Duxelles

5 from 2 votes

Duxelles, pronounced "duk' sel", are an intensely flavored mixture of finely chopped mushrooms and shallots. Named after the 17th French Marquis d'Uxelles, Duxelles are easy to prepare. They will take a whole host of dishes to the next level of deliciousness.

Prep Time15

Cook Time8

Total Time23

Course: Condiment

Cuisine: French

Servings: servings

Calories: 40kcal

Ingredients

16 ounces button mushrooms, quickly rinsed and dried (See Tip 1)
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1 shallot, peeled and minced, about 2 Tablespoons (See Tip 2)
¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
Pinch of freshly grated black pepper
2 Tablespoons Madeira (See Tip 3)

Instructions

Finely chop the mushrooms in ¼ to ⅛-inch pieces. (See Tip 4)
Divide chopped mushrooms into thirds; transfer mushrooms to doubled paper towels. Squeeze to remove liquid; let rest for several minutes and squeeze again. Set aside. (See Tip 5)
Heat butter in a 12-inch nonstick pan over medium heat. When butter has melted, add shallots and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until softened. Do not allow shallots to brown. (See Tip 6)
Increase heat to medium high and add mushrooms, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently until liquid has evaporated, about 2 minutes.
Add 2 Tablespoons Madeira; continue cooking over medium high heat until liquid has evaporated, about 2 minutes. Correct seasonings.
Yield: About 1 ¾ cups. (See Tip 7)

Notes

You may have seen that you should never rinse mushrooms because they will absorb water. In my experience, if you quickly rinse and quickly dry the mushrooms, they will absorb little or no water.
If you don't have a shallot, you can use 2 Tablespoons of finely minced onions instead.
Madeira adds a richness to the Duxelles. However, you can omit the Madeira or use Port or Dry Marsala in place of the Madeira.
You can use a food processor to chop the mushrooms. First, roughly chop the mushrooms. Then pulse process several times in food processor fitted with a steel blade to desired size. For some uses such as Beef Wellington, you want the mushrooms to be very finely chopped.
When you first try to squeeze the mushrooms, very little liquid is released. However, if you let the mushrooms rest for several minutes and squeeze again, much more liquid will be released. Also, the older the mushrooms, the more liquid will be released.
You should use a large diameter skillet for making the Duxelles. The reason is that a smaller diameter pan would result in the mushrooms steaming as opposed to browning.
Duxelles freeze beautifully when stored in an airtight container.

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