Crispy Potato Pierogi with Mushroom Ragout

Amarante

Tue, May 31 2016, 3:10 pm

This was rich but very delish and easy to make. I prepped the mushrooms ahead of time so the final cooking came together easily and quickly.

Crispy Potato Pierogi with Mushroom Ragout

Source: America's Test Kitchen - Simple Weeknight Favorites

Serves 4

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS: Frozen pierogi are a convenient alternative to making homemade, a laborious endeavor few of us have time to take on. Instead of boiling the pierogi and then pan-frying them as most recipes direct, we save time by baking them in the oven while we make a hearty mushroom ragout on the stovetop to serve with them. Brushing the pierogi with butter first encourages browning and gives them flavor. For a heady ragout that doesn’t require a lot of time (or a meat product like bacon), we use both fresh and dried mushrooms, and we use the liquid exuded by the cremini to rehydrate the porcini so no flavor is lost. We microwave the cremini and the porcini in two stages, then they go into a skillet with thyme, shallots, and Marsala, followed by cream for richness and chives for a fresh finish.

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus 2 tablespoons melted
2 16-ounce) packages frozen potato-onion pierogi
2 pounds cremini mushrooms, trimmed and sliced thin
½ cup dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed
2 shallots, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme
Salt and pepper
½ cup dry Marsala
½ cup sour cream
1/3 cup chopped fresh chives

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 500 degrees. Brush rimmed baking sheet with 1 tablespoon melted butter and arrange pierogi in single layer. Brush pierogi with remaining 1 tablespoon melted butter and bake, flipping halfway through baking, until spotty golden brown, about 15 minutes

2. Meanwhile, place cremini mushrooms in bowl, cover, and microwave until mushrooms have exuded their liquid, about 5 minutes. Drain cremini, reserving liquid in measuring cup. Add water to reserved liquid to make 1 cup total, then return liquid to now-empty bowl. Add porcini mushrooms, cover, and microwave until rehydrated, about 3 minutes. Line fine-mesh strainer with paper towels and strain porcini, reserving liquid, then chop porcini.

3. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat, add cremini and chopped porcini mushrooms, distribute in single layer, and cook, stirring once halfway through cooking, until deep golden, about 6 minutes. Add shallots, thyme, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper to skillet and cook until softened, about 1 minute. Add reserved mushroom liquid and Marsala, increase heat to high, and simmer, scraping up any browned bits, until liquid is thickened, about 5 minutes. Off heat, stir in sour cream and half of chives and season with salt and pepper to taste. Toss pierogi with remaining chives and serve over mushroom ragout.

Last edited by Amarante on Wed, Jun 01 2016, 1:58 pm; edited 3 times in total

Amarante

Tue, May 31 2016, 3:24 pm

tichellady wrote:

1. Is the shallots and porcini mushroom amount repeated in the recipe?

2. Do you think I could make the sauce before chag and then reheat it while baking the perogi on chag?

Thanks - I corrected the recipe as I had cut and pasted and got some double lines. Very Happy

I don't see why you couldn't make the sauce beforehand as all the ingredients would keep - there aren't any ingredients that would suffer from being refrigerated like veggies in a stir fry.

You would have to play it by ear in terms of reheating - not sure if microwave makes more sense or sautéing. If sautéing, you might want to use some butter and additional wine depending on how the sauce looks as compared to when it was made originally - I.e. does it need more liquid to achieve consistency. Sometimes when stuff is held, it becomes more solid.

Of course, I wouldn't put in the sour cream but that's added at the end anyway.