Moms Mushroom Ragu

My mom makes this mushroom dish every year for Thanksgiving. It is the one dish WE MUST HAVE or nobody is happy. Who would think a few simple ingredients would taste so good? We make alot so this recipe seems huge but remember mushrooms cook down alot. And then we save the leftovers in the freezer. ( Sometimes there aren't any!) I then use the leftovers in Salisbury steak gravy or tossed in with peas for a side dish, or used in omelets. I like it so much Ive started cooking some at other times of the year just to keep on hand in the freezer to use in my cooking instead of fresh or canned.

MOMS MUSHROOMS

8 lbs. white button mushrooms
1 lg. onion, chopped
1 stick of butter

Clean mushrooms, trim ends and slice (sometimes when I'm lazy Ill just buy already sliced ones if the price is right). Melt butter in a lg. 8qt. pot. Saute onions in butter till soft. Add mushrooms and stir. There is no need to add water but you do need to watch it the first few min. Cover with lid so mushroom juices can gather in bottom of pan. Once you know there is some juice, lower heat to a simmer and let cook for a couple hrs on the back of the stove. Yes it takes time but thats so the juices can be rendered then evaporated. You want the juice to be loose but reduced down to a nice sauce consistency. No it doesn't thicken but the reduction of mushroom liquid adds a nice flavor to it. I cook this the day or so before Thanksgiving and then refrigerate. I toss it in the oven to reheat that day with other things I have in there. Save the leftovers! Even the juices are great in gravies. And if you feel adventurous or like mushroom assortments , I bet this would be good with those too. (And yes you can cut this in half or quarter or whatever, this is just the basics here that I use).