of water to assist with this. Continue cooking the onions and mushrooms until things begin sticking to the pan again.

Turn the heat to high and add the wine and scrape to deglaze the pan, making sure you get all of the fond from prior. Keep boiling until the wine has almost evaporated, leaving a thickened sauce.

Add the chicken broth and heavy cream, along with any dried spices you’re using. Add the fresh sprigs of thyme here if you’re using those. Simmer for 3-5 minutes, or until slightly reduced and thickened. If you’re not satisfied with the thickness of the sauce, add 1 tsp of cornstarch that’s been mixed with 2 tsp of water. If you’re using this sauce with pasta, skip this and just use some of the pasta water.

Let the sauce simmer for another minute or until thickened. Add in your fresh parsley if using and season with salt and pepper to taste. Consider what you’re using this sauce with to determine the salt level of the sauce. I find that this is enough sauce for 12-16 oz of dry pasta. Serve hot and enjoy.

Notes

A simple sauce that you can use for pasta, proteins or whatever you’d like. Think of this as a blank template to expand from, tailoring the sauce to what you’re pairing it with. For pasta, I would add some cheese and black pepper, while for a steak I would use red wine and some rosemary. The recipe listed below uses the brown then deglaze method that is so common, and is a good place to start for someone learning to cook.