For those who love a good Espagnole Sauce and its variations, Chasseur Sauce is probably among their favorites. This brown sauce flavored with mushrooms and tomatoes goes down well with game meats. Making food like this usually takes some care but it has gotten a little easier over the years thanks to some refinements.
The following is a pretty straightforward resource -- complete with a recipe -- to a simplified Chasseur sauce. Although this sauce isn't for everyone, this is a learning experience that shouldn't be taken for granted.
What is Chasseur sauce?
Also known as "Hunter sauce," Chasseur sauce is the result of a tradition involving hunters gathering mushrooms to cook with their caught game. Content-wise, it's a derivative of Espagnole sauce which is made from combining the brown stock with roux over simmering heat. Sometimes, Chasseur sauce can also be derived from a Demi-Glace which in turn is another derivative of Espagnole sauce.
To make the sauce, the mushrooms are sautéed, then combined with shallots, brown stock, and roux to form the Espagnole sauce over a simmer. Often times, other ingredients such as tomatoes, herbs, and wine were added. When it came to the game meat used, these included deer, rabbit, and fowl.
Nowadays, livestock like beef and chicken are also preferred with the sauce.
A really simple sauce
Making sauces traditionally meant one had to start by preparing a base from the ground up. This was typically a stock that was prepared by simmering animal bones, vegetables and herbs in water for several hours. Afterward, the stock would be combined with other ingredients to be simmered again to make a sauce.
Nowadays, this grueling process has been replaced by a marvel known as stock/sauce powder; available in small cubes or large containers for simplifying sauces. The following recipe will take full advantage of Demi-Glace powdered mix.
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp flour
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 shallots, diced
- 6 oz chestnut mushrooms
- 3 tomatoes, chopped
- 2 cups water
- 3 tbsp Demi-Glace sauce mix
- 1 1/4 cup red wine
- 1 tsp parsley
Directions:
- Pour the water into a saucepan to boil. Heat the oil in a skillet or shallow casserole dish over medium heat. Sauté the mushrooms and shallots for 5-7 minutes or until soft.
- Add and stir in the flour for 2 minutes. Add the wine and reduce by 3/4. Stir in the boiling water and the Demi-Glace mix. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 2 minutes.
- To finish, add the tomatoes and simmer for an additional 3 minutes.
- Remove from heat, add parsley, and serve with meat of your choice.
