Oyster Mushroom Bounty
February 17, 2022 6:10 AM Subscribe
My local produce delivery folks left me double the amount of black oyster mushrooms than I requested today. How should I use them? I’m an omnivore and a good cook. What would take best advantage of the unique qualities of this variety of mushroom?
There’s not a super huge amount but I’m cooking just for me and it’s maybe two or three pounds and that’s a heck of a lot for one dish. Normally I toss them into curries, mix with pasta, kale, and a sauce with garlic, wine, and sour cream, fry in a mostly dry pan and sprinkle with paprika and toss with some butter for a side dish, or simmered in congee with dashi and kombu based broth and lots of add-ins. But all of these are just small amounts and are simple substitutions of one type of mushroom for another. Black oyster mushrooms have a unique texture and subtle flavor that I’m unsure how to tease out, and now I have enough to experiment.
I like all sorts of cuisines but am drawn to Eastern European, Korean, Japanese, and whatever you want to call a Pacific Northwest Mediterranean mindset kind of deal. I’m cooking just for me, I work from home and have plenty of time and access to lots of grocery stores.
There’s not a super huge amount but I’m cooking just for me and it’s maybe two or three pounds and that’s a heck of a lot for one dish. Normally I toss them into curries, mix with pasta, kale, and a sauce with garlic, wine, and sour cream, fry in a mostly dry pan and sprinkle with paprika and toss with some butter for a side dish, or simmered in congee with dashi and kombu based broth and lots of add-ins. But all of these are just small amounts and are simple substitutions of one type of mushroom for another. Black oyster mushrooms have a unique texture and subtle flavor that I’m unsure how to tease out, and now I have enough to experiment.
I like all sorts of cuisines but am drawn to Eastern European, Korean, Japanese, and whatever you want to call a Pacific Northwest Mediterranean mindset kind of deal. I’m cooking just for me, I work from home and have plenty of time and access to lots of grocery stores.
Best answer: Have you ever roasted oyster mushrooms? If I'm lucky enough to have at least a pound of them, I like to toss them with a little neutral oil and any seasonings that seem good-maybe sichimi togarashi, maybe just garlic powder, lately I'm obsessed with Trader Joe's Georgian Ajika seasoning- and roast at 400F until they're browned and crispy. The timing varies, but I find usually ~ 30 minutes does the trick. When cooked this way, a whole pound of mushrooms yields only a couple of ounces of crispy mushroom "chips," but I love the way it concentrates the oyster mushrooms' flavor. Great on top of congee, also great eaten straight off the pan.
posted by little mouth at 6:33 AM on February 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by little mouth at 6:33 AM on February 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
Best answer: I almot hate to admit this, but I would turn them into a bunch of tempura. I think fried oyster mushrooms are absolutely delicious and I miss the version made by Nute's Noodle Night in Bernal Heights, San Francisco (in case anyone can go and have some for me).
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 7:55 AM on February 17, 2022 [5 favorites]
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 7:55 AM on February 17, 2022 [5 favorites]
Send them to meeeeeeeeeeee!
We got this gnocchi/corn/mushroom recipe from Blue Apron and I still make it a lot. I also like Smitten Kitchen's mushroom lasagna.
posted by Dashy at 8:03 AM on February 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
We got this gnocchi/corn/mushroom recipe from Blue Apron and I still make it a lot. I also like Smitten Kitchen's mushroom lasagna.
posted by Dashy at 8:03 AM on February 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
Dumplings are always the answer. Whenever I have an overabundance of mushrooms, I make them into pelmeni, using this recipe from a local restaurant.
The filling can be as simple as just the mushrooms, but I tend to add in some garlic and onion, along with some fresh dill. They freeze great, and reheat in a pinch.
posted by furnace.heart at 8:16 AM on February 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
The filling can be as simple as just the mushrooms, but I tend to add in some garlic and onion, along with some fresh dill. They freeze great, and reheat in a pinch.
posted by furnace.heart at 8:16 AM on February 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
With that many, I would dry at least some of them. I dry mushrooms on a baking sheet covered with baking paper at the lowest possible setting in the oven. It might be just the light on. It takes a day or so. If you need the oven for something, just take your mushrooms out and do whatever you need to do, and then put them back in when the oven has cooled down. When they are ready, keep them in an airtight container, and use them for flavoring everything, soups, stews, sauces. Black oysters are quite good for this.
posted by mumimor at 9:39 AM on February 17, 2022 [5 favorites]
posted by mumimor at 9:39 AM on February 17, 2022 [5 favorites]
Best answer: I would suggest duxelles. It will concentrate them and thus intensify the flavor of the mushrooms. It can then be frozen and used as a seasoning, addition, or filling in future dishes. (My answer to too-much-foodstuffs problems is generally to look for ways condense them, like this, rather than make them go further by adding more ingredients.)
posted by jocelmeow at 9:39 AM on February 17, 2022 [4 favorites]
posted by jocelmeow at 9:39 AM on February 17, 2022 [4 favorites]
Best answer: kasha varnishkes (ingredient list at 5:30) - if you're not familiar with it, it can seem like a very simple, even plain dish. But the nuttiness of the kasha and simplicity of ingredients really let the mushrooms shine!
posted by carrioncomfort at 11:04 AM on February 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by carrioncomfort at 11:04 AM on February 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
I love this spicy Hunanese mushrooms and steamed tofu recipe from The Woks of Life. I love, love, love the flavor of the sauteed oyster mushrooms, and I absolutely love a recipe that lets tofu's delicate, grassy flavor shine.
This recipe showcases the flavor of the mushrooms well, so it would be a great place to use black oyster mushrooms.
posted by aquamvidam at 1:03 PM on February 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
This recipe showcases the flavor of the mushrooms well, so it would be a great place to use black oyster mushrooms.
posted by aquamvidam at 1:03 PM on February 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
Best answer: I shamelessly make these KFC style oyster mushrooms, and they are amazing. Just unpacked a pound from the CSA and planning to fry them up this weekend.
posted by hydropsyche at 2:10 PM on February 17, 2022
posted by hydropsyche at 2:10 PM on February 17, 2022
I made this Farro and Wild Mushroom Gratin earlier this week, and it was amazing. Reheated well, too. I've frozen the last couple of servings.
posted by cyndigo at 5:09 PM on February 17, 2022
posted by cyndigo at 5:09 PM on February 17, 2022
Response by poster: I’ve marked a few as best answer because I’m most interested in trying them but all of these suggestions are delicious and if you have more please share!
I often make duxelles but feel like it would eliminate the texture of oyster mushrooms but thank you for reminding me about it so I can get more different mushrooms from my local produce people as the winter continues and make it all fancy.
I should probably roast a small amount just to really experience their base flavor and I have a whole drawer of spices to try out. I’ve got some shrimp boil spice blend from Penzey’s I bet would be magnificent.
Deep frying kind of scares me but I also have half a kabocha in my freezer and winter tempura is calling to me. I bet you are absolutely right about oyster mushrooms being great for this.
Similarly the kfc style fried mushrooms sound awesome. I don’t have nutritional yeast in my pantry and that is a shame because it’s like guilt-free cheese powder and I think you’ve given me the perfect excuse.
And carrioncomfort, thank you so so much for that video link. I haven’t had kasha varnishkes in years, the last time was at a Jewish deli after my grandmother died. Watching that video it was like, oh god, I am DEFINITELY related to this woman, if not by blood then by spirit. I too cook instinctually and she sounded like my grandpa. Aaaaahhhh emotions~
posted by Mizu at 5:23 AM on February 18, 2022
I often make duxelles but feel like it would eliminate the texture of oyster mushrooms but thank you for reminding me about it so I can get more different mushrooms from my local produce people as the winter continues and make it all fancy.
I should probably roast a small amount just to really experience their base flavor and I have a whole drawer of spices to try out. I’ve got some shrimp boil spice blend from Penzey’s I bet would be magnificent.
Deep frying kind of scares me but I also have half a kabocha in my freezer and winter tempura is calling to me. I bet you are absolutely right about oyster mushrooms being great for this.
Similarly the kfc style fried mushrooms sound awesome. I don’t have nutritional yeast in my pantry and that is a shame because it’s like guilt-free cheese powder and I think you’ve given me the perfect excuse.
And carrioncomfort, thank you so so much for that video link. I haven’t had kasha varnishkes in years, the last time was at a Jewish deli after my grandmother died. Watching that video it was like, oh god, I am DEFINITELY related to this woman, if not by blood then by spirit. I too cook instinctually and she sounded like my grandpa. Aaaaahhhh emotions~
posted by Mizu at 5:23 AM on February 18, 2022
Similar to the KFC style above, I make a "vegan fried chicken" sandwich with something like that, but instead of deep frying, I do it in my air fryer and it works out great. (This video was my starting point.)
posted by pixiecrinkle at 7:51 AM on February 18, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by pixiecrinkle at 7:51 AM on February 18, 2022 [1 favorite]
Do you still have mushrooms? I just saw this on The Guardian, and it looks delicious.
posted by mumimor at 7:32 AM on February 19, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by mumimor at 7:32 AM on February 19, 2022 [1 favorite]
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I used mushrooms I had on hand and it was pretty delicious.
posted by papayaninja at 6:23 AM on February 17, 2022 [1 favorite]