Easy to make a mushroom sauce out of dried mushrooms. I just reconstitute the mushrooms in hot broth. Beef or chicken. Saute some shallots or onion and garlic in butter. Then add some flour to make a roux. Cook the roux for a few minutes, add the mushrooms and the broth and season with salt and pepper and some fresh thyme or maybe some fresh rosemary, depending on how you want it to taste. Let the sauce simmer to meld the flavours. If you like tomato paste you can add a tablespoon to the sauce. And if you want it a little bit richer, add a little heavy cream as well.

You can also add some wine along with the broth if you want a mushroom wine sauce.

Ann

Im with Ann but I keep it simpler.

I soak the mushrooms in hot water for 30 minutes (or sometimes just zotting them in the microwave in water for 1-2 minutes). Take the mushrooms out, squeeze them, and chop them. Saute the mushrooms in butter, dust them with flour, cook the flour, add the mushroom water (and maybe a splash of sherry) and bring to boil to thicken. Salt and pepper.

Joe

We don't have access to outstanding quality dried mushrooms here, so usually after soaking them I find grit in the bottom of the soaking liquid. Be sure to check for any grit before using the mushroom water! You'll want to strain the grit out, or decant the liquid out leaving the grit behind.

I like the flavor but not the texture of rehydrated 'shrooms. I toss them in the blender after they are rehydrated and cooked.

I make it pretty much the way Ann does, except I never use tomato paste or cream. Also, I add the freshly ground black pepper to the aromatics and sauté them together - it gives the pepper a milder flavor. I use thyme, but never rosemary, and usually add a bit of Sauvignon Blanc in place of some of the stock/water. I also often mix fresh and dried mushrooms, but if I do, I generally sauté the fresh mushrooms with the onion/garlic, and I use olive oil instead of butter, or a combination of both.

Lars

I have read all of your post, very interesting. I don't even think that everyone make the same thing in the other way.
I make sauce in this way:
1) soaking mushrooms in water for about the day before using
(you can soak mushrooms in milk, then they will keep aroma and flavour and the milk form saoking you can add to the soup or sauce too if you prefer "white soup" of course, besides if you saok in milk mushrooms have the better texture --> to barnmom's post)
2) you should stew mushrooms in salted water in addition soaking water too (it keep flavour) and 2 tablespoons of olive oil
3) add chopped onion, pepper and a little marjoram and simmer
4) when onion and mushrooms will be soft, dust everything with flour (the cream can be added too). Be careful after adding flour - the dish like to stock to the bottom of pan!

Bon Apetit!

These all sound so good, but the one time I tried dried mushrooms (I purchased at an Asian grocery store) they stank so bad I threw them out. Is it normal for dried mushrooms to stink, or did I get a bad batch?

Sally

No sally, I use them often and purchased a tremendous container of dried Chinese mush. (shitake, I think) and they DO have a "strongish" odor, but cook just fine. They've been xln't in my dishes and it's prob. 5-6 years old.

arline