My cheesy baked mushroom dip recipe is a holiday game changer ~ the flavor is bold, and the texture is sumptuous in the way that only hot cheesy dips can be. Whether your holidays will be big and festive or intimate and cozy, you’re going to want this irresistible appetizer on your coffee table, trust me.
Baked mushroom dip falls into the why not have dip for dinner category, for sure
Earthy mushrooms combine with rich cheese to make an incredibly satisfying experience. The mushrooms are nice and caramelized, and the cheese sauce bakes up so silky and gooey (the secret to that is below, keep reading) When you dip into it, be prepared for some long stringy cheese pull action ~ and don’t forget the napkins!
Yes, I did post another cheesy baked dip just the other day (caramelized onion dip,) but I make no excuses. And btw, put the two together and you’ve got one heck of a holiday appetizer plan.
What you’ll need for irresistible mushroom dip
- a pound of fresh mushrooms ~ sounds like a lot but they shrink down
- Gruyere cheese
- Parmesan cheese
- shallot
- garlic
- Sherry, dry vermouth, or Marsala wine
- thyme
- mayo
- sour cream
- salt and pepper
Shhhhhh! the secret ingredient: sodium citrate (or a slice of processed cheese)
This is one of those chemistry in the kitchen secrets
the problem:
Fresh young cheese melts wonderfully, but doesn’t have enough flavor to come through in sauces, dips, fondues, etc. The most flavorful cheese is aged cheese, but aged cheeses like Gruyere, Cheddar, Asiago, etc, do not melt smoothly. And when you bake a sauce made with aged cheese (think mac and cheese or cheese dip) it can turn grainy, or split into a greasy mess. At the very least it’s not dreamily smooth.
the solution:
Processed cheese (like Velveeta or Kraft American cheese slices) is cheese made with other additives like preservatives, food dye, etc. Among those extra ingredients are emulsifiers, like sodium citrate, which facilitates smooth melting. It helps avoid separating or curdling, and creates a super silky texture. This is why processed cheese melts so eerily smooth and silky.
You can purchase sodium citrate online, and use it directly in your recipes, or you can add a small amount of processed cheese to create the same effect. Sodium citrate gives a cheese sauce made with high end aged cheese that ‘cheez wiz’ style (unbelievably silky) texture that you normally can’t achieve with better cheeses. Try it out and let me know what you think ~ I’m a believer! (Read more about it here.)
What type of mushrooms are best for a baked mushroom dip?
Honestly you can use literally any type of mushroom, but the easiest to find will be plain old button mushrooms from the produce aisle. You can mix the brown and white, they’re the same variety. They will develop plenty of flavor when you roast them on the stove top before folding them into the dip and baking.
If you’d like to use more exotic types like the ones below, just make sure you cut them or slice them into smaller pieces so they’re dip-able. You don’t want big chunks of mushroom, however delicious, in your dip. When you use wild mushrooms you’ll get an even more complex earthy flavor.
How to toast bread for hot dips
With a dip like this Fritos just won’t cut it, you need some serious square footage for maximum dip-ability.
- Take a fresh baguette and slice it into thin rounds. Don’t make the slices thicker than 1/4 inch for best results.
- Arrange the bread on a dry baking sheet and broil just until they start to turn golden around the edges…watch carefully, this only takes a few minutes. I don’t bother to flip them.
- If you like you can rub one side of the toasts with a peeled garlic clove, which will give them some nice flavor.
To make this dip ahead
- Make the dip up to step 7 in the recipe. You can cover and refrigerate the unbaked dip for up to 2 days.
- Leave the dip out on the counter for an hour or so before baking to allow it to come up to room temperature. Bake as directed.
How to reheat leftovers
If you’re just cooking for 2, you’ll have leftovers, but no worries, you can still enjoy this dip the next day. My husband discovered he loves it over chicken.
- You can reheat the dip in the same pan by covering with foil and gently heating in a 300F oven until it warms up.
- Smaller amounts can be microwaved, but start with 30 seconds and go from there, too much heat will make the dip split.
Variations you might want to try
- Experiment with different cheese combinations. You might try smoked Gouda, Jarlsberg, or even Brie! To mellow out stronger cheeses combine with Monterey Jack, mozzarella, or Fontina.
- Sherry can be switched up with dry vermouth, Marsala, cognac, or white wine.
- If you don’t do alcohol, use water or broth to deglaze the pan.
Baked Mushroom Dip
Ingredients
- 1 lb fresh mushrooms , (I used white button and cremini)
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 shallot, peeled and minced
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 2 Tbsp Sherry, (drinking sherry, not cooking wine)
- 6 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup sour cream
secret ingredient!
- 1 slice processed cheese, I used processed cheddar
garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F
- Brush any dirt or debris from your mushrooms, then trim and slice them.
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat, and, working in batches, add the mushrooms to the dry pan and cook, stirring often, until they have lost their moisture and begun to brown. Remove the mushrooms to a plate and set aside. Note: do this in 2 or 3 batches because if you crowd the pan the mushrooms will steam instead of caramelize.
- Add the butter to the same pan and allow to melt, then add the shallots and garlic. Saute for a couple of minutes soften, then deglaze the pan with the sherry. Be sure to scrape up all the good brown stuff from the bottom of the pan, it's great flavor. Scrape everything onto the plate with the mushrooms.
- Put the mayo, sour cream, cheeses, salt and pepper in a bowl. Stir to combine well. Break up the processed cheese into smaller pieces before adding.
- Fold in the mushrooms and shallots, making sure to get everything evenly incorporated.
- Turn into a shallow baking dish, I used a 10-inch ceramic pie plate, but you can use a gratin dish or a cast iron skillet of a similar size. Spread out evenly.
- Bake the dip for about 25 minutes, or until bubbling around all the edges and starting to turn golden. The size and shape of your pan will affect how long you need to cook your dip. Serve immediately with toasted slices of bread.
- You can make the dip ahead and refrigerate it, unbaked. Set it out on the counter for an hour before baking to allow it to come up to room temperature.
Notes
- You can double the recipe for a crowd, and bake in a 9×13 pan.
- Feel free to change out the cheese for your favorite. Try a smoked cheese like smoked gouda, or you can also mix cheeses like cheddar and mozzarella.
- Dry vermouth, Marsala, or white wine can be substituted for the sherry.
- If you don’t do alcohol you can even use a splash of stock or water to deglaze the pan.
Nutrition
Hi, Sue!
This dip sounds delicious! I want to make one of those “Christmas Tree Breadsticks” recipes and most of them use either a spinach dip or pesto filling. Do you think I could use this dip as the filling, instead?
Hey Julie, this dip has a similar consistency to spinach artichoke dip, so it should work.
This dip is absolutely delicious. I made it last night. It was a big hit. I found it took a lot longer than the 20 minutes prep time. Maybe I am a little slow. I will definitely make it again.
Great recipe . I just had some mushrooms and garlic already in fridge I cooked a couple days ago because they were going bad kind of added also some red onions because they froze in my fridge. Then mixed sour cream and mayo I used hellmans . I think it needs a little lemon juice but it tastes great. I also grated mozzerella cheese and one slice of kraft cheddar cheese. It was kind of difficult to grate because its so soft but not impossible. Then I baked it 20 min. at 350 stirred cheeses together then finished cooking. I will definitely be using this recipe again I am the only one who eats mushrooms .
Delicious, took to happy hour and everyone wanted the recipe. I used Asiago cheese and Baby Bella mushrooms with a 1/2 of cup of chopped bacon that had been cooked and cooled. Served with toasted baguette slices.
Sounds yummy Dawn!!
Just a little tip for those like myself who don’t ever have processed cheese on hand. The deli counter at your local store will have a huge block of proceeded cheese. Just ask for one slice. Pretty inexpensive and no waste! Can’t wait to try this luscious decadent dip. Yum!
Just a suggestion: If you are not using any alcohol in this dip, use water with a very small amount of vinegar. In the past, I have done this, and it helps get that tang that the alcohol would add to the dish. Do not use much, because you want the tang, and not a definite vinegar taste. Just a thought.
I plan to make this dish for New Years.
Have a safe and happy holiday!!
Thanks for that Marilyn, and happy holidays!
If your readers don`t want to spring $20 for the sodium citrate they can sprinkle 1 tablespoon of cornstarch for every lb. of grated cheese.Then add at least 5-oz. of evaporated milk,after that just use evap. milk to thin it out your dip.The evap. milk has emulsifiers in it that does the trick,I got this from Kenji Lopez Alt over at Serious Eats for making cheese sauce that can go on nachos and queso dips.Makes the cheddar smooth and pour able,way better tasting than American Cheese.But hey some folks like Velveeta I get that.Happy T/G!
I’ve used evaporated milk that way and love the effect, but for me evaporated milk has a slight flavor that I don’t love. It’s amazing the tricks we come up with the get a creamy cheese sauce!
Hi Sue, So I don’t want to buy a pack of processed cheese for one slice. It is just not something that we use – no judgement though, Velveeta absolutely has it’s place! What will happen it I leave it out? Thank you
Haha, I don’t use it either, the only reason I had it was that Instacart sent me some by mistake. I ended up happy I had some, though 🙂 You can leave it out and it will be fine. The little bit of processed cheese just helps make the sauce extra creamy, but not necessary by any means.
I LOVE your recipes. There are very few that fail to please. BUT … please please please do NOT promote “big and festive” for the holidays. Corona virus is running rampant and we need to be very very cautious in our get togethers this year. Thank you again for your recipes… please edit and let’s stick with “intimate and cozy” for this year. xo
Hey Brooke, keep in mind that some of us have large immediate families that will be together this holiday season, that’s all I meant. I am super cautious about Covid and would never want to suggest that anyone take risks this year, for sure.
Indeed. Take care everyone!!! … one thing is for sure Sue… your recipes give a lot of comfort . They are all very well put together. Thanks 🙂
Oh Sue! What’s not to like about this recipe?! Excellent hot and melted cheeses, mushrooms, sour cream, a splash of sherry! I’m dying to try it out as a holiday appetizer to keep those growling tummies at bay! Thanks. I sure don’t have to wait to rate this recipe 5 stars, Sue! Thank you for consistently coming up with THE best recipes, and your’s is the first cooking site I open on my email. Btw, hope you are enjoying your new home in the beautiful state of Wisconsin. Welcome to the midwest. Is that where you are originally from? If not where? I am originally from southern Illinois (StL metro area) and now live in Florida.
Thanks for the vote of confidence Sydney ~ I know you won’t regret your 5 stars 🙂 I’m originally from New York!