Chasseur Sauce
Chasseur Sauce is a traditional Elizabethan recipe for a classic beef stock sauce typically served with chicken. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Elizabethan version of Chasseur Sauce.
prep time
20 minutes
cook time
30 minutes
Total Time:
50 minutes
Serves:
6
Rating: 
Tags : Sauce RecipesBritish Recipes
Original Recipe
It is believed that this sauce was invented by Duke Philippe De Mornay, Governor of Saumur, and Lord of the Plessis Marly. He was a gastronome and a great protestant writer. In French
chasseur literally means 'hunter style' and this sauce was originally meant for badly-shot game that could be jointed to remove the arrow (and later shot shot) before being and cooked slowly on a range for an entire day. Originally the vegetables employed in its creation were whatever the hunter could find during his travels (though wild mushrooms are a frequent centrepiece).
Most modern versions of this sauce use tomatoes, which would not have been in the original. I have included tomatoes in the recipe below as an optional extra; dependent on how authentic you want to be with this sauce. Note that more modern versions use the mother sauce, demi-glace as the basis for this sauce; though meat stock would have been employed in the original form just as it still is in German Jager Soße (German Hunter's Sauce).
Modern Redaction
Ingredients:
20ml strong beef or
venison stock
40g butter
100g minced white mushrooms
1 shallot finely chopped
120ml white wine
[3 peeled and seeded tomatoes, crushed]
modern option
1 tbsp olive oil for frying
1 sprig
tarragon (chopped)
pinch of savory (chopped)
Method:
Put the oil in a pan and over high heat and add the mushrooms. When soft, reduce the heat and add the chopped shallot and allow to sweat for at least a minute. Add the white wine and keep cooking until the volume has reduced by half. At this point add the stock (and the tomatoes if desired).
Keep cooking at low heat for ten minutes then using a whisk stir-in the butter, tarragon and savory. Use this sauce with poultry and game. Serve immediately.