Thanks to a sale at the local grocery store, I found myself walking home with a 3-pack of Japanese mushrooms for $3! I was so bowled-over by the price, I forgot the fact that I was also packing for a one week trip to Sonoma. Since these mushrooms were clearly on sale for a reason, I put the odds of them being usable when I got back at next to none.
They say necessity is the mother of all invention. Well, I had 3 bundles of gorgeous mushrooms on my hands with almost no opportunity to eat them. Given that I often pickle vegetables when I know I’m not going to eat them right away, my mind immediately turned to preservation.
But pickled mushrooms?! No way! That’s when it occurred to me that these might be good sautéed, then marinated. Since they’re Japanese mushrooms, I decided to go with a Japanese style marinade. The soy sauce boosts the natural umami in the mushrooms while the vinegar makes for a tangy preservative.
The mitsuba and shiso lend an awesome cedar/mint flavor, but if you’re not able to find these herbs, basil and cilantro would taste great too. Better yet, if you do decide to go that route, try substituting the soy sauce for fish sauce and the vinegar for lime juice.
Units
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 packs Japanese mushrooms (such as shimeji, enoki, maitake, shiitake, or nameko)
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon dashi soy sauce (regular soy sauce will work)
- 1 red chili pepper
- 2 tablespoons mitsuba (chopped)
- 1 tablespoon green shiso (chopped)
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over high heat, then add the mushrooms. Stir-fry until the mushrooms are cooked and there is little to no liquid in the pan.
- Remove the pan from the heat, and then add the rice vinegar, soy sauce, chili pepper, mitsuba and shiso. Stir to combine, then add salt to taste. When the mushrooms have cooled, put them in a tupperware and refrigerate until you are ready to serve them.
- These marinated mushrooms make a great appetizer or side and can be served on noodles, on top of pasta, or just by themselves.
spinachtiger says
I just watched you on Chopped. I thought you did great and should not have been chopped. I would have sent the gal that forgot her sauce home. I think it’s awesome that you got to participate.
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Wow this is sooo delicious!!!) Can`t watch…..!!! Ufffff so nice!
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Thanks for sharing such helpful information. I think this is really a very nice post. Thanks for the great content!
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mmmmm…. I want to try it!
Mjskit says
These mushrooms and your marinade sound wonderful! What a find with those mushrooms!
Sarah Peek says
😀 i get to make this for my 18 birthday! Yay! I wonder how i could incorporate this in to oden?
Marc Matsumoto says
Happy birthday! While the flavors are a little different, this might make a nice contrasting dish alongside oden rather than in it. Otherwise if you just want to put mushrooms in oden, try filling a pouch of abura-age (thinly sliced deep-fried tofu) with some mochi and diced mushrooms, then tying the pouch shut and simmering with the oden.
Marilia says
hi i am marios from cyprus and i dont have idea what is the mitsuba and shiso can u help me i like japanese food but they have different name like miso tofu and more
Thomas Abraham says
hi i am marios from cyprus and i dont have idea what is the mitsuba and shiso can u help me i like japanese food but they have different name like miso tofu and more
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Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Marios, their botanical names are: “Cryptotaenia” (mitsuba) and “Perilla” (shiso). If you look them up on wikipedia you should be able to find all the information you need to know.
Tiffany says
I am so trying this on Saturday when I make my trip to the Asian Market. THANK YOU!
Hong says
I had just tried this one a few days ago and it was surprisingly refreshing and tasty! The process was easy and Marc’s instruction is just perfect! Thanks so much for giving us another item to enjoy!
Hong says
I had just tried this one a few days ago and it was surprisingly refreshing and tasty! The process was easy and Marc’s instruction is just perfect! Thanks so much for giving us another item to enjoy!
kathleenditommaso says
Marc, I have a serious problem w/your recipe:
#1: I love mushrooms
#2: I had problems getting these morsels past the saute stage to incorporate the vinegar for preserving.
#3: After putting the vinegar mixture into the mushrooms & tasting for possible correction…I met with further problems…that is — to leave any of it to the “preservation” stage.
#4: Assuming I actually am able to preserve these morsels, how long can I preserve them for?
#5: What am I doing wrong that I can’t get past problem #3?
😀
kathleenditommaso says
Marc, I have a serious problem w/your recipe:
#1: I love mushrooms
#2: I had problems getting these morsels past the saute stage to incorporate the vinegar for preserving.
#3: After putting the vinegar mixture into the mushrooms & tasting for possible correction…I met with further problems…that is — to leave any of it to the “preservation” stage.
#4: Assuming I actually am able to preserve these morsels, how long can I preserve them for?
#5: What am I doing wrong that I can’t get past problem #3?
😀