Mushroom pâté
Mushrooms, shallots, garlic, thyme and sherry give this veggie pâté real depth of flavour. It makes a great, fuss-free dinner party starter
- Preparation:
- Cooking:
- Total:
- Serves: 6 persons
Ingredients
- 25g dried porcini mushrooms
- 500g chestnut mushrooms, roughly chopped
- 3portobello mushrooms, roughly chopped
- 2tbsp vegetable oil
- 2shallots, finely chopped
- 3garlic cloves, finely chopped
- few sprigs of thyme, leaves stripped
- 50ml dry sherry
- 250g soft cheese
- ½tsp black peppercorns, crushed
Instructions
Step 1
Put the dried mushrooms into a small heatproof bowl and pour over 100ml of just boiled water. Put the chestnut and portobello mushrooms into a food processor and pulse until finely chopped.Step 2
Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat and add the finely chopped mushrooms with a pinch of salt. Fry, tossing regularly, for 10 mins until the moisture has evaporated from the pan and the mushrooms are starting to caramelise. Tip back into the food processor.Step 3
Heat the remaining tbsp of oil and add the shallot and a pinch of salt and fry for 5 minutes until softened, then add the garlic and thyme leaves. Cook for another minute, then pour in the sherry. Drain the porcini mushrooms, keeping 50ml of the liquid, then finely chop the mushrooms and add to the pan with the liquid. Bubble away, stirring, until the liquid has almost all evaporated. Cool then tip into the food processor.Step 4
Add the soft cheese to the food processor along with the black pepper and whizz everything to a smooth pâté. Scrape into a serving bowl and serve.