Mushroom Fever

By Lori Powell
For One or Two Bites, a blog for singles and couples

This past Memorial Day weekend, I stopped at a roadside stand and saw two gorgeous ingredients that I just had to have… the most perfect looking shiitake mushrooms and some flowering scallions that I had never encountered before.

Interestingly, the buds of the flowering scallions are similar in flavor to chive blossoms and like them, are perfectly edible. The blossoms have a slighter milder, if not sweeter taste.

I already had grilled salmon and burgers on the menu so I thought, why not turn these two lovelies into a side dish for the meal? Normally I sauté sliced shiitake mushroom caps but since I was going to fire up the grill anyway, I decided to grill the mushroom caps whole.

Shiitake mushrooms are a native of Asia and medicinal uses for this variety of mushroom can be found as far back as 100 A.D. in China. They are the second most commonly cultivated edible mushrooms in the world.

A possible health benefit to consuming shiitake mushrooms is that they may be able to fight the development and progression of cancer and AIDS by boosting the body’s immune system (although research does not provide us with how much of the mushrooms you would need to consume to be beneficial). Animal studies also have shown positive results in anti-tumor, virus-inhibiting and cholesterol-lowering compounds found in the mushrooms.

Not to mention that shiitake are super delicious! They have a firm, chewy bite because they contain less water than other mushrooms and yield a rich, buttery, smoky flavor.

To buy fresh shiitake, look for firm, dry caps with moist gills on the underside. Remove the stems and discard or use to flavor stocks, as they are too tough to eat otherwise.

A bonus is that since most shiitake are grown on logs, cleaning them is a breeze. Just use a paper towel to lightly brush the caps. Best ways to cook with shiitake are sautéing, roasting and grilling as in the recipe that follows.

Here we are using the scallion as a fresh, crisp green hit to compliment the smoky grilled mushroom caps.

To get the recipe and shopping list on your smartphone (iPhone, BlackBerry, Android device) or PC, click here.

Grilled Shiitake Mushrooms with Asian flavors
Serves 2

Olive oil spray
12 fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1 to 2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
2 lime wedges
1 scallion, sliced (green part only)

1. Preheat grill to medium heat. Lightly coat mushroom caps with olive oil spray. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
2. Grill mushrooms, turning, until golden brown and tender, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a platter and immediately drizzle with sesame oil and squeeze lime juice over tops. Sprinkle with scallions.

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