beXnlog

Mushrooms in the House

The mushroom is all the rage again chez be! A few weeks ago we picked up a sandwich-sized ziplock bag of enoki mushrooms for $3 and a 1/2 lb of criminis for $2 at the Farmers' Market. Neither of us had ever eaten enoki mushrooms, but i ended up quickly sauteeing them with a minute amount of toasted sesame oil + soy sauce = super tasty with a slick, almost noodle-like consistency. With our newest bag of enokis, some were added to bowls of light yellow miso soup with wakame seaweed. Very tasty indeed.

As for the criminis (aka baby portabellas), i cooked them in aluminum foil packets. This method keeps in all the juices while steaming and searing them at the same time. Try it out, it's super easy and always delicious!

bebe's Foil Packet Mushrooms

1/2 lb mushrooms (i used crimini)
1 T butter
1-2 cloves garlic, chopped
salt and freshly ground pepper
2 sheets aluminum foil
a gas range

Brush or wash the mushrooms. If using large caps cut into halves or quarters, otherwise leave average-sized mushrooms whole. Slice off the dry portion of the stem and discard. Divide mushrooms into 2 piles and arrange in the middle of each piece of aluminum foil. Dot with butter, sprinkle with garlic and season to taste with salt and pepper. Fold two long ends of the foil together and crimp, then fold and crimp sides - you should have a nice rectangular "packet" with the mushrooms loosely inside. Place directly over the gas burner on very low heat. You should be able to hear the butter sizzle but the flames shouldn't be engulfing the packet. In about 5-8 minutes you should see steam escaping from the packet. Leave on for another 1-3 minutes and remove from the heat using tongs or an oven mitt. When you open the packet be VERY careful and steer clear of steam. I usually open the packet along the fold in the middle and serve it in the foil with the mushroom juices for dipping. Note by leaving it on the burner a little while longer, the mushrooms get a bit smoky which is how we like em! I suppose you could also easily do this on an outdoor grill.

And on a final mushroom note, i was very disappointed to miss Wildman Steve Brill's mushrooming adventure in Forest Park this past weekend! I learned about it too late to take part (and it probably got cancelled due to the rain anyways) but this year i'm definitely making it to at least one of his foraging walks.

posted by beXn @ 11:41 PM