Chanterelle Cream Ramen
Germany has a chanterelle season in late summer and early fall that is treated with the seriousness of a natural event, because it is one. Pfifferlinge, as they're called there, come up in specific forests and are gathered by specific people who have been gathering in those specific forests for generations and are not going to tell you where. What they do tell you is that chanterelles should be cooked in butter, finished with cream, seasoned carefully, and served over something that will absorb the sauce. Traditionally that's Spätzle or egg noodles. In this bowl it's ramen, because ramen absorbs cream sauce with the same enthusiasm it absorbs broth, and the texture holds up in a way that pasta sometimes doesn't.
Pfifferlinge gold—cream pulls the forest inside—butter seals the door
Let Me Tell You...
There's a German word, Waldeinsamkeit, that translates roughly to the feeling of being alone in the woods and finding it peaceful rather than scary.
Chanterelles are the food version of that word. They smell like the forest floor in the best possible way, apricots and damp earth and something green and ancient, and cooking them in butter amplifies everything until your kitchen stops being a kitchen and becomes somewhere else.
I've made this bowl in January from frozen chanterelles and still managed to feel something close to what the word describes, which is impressive for a saucepan on a Tuesday evening.
They absorb water quickly and won't brown.
Use a soft brush or a slightly damp cloth to clean them.
The cream sauce comes together faster than any sauce has a right to.
You cook the mushrooms first until they're golden and the moisture is gone, then you add shallots and garlic, then a splash of white wine, then the cream, and by the time you've cooked the noodles the sauce is done.
The key is waiting for the cream to reduce slightly, maybe five minutes, until it coats the back of a spoon.
Too thin and it runs off the noodles.
Properly reduced and it stays where you put it.
It thickens more off the heat and the reduction concentrates the flavor, so salt at the end.
Fresh thyme is the herb that goes with chanterelles in German cooking because its woodsy, slightly floral note connects to whatever the mushroom is already doing aromatically.
It goes in at two points: with the shallots while cooking and scattered fresh at the end.
The second addition keeps the herb bright and present in the finished bowl rather than disappearing into the sauce.
Cooked thyme and fresh thyme taste different and you want both.
The bowl is vegetarian but doesn't perform restraint.
The cream is real and generous, the mushrooms are the main event, and eating it requires no apology for the amount of butter you used.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces dried ramen noodles (2 bricks, seasoning packets discarded)
- 14 ounces fresh chanterelle mushrooms, cleaned with a brush and torn into pieces
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 2 shallots, finely minced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/3 cup dry white wine (Riesling or Pinot Grigio)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, divided
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- Kosher salt and coarse black pepper, to taste
- Fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped, for serving
Preparation
- Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat until foaming. Add chanterelles in a single layer (work in batches if needed). Cook without stirring for 3-4 minutes until golden brown on the bottom. Stir and cook 2 more minutes. Season with salt. Transfer to a plate.
- Reduce heat to medium. Add remaining 1 tablespoon butter to the skillet. Add shallots and cook for 3 minutes until softened. Add garlic and half the thyme. Cook 1 minute.
- Pour in white wine and cook until reduced by two-thirds, about 2-3 minutes. Add heavy cream and vegetable broth. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5-6 minutes until the cream coats the back of a spoon.
- Return sauteed chanterelles to the sauce. Stir gently to coat. Add lemon juice. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.
- Bring a separate pot of salted water to a boil. Cook ramen noodles for 2-3 minutes until just tender. Drain well and add to the pan with the cream sauce. Toss gently to coat the noodles.
- Divide into serving bowls. Scatter remaining fresh thyme, chopped parsley, and a crack of black pepper over each bowl. Add optional toppings and serve immediately.