Chanterelle and Potato Chowder

Chanterelles cooked dry and browned, then folded into a creamy Yukon Gold chowder with thyme.

Serves: 6
Hands-on: 45 min
Total: 1 hr 10 min
Skill: Easy

Cooks on: Stovetop · Lunch, Dinner

Ingredients

12 ozChanterelle mushrooms, brushed clean and torn or cut into bite-size pieces
1½ lbYukon Gold potatoes, cut into ½-inch dice
1Onions, diced
2 clovesGarlic, minced
4 tbspButter, divided
¼ cupFlour
2 cupsMilk
½ cupHeavy cream
1½ tspSalt, divided, plus more to taste
½ tspBlack pepper, ground
2 ribs celery, diced
3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
¼ cup dry white wine or 2 tbsp dry sherry (optional)
1 tsp lemon juice or white wine vinegar
2 tbsp chopped chives

You'll need

Stovetop
Dutch oven

Contains

Dairy, Gluten. Store-bought stock can contain soy, celery or other additives. Check the label.

Method

Put the chanterelles in the dry Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until they release their water and it cooks away and the pot is dry, 8 to 10 minutes. Add 1 tbsp of the butter and ¼ tsp of the salt and cook, stirring only now and then, until golden at the edges and cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes more. Scoop them into a bowl and set aside a small handful for the top.
Melt the remaining 3 tbsp butter in the pot over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and cook until soft, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and thyme and cook 1 minute. If using the wine or sherry, pour it in and stir up the browned bits until it has almost cooked away.
Sprinkle in the flour and stir 1 minute. Whisk in the stock a little at a time so it stays smooth.
Add the potatoes and the remaining 1¼ tsp salt. Cover and simmer gently until the potatoes are tender, 15 to 18 minutes. Mash a few pieces against the side of the pot to thicken the base.
Stir in the milk, cream and the cooked chanterelles. Heat gently until steaming hot, about 5 minutes; do not let it boil hard. Stir in the pepper and the lemon juice or vinegar, then taste and add salt until the mushroom flavor comes forward. Serve topped with the reserved chanterelles and the chives.

When it's done: No safe time or temperature is established

Wild mushrooms should never be eaten raw; cook them through. The first time you eat a species, set a few aside in the refrigerator in case of a reaction (Missouri Department of Conservation).

If it goes wrong

Thin chowder: Mash a few more potato pieces against the side of the pot and simmer 5 minutes more.
Flat or bland: It needs salt and a little acid. Add salt a pinch at a time and a few more drops of lemon juice.
Curdled or grainy: It boiled after the milk went in. Keep it at a gentle steam.
Rubbery chanterelles: They were crowded and steamed. Cook them dry in batches if your pot is small.

Leftovers. Serve hot. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours and reheat to 165°F, stirring, without boiling hard.