Mushroom Stock - NOURISH Network

This mushroom stock is full-flavored and rich. It makes a gorgeous base for vegetable soups and an outstanding wild mushroom risotto.

Mushroom Stock

Yield: Makes 8 cups

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, halved
6 cloves garlic
2 cups mushroom stems
2 carrots, coarsely chopped
2 leeks, coarsely chopped
10 cups cold water
2 bay leaves
3 thyme sprigs
1 tablespoon miso
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano rinds (or other hard cheese)

Instructions

Heat olive oil in a stock pot over medium heat and sear onion, cut side down, and garlic until well-colored, about 5 minutes. Stir in mushroom stems, carrots and leeks and cook for another 3 minutes.

Pour in water and scrape up any browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Add bay leaves, thyme sprigs and miso, and bring to a boil. Redice heat to medium-low, add dried porcini and cheese rinds, and simmer for 40 minutes. Strain well.

Cool, refrigerate and use within a week. To freeze, let cool and then ladle into muffin tins and freeze. When frozen, pop stock out of the muffin tins and store in a Ziploc freezer bag.

http://nourishnetwork.com/2009/10/19/mushroom-stock/

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http://www.theveggiequeen.com Jill

Thanks for this. I just love mushrooms.

I beleive that the beneficial effects of miso come from the fact that it’s fermented. If you boil it, it kills the beneficial bacteria. Still tastes great, though.
http://nourishnetwork.com/members/ldgourmet/ ldgourmet

Wow. I just stumbled on this gem. Talk about an umami bomb. Great stuff!
http://nourishnetwork.com/members/liahuber/ Lia Huber

Jill . . . hmm, interesting. But wouldn’t that mean the same reaction would happen when cooking tofu, since that’s fermented soybean too? I’ll have to look into that.

Jackie . . . Your umami article was the inspiration for this recipe. I couldn’t resist getting as many umami hits in there as possible!
http://blog.fatfreevegan.com SusanV

Lia, tofu isn’t fermented. It’s soymilk that has been curdled and the liquid pressed out. It happens very quickly, so there’s no time for fermentation. (There are types of fermented tofu, but the white stuff in blocks that we use in the US aren’t fermented.)

I’ve heard that boiling kills the enzymes in miso, but I’ve also heard that it’s a myth that the enzymes are beneficial. So I either boil it or not, depending how it’s used in a recipe. I’m sure it adds a great flavor to this broth, and I love the idea of freezing in muffin tins!
http://nourishnetwork.com/members/liahuber/ Lia Huber

SusanV . . . thanks for clarifying–it makes sense. I’m with you; rather than worry too much about what’s happening with a particular ingredient, I look at how each is contributing–both health and flavor-wise–to the dish as a whole. And I’ve spoken with several nutrition scientists who share that view. I mean, cooking garlic also technically diminishes the strength of its beneficial attributes, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t add to a dish in other ways–for instance, making healthy greens that much more appealing.

The muffin tins, I have to admit, were an inspiration. I’d always heard and followed the advice to freeze in ice cube containers; but let’s face it . . . when is an ice cube of broth enough? And freezing in ziplocs left it in big, unwieldy blocks. So I rummaged through my shelves looking for something somewhere in the middle and, voila, muffin tins!
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