Mushroom Cream Sauce

5 from 1 vote

A rich and creamy mushroom sauce made with butter, olive oil, garlic, white wine, broth, and heavy cream. Finished with parmesan, and fresh thyme for the best flavor — perfect over chicken, pork chops, steak, or pasta.

Prep Time8

Cook Time12

Total Time20

Course: sauce

Cuisine: American

Servings: cups

Calories: 529kcal

Author: Liz Marek

Ingredients

4 Tablespoons butter divided
½ teaspoon olive oil
20 ounces mushrooms
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
3 whole garlic cloves
¼ cup white wine or rose
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup heavy cream
½ cup parmesan cheese
1 Tablespoon all purpose flour
2 teaspoons fresh thyme

Instructions

Melt the butter with ½ tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.
Add the sliced mushrooms and cook in a single layer until golden brown, about 4–5 minutes. Don’t stir too often.
Add the garlic cloves, salt, and pepper, and sauté for another minute.
Deglaze the pan with white wine and stir, scraping the bottom for a minute until the liquid mostly evaporates.
Add in the butter and flour and stir to make a roux. Allow it to cook for 30 seconds.
Stir in chicken broth (or vegetable broth) and stir until it begins to bubble.
Add in the heavy cream, and parmesan cheese. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat — not a rapid boil — to avoid splitting the cream.
Add fresh thyme, a little bit of Dijon mustard, and if you want that deep complex flavor, a dash of fish sauce.
Taste and adjust seasoning. If needed, add a splash of extra broth to thin it slightly.

Video

Notes

Ingredient notes: If using store-bought broth, reach for a low-sodium option, the sauce reduces and concentrates as it simmers, so it's easier to control the salt at the end than to fix an over-salted sauce. Any wine will do here except red wines. Any kind of mushrooms will work. I like crimini mushrooms because they are always available at my grocery store. Mixing mushroom varieties (cremini, shiitake, button) gives more depth than using just one kind.

Pan options: Use a wide skillet, at least 10 inches, so the mushrooms sit in a single layer instead of crowding and steaming.

Make-ahead and storage: This sauce is easy to make ahead for a dinner party. Let it cool completely and store in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Reheat gently over low heat on the stovetop, stirring often, adding a splash of extra cream or broth to loosen it back up. Freezing isn't recommended, dairy sauces like this one are prone to splitting on thaw and the mushrooms lose their texture.

Substitutions: Skip the wine and use extra broth instead if you'd rather not cook with alcohol. Swap the flour for a cornstarch slurry (1 teaspoon cornstarch plus 1 Tablespoon cold water). Dijon mustard and fish sauce are both optional if you want to keep the flavor simpler.

Critical do-nots: Don't crowd the mushrooms or stir them constantly, they'll steam instead of brown. Don't let the sauce come to a rapid boil once the cream goes in, or it can split. Don't use pre-grated parmesan, it won't melt smoothly.

Nutrition