March 02 Mushroom Stock question

[jena]

This may be a really stupid question. The mushroom stock calls for 1 whole garlic head, halved. You must leave the skin on it then? Do you chop it up any more to expose the actual cloves? Has anyone made this, and if so how did it turn out?

[MKSquared]

Why create more work for yourself if you don't have to?! Take off the outside of the garlic -- most of the falling-off part of the skin -- chop that sucker in half, and drop the whole thing in. (Have you ever roasted a head of garlic? Kinda like that, I imagine.) You strain it in the end, anyway, so you'll get all the little skin pieces.

Let us know how it turns out -- are you making the gremolata? I'm dying to try it!

[lorilei]

jena -
True -- don't bother chopping the head of garlic up in small pieces. The time it spends in the broth will be enough to extract the essential oils from the cloves and get all that good garlic flavor OUT!

Also -- there is a remarkable amount of flavor in the papery skin of garlic (when it it used for stock). So, don't peel it TOO much. You'll find it gives the whole brew a deeper, more complex garlic flavor.

Do review this when you get done!! I'm eager to hear about it!

[Peggy]

jena,

I have made the mushroom stock in the March '02 issue. I just took off the loose garlic skins on the outside and then cut it in half and added it. There was plenty of garlic flavor in the finished stock. It is wonderful, by the way! Wish I always took the time to make homemade broth and stocks but usually Swansons wins in my house because of lack of time!

Peggy

[karen w]

I also made the mushroom stock for the mushroom stew with gremolata. I just took off the loose skin(but not all of the papery skin), cut the garlic head in half, and dumped it in there. It was a wonderful, rich tasting stock. I did pick out the porcinis, and added them back to the stock because those suckers are too good (and too expensive!) to waste. And afterall, it was going to be used for mushroom stew anyway. I reviewed the stew on another thread, but I would highly recommend it. It was very earthy, hearty, and YUMMY tasting. We had it over the polenta recipe featured in the same section, and it was the perfect combination.

Karen