Make Mushroom Garum Today and Use It on Everything This Thanksgiving
We’re going to make a deep umami seasoning with mushrooms and then use that seasoning to ruin everything this Thanksgiving. Doesn’t sound very convincing? Think of Worcestershire sauce: it goes with absolutely everything. Meat, vegetables – heck, it’s the main ingredient in Caesar salad dressing. The reason is the depth and brightness it adds to dishes. Worcestershire is garum and we’re going to make the same flavorful garum at home.
A little about garums
Garums are known for their umami, which is produced through fermentation. These sauces represent an ancient Roman tradition where ingredients, usually fish, were fermented over a long period of time, resulting in a liquid with an intense, earthy flavor. Recently, garums have become popular again thanks to restaurants such as Noma , and chefs such as Jori Jane Emde , and the concept of garums has expanded to other ingredients, such as mushrooms.
While most garums are allowed to ferment for several months, we’re going for a quick fermentation and using a few techniques to get a deep, aged flavor.
Start with a well-rounded bunch of mushrooms.
You can really use any type of mushroom, even supermarket crimini, but the deeper the flavor of the mushroom, the better the garum. I suggest you visit your local Asian grocer and buy a variety of fresh mushrooms at a reasonable price. You need 1000 grams of mushrooms, a mixture of whatever you like. Since I had a large selection of mushes at my local H Mart, I chose many varieties of meatier mushrooms: shitake, maitake, oyster, and many varieties of regular buttons. I used to make this exclusively with donated chanterelles, but you could only make it with mushrooms that you can buy at your local market.
Mix it all
You’re going to dust off the mushrooms and then give them a quick rinse (don’t soak them, mushrooms are a sponge and you don’t want them to absorb that much water). Throw them into a covered pan. Place the pan in the oven overnight at the lowest temperature—usually between 170 and 200°F. In the morning, you will find that the mushrooms are fried and significantly reduced in size, and mushroom broth has also accumulated at the bottom. The next step is to put it all in a blender and puree it to a pulp, adding two tablespoons of ready-made shio koji (which I buy ready-made at the local Asian market) and 25 grams of black garlic . Garlic will help improve the taste of aging. To this add 35 grams of sea salt or other non-iodized salt.
Let your mushrooms CTFO
Take the pulp and place it in a vacuum bag or Ziploc. We want to remove all the air bubbles from the cereal before sealing it, so drop it on the counter from a height of about eight inches a few times until you see all the bubbles disappear. Then seal it using a vacuum sealer or water displacement method . Now in the dark it should be somewhere between 60-80°F. I keep mine on a shelf in my kitchen so I see it every day.
We hope to see this bag inflating with air in the next few days. Except it’s not air: it’s CO2, and that’s a sign that fermentation is happening. Let it inflate until the bag is so full you’re afraid it will burst, and then let the CO2 escape by cutting off the end of the bag and resealing it, or opening the Ziploc and using water displacement again.
Watch out for the bullshit
This can last as long as you have until Thanksgiving – the older you get, the better, although you need to age for at least two weeks. Because we limit exposure to air and therefore yeast from your home’s atmosphere, you have a better chance of success. If you see any fuzz, it is a sign that the fermentation has failed. Although the white fluff is usually just Kama yeast, which isn’t harmful, it’s not very tasty either, and since the whole point of this sauce is a very flavorful sauce, I’d toss it and start over.
Check the final product
A day or two before Thanksgiving, it’s time to open the bag, pour the contents into a nut bag or cheesecloth, and then use a cloth to squeeze out as much liquid as possible into a bowl. If you twist the bag or cloth and squeeze out every drop with your hands, you will end up with a slightly cloudy liquid. If you leave it overnight, you will find that all the particles have settled to the bottom and you can drain all the liquid from the top, resulting in a clear garum. Pour this into a bottle and leave it in the refrigerator. Garum can be used in the same way as Worcestershire: add it to sauce, use it in marinades, season salads or vegetables, or use it to season meat. It makes a particularly good dipping sauce, or can be added to cocktails such as Bloody Marys, much like Worcestershire.
Garum mushroom recipe
Ingredients
- 1000 grams of fresh mushrooms
- 25 grams black garlic
- Two tablespoons of shio koji
- 30 grams of non-iodized salt
1. Dust the mushrooms, rinse them lightly and add to a covered pan.
2. Cook the mushrooms at 170°F overnight, then combine the entire contents of the pan with all the other ingredients.
3. Scrape the resulting mush into a vacuum bag or Ziploc and remove any air bubbles by bouncing it on the countertop. Vacuum seal the bag or remove air from the Ziploc using a water displacement method.
4. Let the bag ferment at 60-80°F in the dark for as long as possible, but at least two weeks. When the bag is completely filled with CO2, allow the air to escape and then reseal.
5. Pour the bag into cheesecloth or a nut bag and squeeze out all the liquid. Let the liquid sit overnight to allow the particles to settle, then pour the clear liquid into a bottle. Keep refrigerated.