The word ketchup - or catsup as it was often spelled in times past - once described a malay fish sauce (a bit like the Korean kimchi) and had nothing to do with tomato at all. There is a delicious irony though: the fish sauces all originate from chinese cooking and the cantonese word keh jup means tomato sauce today!
There are plenty of recipes around for mushroom ketchup -some originals from the 18th century and others updated to make use of such modern innovations as ovens, gas and food processors! My recipe is a bit of a mix up featuring flavours I like, varying quantities and cooking slowly in the oven rather than on the hob.
1lb 8oz Mushroom - the ordinary white ones are fine
3oz Dried Porcini Mushrooms - I guess you could use fresh ones as well
Coarse sea salt
6oz chopped shallots - again you could use red onions or even green onions
2 inch fresh ginger (chopped)
Clove of garlic
1 tsp Allspice - I've used ground but the berries might be better
6-10 Juniper berries
Glass red wine - I kept an unfinished one from a previous night - can't waste the good stuff!
Glass "mushroom water" - this is the hot water in which you've soaked the dried porcini
Half Glass white wine vinegar - I'm not fussy about this bit except not malt vinegar
Black pepper
On the spice front go for stuff you like - some recipes have nutmeg, cloves or cinnamon and you might think about replacing the red wine with soy sauce.
What to do:
1. Chop or slice the mushrooms, mix with plenty of salt and leave to stand (not in the fridge) for 24 hours. Some recipes ask you to do this for 5 days - I lack the patience!
2. Mix the salted mushrooms with all the other ingredients, put in a large pot and cook on a low temperature (150 degrees) for about 90 minutes.
3. Allow to cool and then blend - use a food processor if you'd like some little lumps of mushroom, a blender if you want it smooth. Cool it right down and then bottle - should keep in the fridge for a couple of months. (some recipes want you to force it through cheesecloth - definitely pre-blender recipes and I'm not a purist!)
Or you could use Heston's recipe (a right faff!)
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