Louisiana-Style Chanterelle Hash

My pal Donald Link, chef/owner of Herbsaint and Couchon restaurants in New Orleans, is another chef I’ve deliberately infected with the mushroom-hunting virus. One day he called giggling like a kid to report that he’d just picked eight pounds of Louisiana chanterelles. I could hear loud thunder in the background because he was hunkered down under a porch in a thunderstorm at the time.

Donald let Sarah mess around with his great chicken/chanterelle hash recipe, turning this into a chanterelle hash side dish. When we pondered what this hash would go with, the list went on and on. I can’t really think of much of anything that doesn’t taste better with this fantastic has alongside. Make plenty. While recipe testing, Sarah’s ever-moderate sidekick Sam gobbled up nine patties.

Makes 12 Cakes

• 2 Large Yukon Gold potatoes
• 4 ounces smoked bacon (about 4 slices), cut into ¼-inch dice
• ¼ cup pure olive oil, plus ½ to ¾ cup more for cooking the cakes
• 1 cup finely diced yellow onion
• 3 large garlic cloves, finely minced
• 1 jalapeño chili, seeded, finely diced (optional)
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme
• 1 pound clean chanterelles, cut into ¼-inch dice or torn into thin shreds
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• ¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour, plus ½ cup for dusting cakes
• ½ cup Traditional Mushroom Stock

1. Place the potatoes, whole and unpeeled, into a large pot of salted water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until they are very tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. When they have cooled to room temperature, peel them and cut into ¼-inch cubes. You should have about 2 cups.
2. Place the bacon and the ½ cup oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Cook until the bacon is just golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the onion, garlic, jalapeño, and thyme and cook until tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the chanterelles, turn up the heat to medium-high, and cook until the mushrooms are tender and any excess liquid has cooked off, 4 to 5 minutes.
3. Stir in the potatoes, 1½ teaspoon of the black pepper, and the cayenne. Mix well. Sprinkle the 2 tablespoons flour evenly over the mushroom mixture, stirring to coat with the flour. Add the mushroom stock, stirring quickly as the mixture comes together and thickens, 1 to 1½ minutes. Turn the mixture out onto a baking sheet to cool. Pressing lightly on the mixture at this point will help to form firmer cakes.
4. Divide the cooled mixture into 12 portions and shape them into round patty-shaped cakes. Place the ½ cup flour in a small bowl with the remaining ½ teaspoon salt and the remaining ¼ teaspoon pepper. Dip each cake into the flour, coating it evenly and shaking off any excess before placing it on a baking sheet. Let the cakes sit for 10 minutes before cooking.
5. Place enough oil in a large sauté pan to come ¼-inch up the sides, ½ to ¾ cup. Place the sauté pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, place the cakes in the pan, being careful not to crowd them. You may have to cook them in batches. Cook until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes, then carefully turn them over and cook for 4 to 5 more minutes. Remove them to a wire rack placed over a baking sheet and them in a warm place while you cook the remaining cakes.

Serve alone or as a side dish.

Tips and Techniques

You can refrigerate the mixture overnight, It will help set it and make shaping the cakes easier. The cakes can be cooked in a mixture of olive oil and bacon fat, if desired, for a richer flavor. Vegetable or canola oil can also be used.

Substitutions and Variations

Canned chicken broth can be substituted for the mushroom stock. Use less salt, adjusting the seasoning at the end of cooking the hash mixture. Russet or new potatoes can be substituted for the Yukon Golds.