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Sauteed Mushrooms with Bacon and Pearl Onions

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on August 22, 2007

Time

50 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

Sauteed Mushrooms with Bacon and Pearl Onions

Ingredients

4 slices bacon, cut crosswise into ½-inch strips (about 4 ounces)½ pound frozen pearl onions (about 1 ⅓ cups)1 teaspoon granulated sugar ½ cup ruby port 1 ½ pounds white button mushrooms, cleaned, stems trimmed, quartered if medium or halved if small1 tablespoon unsalted butter 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves 2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled (about ½ cup) (optional)

Before You Begin

Do not thaw pearl onions; they are added to the skillet still frozen.

Instructions

  1. Cook bacon in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until beginning to render fat, about 1 minute. Add onions and sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until bacon is crisp and onions are light brown, about 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer onions and bacon to medium bowl. Reserve 1 tablespoon bacon fat in small bowl; discard remaining fat. Add 1/4 cup port to now-empty skillet and return to medium-high heat; simmer about 30 seconds, scraping up any browned bits with wooden spoon. Pour port into bowl with bacon and onions; wipe out skillet with paper towels.
  2. Heat reserved bacon fat in now-empty skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering but not smoking. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms release liquid, about 5 minutes. Increase heat to high and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has completely evaporated and mushrooms start to brown, about 8 minutes longer. Add butter, reduce heat to medium, and continue to cook, stirring once every minute, until mushrooms are dark brown, about 8 minutes longer. Add bacon/onion mixture and remaining 1/4 cup port; cook, stirring frequently, until liquid has evaporated and mushrooms are glazed, about 2 minutes. Stir in parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to serving dish, sprinkle with blue cheese (if using), and serve.
Sauteed Mushrooms with Bacon and Pearl Onions

Sauteed Mushrooms with Bacon and Pearl Onions

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Time

50 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 slices bacon, cut crosswise into ½-inch strips (about 4 ounces)
½ pound frozen pearl onions (about 1 ⅓ cups)
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
½ cup ruby port
1 ½ pounds white button mushrooms, cleaned, stems trimmed, quartered if medium or halved if small
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves
2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled (about ½ cup) (optional)

Ingredients

4 slices bacon, cut crosswise into ½-inch strips (about 4 ounces)
½ pound frozen pearl onions (about 1 ⅓ cups)
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
½ cup ruby port
1 ½ pounds white button mushrooms, cleaned, stems trimmed, quartered if medium or halved if small
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves
2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled (about ½ cup) (optional)

Ingredients

4 slices bacon, cut crosswise into ½-inch strips (about 4 ounces)
½ pound frozen pearl onions (about 1 ⅓ cups)
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
½ cup ruby port
1 ½ pounds white button mushrooms, cleaned, stems trimmed, quartered if medium or halved if small
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves
2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled (about ½ cup) (optional)

Why This Recipe Works

To get more flavor and less shriveling from our sautéed mushroom recipe, we discovered that overloading the skillet and extending the cooking time allowed the mushrooms to give up just enough liquid to eventually fit in a single layer without shrinking to nothing. They browned nicely after we added a little oil or butter, and from there it was easy to enhance our sautéed mushroom recipe by adding garlic, herbs, wine, soy sauce, bread crumbs, and so on.

Before You Begin

Do not thaw pearl onions; they are added to the skillet still frozen.

Instructions

  1. Cook bacon in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until beginning to render fat, about 1 minute. Add onions and sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until bacon is crisp and onions are light brown, about 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer onions and bacon to medium bowl. Reserve 1 tablespoon bacon fat in small bowl; discard remaining fat. Add 1/4 cup port to now-empty skillet and return to medium-high heat; simmer about 30 seconds, scraping up any browned bits with wooden spoon. Pour port into bowl with bacon and onions; wipe out skillet with paper towels.
  2. Heat reserved bacon fat in now-empty skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering but not smoking. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms release liquid, about 5 minutes. Increase heat to high and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has completely evaporated and mushrooms start to brown, about 8 minutes longer. Add butter, reduce heat to medium, and continue to cook, stirring once every minute, until mushrooms are dark brown, about 8 minutes longer. Add bacon/onion mixture and remaining 1/4 cup port; cook, stirring frequently, until liquid has evaporated and mushrooms are glazed, about 2 minutes. Stir in parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to serving dish, sprinkle with blue cheese (if using), and serve.

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