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Dominique Crenn’s Mushroom Foam Recipe

Written by MasterClass

Last updated: Dec 15, 2022 • 8 min read

Chef Dominique Crenn says that “we can use everything,” even mushroom stems in the kitchen. In this recipe, the award-winning chef uses oft-discarded mushroom stems to make a flavorful stock that serves as the base for her mushroom foam and gel. Confit cold-smoked egg yolks add richness to a dish she calls Essence of Mushroom.

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About Dominique Crenn

Dominique Crenn is an award-winning chef and advocate for sustainability and equity in the culinary world. Though she is now among the world’s most celebrated chefs, her path to culinary greatness was not without its challenges. After being turned away from many French culinary schools due to antiquated opinions about female chefs, Chef Crenn set out for California, where she forged her own culinary identity rooted in personhood, memories, and mindfulness.

In San Francisco, Chef Crenn opened Atelier Crenn, a three-Michelin-starred restaurant where diners receive a poem instead of a menu, with each dish represented by a line of poetry. Chef Crenn describes her food philosophy as “poetic culinaria.”

About Dominique Crenn’s Essence of Mushroom Recipe

Unlike plants, which need air and sunlight to grow, fungi flourish deep underground and produce mushrooms as a fruiting body that can spread spores above the soil. In this recipe, Chef Crenn celebrates and emphasizes the earthiness of mushrooms by charring onions and smoking eggs—which evoke the smells of a forest on a wet day—and reducing the mushroom broth down to its richest essence.

mushroom foam 1

What You’ll Need to Make Dominique Crenn’s Essence of Mushroom Recipe

Chef Dominique Crenn’s Essence of Mushroom recipe relies on simple ingredients reminiscent of her childhood in Brittany: leeks and mushrooms. Chef Crenn elevates those humble ingredients with a few specialty techniques. Here’s what you’ll need to reproduce this dish at home:

  1. 1. Agar-agar: You can trace even the most futuristic elements of Chef Crenn’s cooking back to her roots in Brittany. Agar-agar is a tasteless emulsifier derived from seaweed, which has a long history in the region. For hundreds of years, people in Brittany and Ireland have collected seaweed and boiled it in milk to create a gel used in custards and other desserts. These days, Brittany is the primary source of seaweed in Europe, producing the basis for everything from makeup to gelling ingredients like agar-agar. In this recipe, you’ll combine agar-agar with mushroom stock to form a mushroom gel with the consistency of a gelatin dessert. Learn about the difference between agar vs. gelatin.
  2. 2. Hibachi grill (optional): Called “shichirin” in Japanese, this cast-iron barbecue grill is ideal for quickly charring an onion for the mushroom stock. Chef Crenn recommends charcoal and applewood to heat the grill, but whatever fuel you choose, be sure to have plenty of ventilation if you grill indoors. Always use the grill on a stable surface where nothing can knock it over, and have a fire extinguisher nearby in case of emergency. If you don’t have a hibachi grill, a medium cast-iron skillet works well. If you decide to invest in the grill, you can use it to make many different dishes: Learn how to make hibachi chicken with Chef Thomas Keller.
  3. 3. Immersion blender: Also known as a hand blender, this compact handheld machine can purée or whip ingredients, including the mushroom foam in this recipe. If you don’t have an immersion blender, use a milk frother.
  4. 4. Lecithin: Gelling means forming a semisolid or viscous texture in ingredients by adding an emulsifying agent such as agar-agar (derived from algae), gelatin (derived from collagen), lecithin (derived from soybeans or egg yolks), or pectin (derived from apples). This recipe uses agar-agar to make a mushroom gel and lecithin to create a creamy mushroom foam. You can find soy lecithin online or in the vegan baking section of well-stocked grocery stores.
  5. 5. Mandoline: This tool has various size settings for finely slicing and cutting ingredients. You can use a mandoline to slice thin mushroom pieces quickly and easily, but exercise caution to avoid injury. If you’re new to operating a mandoline, wear a cut-proof kitchen glove or use the finger guard that comes with most models.
  6. 6. Precision digital scale: A digital kitchen scale allows for precision measurement of the weight or mass of an ingredient—expressed in pounds, grams, fluid ounces, or milliliters—down to the smallest decimal point. Place an empty container on the digital scale and press “tare” or “zero” before measuring the ingredients. Learn more about how to use a kitchen scale properly.
  7. 7. Smoking gun (optional): Cold-smoking involves exposing food to low-temperature smoke (about 60–120 degrees Fahrenheit) away from the heat source for preservation and/or to add a smoky flavor. A smoking gun is a device that can infuse smoky aromas and flavors without heating or cooking the ingredients. If you don’t have a smoking gun, use a roasting pan and aluminum foil to create a similar effect. Whichever technique you choose, you’ll need a quarter cup of applewood or other aromatic wood; here’s how to choose the best wood for smoking.
mushroom foam 2

Dominique Crenn’s Essence of Mushroom Recipe

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4 Ratings | Rate Now

makes

prep time

1 hr

total time

3 hr 10 min

cook time

2 hr 10 min

Ingredients

For the mushroom stock:

For the mushroom gel:

For the confit cold-smoked egg yolks:

For the mushroom foam:

For serving:

Note: The total time does not include 25 minutes of inactive time.

Make the mushroom stock:

  1. 1

    In a large stockpot set over high heat, bring the purified water to a simmer.

  2. 2

    Preheat the hibachi grill or heat the olive oil in a medium skillet set over high heat.

  3. 3

    Place the onion cut-side down on the grill or in the skillet, and char until blackened, about 5 minutes.

  4. 4

    After 5 minutes, add the blackened onion, leeks, thyme, and garlic to the stockpot.

  5. 5

    Separate the mushroom stems from the mushroom caps. Set the caps aside (you’ll need them to serve the dish).

  6. 6

    Add the stems to the stockpot, and continue to simmer. If the liquid begins to boil, you can lower the heat, but you should see steam rising.

  7. 7

    Simmer until the liquid has reduced by half and the color is a deep brown, about 1 hour.

  8. 8

    Once the liquid has reduced by half, strain it through a fine-mesh strainer into a container or jar, and set it aside.

Make the mushroom gel:

  1. 1

    Use a kitchen scale to measure 200 grams of mushroom stock.

  2. 2

    Use a gram scale to measure 0.4 grams of agar-agar.

  3. 3

    In a small saucepan set over medium-low heat, warm about a ⅓ of the measured mushroom stock until it simmers. Do not allow the water to come to a boil.

  4. 4

    Whisk vigorously while gradually pouring agar-agar into the mushroom stock over the course of about 30 seconds.

  5. 5

    Once the agar-agar is incorporated, immediately remove the pan from the heat, and continue whisking while slowly adding the remaining mushroom stock.

  6. 6

    While the liquid is still warm, strain the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a medium bowl.

  7. 7

    Portion the gel equally into 4 serving bowls.

  8. 8

    Refrigerate the bowls, uncovered, until the gel is set, about 15 minutes. You want the gel to be the consistency of a gelatin dessert.

Make the confit cold-smoked egg yolks:

  1. 1

    Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit.

  2. 2

    Place the egg yolks in a roasting pan filled with olive oil. Be sure there is enough oil to cover the yolks completely.

  3. 3

    Confit the egg yolks in the oven for 20 minutes.

  4. 4

    After 20 minutes, take the egg yolk confit out of the oven, and let it cool at room temperature, for about 10 minutes.

  5. 5

    After 10 minutes, gently touch the egg yolks to check that the exteriors are firm and the centers are soft; if necessary, return the egg yolk confit to the oven for another 1 to 2 minutes.

  6. 6

    Cold-smoke the egg yolks. If you’re using a smoking gun: Light the applewood or other aromatic wood in the smoking gun. Place the roasting pan into a container, such as a hotel pan, and place the smoking tube in the container. Tightly cover the container with a lid or aluminum foil, and let it sit for 10–15 minutes to smoke. If you’re using a roasting pan, place the applewood or other aromatic wood onto a sheet of aluminum foil, and fold the sides of the foil up to separate the food from the wood. Place the foil packet on one side of the roasting pan, and place the egg yolks on the other side. Tightly cover the entire pan with aluminum foil, and let it sit at room temperature or place it in the oven without heat for 25 minutes.

Make the mushroom foam:

  1. 1

    In a medium saucepan set over medium-low heat, combine 150 grams of the mushroom stock and the milk, and bring the mixture to a simmer.

  2. 2

    Once the liquid is simmering, remove the saucepan from the heat and add the lecithin.

  3. 3

    Season with fleur de sel or kosher salt to taste.

  4. 4

    Use an immersion blender or milk frother to aerate the mixture and create a stable foam, about 1 minute.

Plate and serve the dish:

  1. 1

    Use a slotted spoon to gently scoop the confit cold-smoked egg yolks onto a plate or tray lined with paper towels to drain any excess oil.

  2. 2

    Meanwhile, cut each cremini mushroom cap in half to prepare for scaling on a mandoline.

  3. 3

    Set the mandoline to 2 millimeters, and carefully slice the cremini caps flat-side down.

  4. 4

    Fan the slices out onto a plate.

  5. 5

    With a basting brush, lightly coat one side of the mushroom slices with olive oil, then season the mushrooms with fleur de sel or kosher salt to taste.

  6. 6

    Take the 4 bowls with the set mushroom gel out of the refrigerator.

  7. 7

    Use a slotted spoon to place 1 egg yolk onto the center of the gel.

  8. 8

    Use tweezers to arrange the mushroom slices on one side of the yolk. Leave a half-moon of negative space.

  9. 9

    Spoon mushroom foam into the half-moon of negative space opposite the mushroom slices.

  10. 10

    Use tweezers to arrange the nasturtium or other fresh herbs atop the mushrooms and the foam, then finish by sprinkling the confit cold-smoked egg yolks with fleur de sel.

Become a better chef with the MasterClass Annual Membership. Gain access to exclusive video lessons taught by the world’s best, including Dominique Crenn, Gabriela Cámara, Joanne Chang, Alice Waters, Mashama Bailey, Niki Nakayama, and more.