Tarragon-Mushroom-Lemon Cream Sauce
I sometimes serve this atop grilled or broiled salmon. Would work equally well with grilled or sauteed chicken.
I sometimes serve this atop grilled or broiled salmon. Would work equally well with grilled or sauteed chicken.
- Carbohydrate 5.54203225 g
- Cholesterol 28.4515625 mg
- Fat 9.815540625 g
- Fiber 1.49949994921684 g
- Protein 1.764217575 g
- Saturated Fat 6.08093 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (82g)
- Sodium 51.85255 mg
- Sugar 4.04253230078316 g
- Trans Fat 0.683505625 g
- Calories 109 calories
Step-by-step
- Heat medium to large size flat-bottom skillet to medium heat.
- Add butter; melt.
- Add shallots, sautee for 30 seconds.
- Add mushrooms and sautee until brown on both sides.
- Meanwhile, slice 2-4 slices of lemon for garnish; keep the remaining 2/3 of lemon whole (for juice).
- Add wine to deglaze the pan (scrape any carmelized stuff from the pan into the wine), and add the fresh juice from the 2/3rds of the lemon.
- Bring heat back to medium high and reduce, stirring once or twice, until the wine evaporates and the mixture carmelized (2-4 minutes).
- Remove carmelized mushrooms and shallots from heat and add cream and chopped tarragon.
- Stir, and place back on low (or remove from heat altogether until ready to serve).
- Serve warm (ideally, immediately).
Unlike a traditional heavy bechamel, this pan sauce relies on wine reduction and high-fat cream to build body without flour. Such French-derived reduction sauces depend on precise temperature control to emulsify correctly. Keep these preparation parameters in mind while cooking:
- Slice the mushrooms to an even three-millimeter thickness to ensure they brown uniformly within two minutes of contact with the hot skillet.
- Scrape the bottom of the flat-bottom skillet thoroughly during the white wine deglazing step to dissolve the caramelized fond into the liquid.
- Reduce the wine and lemon juice mixture over medium-high heat for two to four minutes until moisture evaporates completely and the sugars concentrate.
- Stir the cream and chopped tarragon in off the heat or over very low heat to prevent the dairy solids from separating.
Store any leftover sauce in a sealed glass container in the refrigerator for up to two days. Reheat gently over low heat, whisking in a splash of water or stock to restore the emulsion.
