BLENDITARIAN CHALLENGE SERIES

Prelude: Blenditarian.Com has initiated a monthly challenge that incorporates their Blenditarian approach into creative and fun dishes.  To clarify for my readers, a Blenditarian is “one who believes the mighty, meaty mushroom makes meals more delicious, nutritious and sustainable.”  This approach stretches ground meat by adding finely chopped mushrooms to create a flavourful and more nutritious dish. The theme for the month of July is all about incorporating “The Blend”(mushrooms + meat) into a “Fiesta” dish. A fiesta is defined as a festival, a carnival, or an excuse for a big party or gathering. When I think of a Canadian festival, poutine is always on the list of menu items. For this reason, I am sharing a recipe for All-Canadian Poutine with a Blenditarian Twist. 

Skip to Poutine Recipe

Skip to Poutine Gravy

The Caramelized Pork, Mushroom and Maple Topping for the poutine incorporates the ‘blend’ in an All-Canadian way. It includes crispy bacon lardons and maple syrup that is used to deglaze the pan. Of course, the gravy that tops the plate is an important component of this dish, and you will find that recipe below, as well. Poutine gravy has a unique colour that is made from a combination of beef broth and chicken broth. This creates the iconic golden brown colour of poutine gravy.

All-Canadian Poutine with a Blenditarian Twist

CHEF TALK: In Canada, there are restaurants dedicated entirely to poutine and serve poutine with a large variety of toppings. I am going ‘to inspire the chef in you” to make this dish at home. I am excited to share my version of poutine – it incorporates many of my favourite Canadian ingredients into this tasty dish. Deglazing the pork mixture with maple syrup imparts a savoury note to the topping which pairs well with the mushrooms and the pork. If you have followed any of my other Blenditarian recipes, you will notice that I use Cremini mushrooms in my ‘blend’ because of their flavourful and ‘meaty taste’ when cooked with ground meat. For a gluten-free version of this dish, substitute the all-purpose flour for an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend in the roux (I use Bob’s Red Mill 1 – 1 Baking flour). 

The All-Canadian Poutine Components:

• Caramelized Pork, Mushroom and Maple Topping (recipe included)
• Crispy Bacon Lardons
• Cheese Curds (purchased)
• Chopped Parsley
• Poutine Gravy (recipe included)
• French Fries (your favourite brand, prepared according to package directions)
  

For the Caramelized Pork, Mushroom and Maple Topping

INGREDIENTS:

Yield: 6 – 8 servings total: 485 g meat mixture (portions based on 1/2 cup (60 g) each serving)

• 3 rashers (slices) of bacon, sliced into lardons
• 1 lb. (454 g) Canadian lean ground pork
• 8 oz. (226 g) Cremini mushrooms, minced
• 1 cup white onion, finely diced (approximately 1 cup)
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped finely
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice, optional

METHOD:

1. First, line up the three rashers of bacon, one on top of the other, and slice them into ¼ inch slices (known as lardons).
2. In a large frying pan, place the lardons and fry until crispy.  Adding a small amount of water to the frying pan will help to render the fat from the lardons and this makes caramelizing the bacon lardons quicker and easier.
3. Once the lardons are crispy, remove them to a small bowl. Drain all but 1 teaspoon of bacon fat from the frying pan.
4. In the same frying pan over medium heat, place the ground pork, breaking up as necessary into small pieces. Allow the pork to start caramelizing (browning). Add the mushrooms, onions and garlic to the pan. Continue to cook the mixture until the vegetables are also caramelized. This should all take approximately 30 minutes. You are adding a lot of flavour with this technique.
5. Add the grainy mustard and cook for another minute. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Deglaze the mixture in the pan with maple syrup and stir to coat completely with maple syrup.
7. Taste the mixture and adjust the seasonings, if required. At this point, add the lemon juice, if desired.

All-Canadian Poutine Gravy

Yield: 4 cups (1 litre) gravy

For the All-Canadian Poutine Gravy:

INGREDIENTS:

• 6 tablespoons (90 g) butter
• ¼ cup (40 g) all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour
• 2 1/2 cups (575 ml) beef broth
• 1 1/4 cups (300 ml) chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ½ teaspoon onion salt
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons water or chicken stock

METHOD:

1. Make the roux: in a 2 – 3-quart saucepan, melt the butter and add the flour. Cook, stirring with a whisk or spatula for about 5 minutes.
2. Add the beef and the chicken stock, salt, pepper, onion salt, garlic powder and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a boil. Simmer for 3 minutes.
3. In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch and the water. Add this to the hot gravy. Stir with a whisk or spatula until the sauce thickens, about 1 minute. CHEF TIP: To achieve the velvety gravy/sauces that you will find in any higher-end restaurant, strain the gravy using a fine-meshed strainer.
4. Keep warm or make-ahead, refrigerate and re-warm the gravy when needed. Utilize the All-Canadian Poutine Gravy within 3 days. It goes well with almost everything!

This recipe has been adapted from Canada’s Favourite Recipes (circa 2012) and Seasons and Suppers

Assembly of the All-Canadian Poutine:

1. Before poutine assembly, you will need to have the components ready and warm (i.e. gravy should be hot; the bacon lardons warm and crispy in a small bowl; the French fries prepared and seasoned according to manufacturers directions (approximately 4 oz. (115 g) per person; one batch of Caramelized Pork, Mushroom and Maple Topping; the cheese curds in a small bowl; and the chopped parsley for garnish.
2. Serve the poutine individually or family style on a platter by plating in this order: a layer of seasoned French fries; top with a portion of Caramelized Pork, Mushroom and Maple topping; then cheese curds, and drizzle with plenty of All-Canadian gravy. Sprinkle with bacon lardons and garnish with parsley. Serve hot! Enjoy!

You Might Also Enjoy:

Homemade Grape Tomato Ketchup

My Mom’s Famous French Canadian Tourtiere

Maple – A Timeless Canadian Tradition

Potlatch Salmon – A Canadian Cooking Technique

Bannock – A Canadian Fry Bread

LEARNING TIPS:  

Please CLICK the link above to access my Urb’n’Spice LEARNING TIPS, which are listed alphabetically on the Learning Tips blog post under the following subheadings:

• Favourite Kitchen Tools – The Simple Spatula
• Caramelizing
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If you try my recipe for All Canadian Poutine with a Blenditarian Twist, please leave me a comment below with your feedback.

You can find me on social media (links below) – just be sure to tag @urbnspice and #urbnspice so I am sure to see it. Enjoy! 

 

Denise Paré-Watson

The Urb’n’Spice Chef

 

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Sources:

The Canadian Living Cookbook, copyright 1987

Wikipedia – Poutine

History of Poutine

Seasons and Suppers