Hrybna Ikra (грибна ікра, mushroom caviar)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •A wide heavy frying pan or saute pan
• •A fine sieve or coffee filter for mushroom soaking liquid
• •A food processor or a sharp knife and patient hands
• •A clean 1-litre jar or lidded container

Instructions

1. 1

   Soak the mushrooms

   Put the dried mushrooms in a bowl, cover with the boiling water, and let them soften until they smell like rain on leaves. Lift them out, squeeze them gently, and chop them fine. Strain the soaking liquid through a fine sieve or coffee filter and keep it; the grit stays behind, the forest goes into the pan.

   If you have real wild mushrooms from someone who knows what they are picking, lucky you. If not, dried porcini plus supermarket mushrooms will still cook into a proper spread.
2. 2

   Sweat the base

   Warm the sunflower oil in a wide heavy pan and add the onions with a pinch of salt. Let them soften until translucent and sweet-smelling, then add the grated carrot and keep cooking until the oil turns orange and glossy. This is a little zasmazhka, the slow-sweated flavour base, and it gives the dark mushrooms their sweetness.

3. 3

   Cook the mushrooms

   Add the fresh mushrooms and the chopped soaked mushrooms to the pan. At first they will look like far too much and throw out a flood of liquid. Good. Stir, scrape, and let that water cook away until the pan grows quieter, the pieces shrink, and the smell changes from raw cellar to fried forest floor.

4. 4

   Darken the paste

   Stir in the tomato paste, garlic, pepper, and half of the reserved mushroom liquid. Cook slowly, scraping the bottom often, until the mixture turns dark brown, glossy, and thick enough that a spoon leaves a clean path through it. Add a splash more mushroom liquid if it catches before it tastes deep.

   Do not rush this part. The water must leave before the oil can carry the flavour, and that quiet oily fry is the difference between mushroom caviar and wet chopped mushrooms.
5. 5

   Chop it finer

   Take the pan off the heat and let it cool slightly. Pulse the mixture in a food processor until it is fine but not baby food, or chop it by hand if you want the old texture. It should spread easily but still have tiny pieces that tell your teeth what they are eating.

6. 6

   Season and rest

   Stir in the fermented tomato brine or lemon juice, then taste for salt and pepper. Fold through most of the dill once the mixture is no longer hot enough to dull it. Spoon into a bowl or clean jar, gloss the top with a little sunflower oil, and let it rest for at least an hour before serving.

Chef Tips

• •Fresh wild mushrooms are wonderful only if they come from someone who knows them with certainty. Guessing is not romance, it is dangerous. Chestnut mushrooms and dried porcini are a sensible city version.
• •Unrefined sunflower oil matters here because you taste it at the end. It is Ukraine in a bottle of oil, green-gold and nutty, and it makes the spread feel finished.
• •The sour note should be small. Fermented tomato brine is my first choice, sauerkraut brine works, lemon is a bit more modern and clean. Vinegar can bully the mushrooms.
• •This wants rye bread, toasted sourdough, boiled potatoes, or a spoon beside cold varenyky. It also belongs on a potluck table because it waits politely while louder dishes make their entrance.
• •The chopping forgives you. The cooking-down does not. Stop only when the pan is glossy and quiet, and the spoon leaves its path.

Advance Preparation

• •Hrybna ikra is better after a few hours in the fridge, and best the next day.
• •It keeps 4 to 5 days refrigerated in a clean jar with a thin layer of sunflower oil over the top.
• •For a party, make it the day before and bring it to cool room temperature before serving so the mushroom flavour opens up.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 110g spread, without bread)