Mushroom Ketchup

Ketchup is normally something people associate with a type of thick tomato sauce, but the term ketchup was around long before the modern-day tomato version. It was used as a general term for describing any kind of sauce and comes in as many different forms as you’d care to make.

Today we’re going to have a look at how to make your own mushroom ketchup, which also leaves an interesting by-product to use in future cooking. Any kind of black gilled mushroom works well for this recipe as they have a stronger “musty” taste to them, with other lighter versions, such as Chicken of the Woods not providing the classic mushroom taste as much in the final product.

Ingredients:

1 kilo of mushrooms
2 teaspoons of salt
1/4 cup cider vinegar

optional extras:

bay leaves
ground horseradish
garlic
onions
A pinch of spice, such as a Cayenne pepper or chili powder

Equipment:

A saucepan
A filtering cloth – e.g. cheesecloth
A mortar and pestle or some other kind of mashing tool, the end of a rolling pin in a saucepan works fine

Step 1

Clean your mushrooms and dab them dry to remove any extra water, then roughly chop them and put them into your mashing pot. Mash the hell out of them until they have all broken completely open, then add a couple of bay leaves if you choose to use them.

Step 2

Add the salt to your mushrooms and mix well, after about 15 minutes check to see if they have already started to reduce, and if not add a touch more salt and check every 10 to 15 minutes until the mushroom pieces start to shrink slightly. After the reduction has started cover the pot and leave it to sit for at least several hours, preferably overnight.

Step 3

Take any additional spices and flavorings you’re using and add them to the mix, making sure to chop anything fresh into the smallest pieces possible and mix everything well.

Step 4

Transfer the mushroom ketchup mix into a saucepan, or make it in one in the first place so you can use the same container all the way through. Put over medium heat and simmer the mixture for about 15 minutes, it should still contain a good amount of liquid at this stage and no additional water should be added.

Step 5

Pour the entire contents of the saucepan through a cheesecloth into another container and squeeze out as much liquid from the original mushroom mash as you can. The heating process not only helps the flavor but also pasteurizes the liquid to kill any bacteria. At this stage, your mushroom ketchup is now ready to use, but it’s best to have a few seal-able jars or bottles on standby as you’ll end up with around 1 to 2 cups of finished product, depending on your salt content and type of mushrooms used.

The leftovers:

As for the leftover mushroom mash, you can use that as it is, and it makes a great addition when mixed into a stew, but if you’re not planning on using it any time soon you can dry it and use it for another flavoring.

To dry your mushroom mash the best thing to do is spread it out on a baking tray and then leave it either in front of a fan or in the oven on the lowest heat possible for a few hours. It turns into a chunky mushroom powder that can be used in any liquid dish.