Firebird Chicken aka The Chicken From Hell

Holy smokes, this was good chicken!

It was smoked with hickory and cherry wood then glazed with a spicy habanero citrus glaze that lights up your mouth with flavor.

I'd like to claim credit but this one comes straight from Chef Bryan Dooley.  Bryan grew up on his grandparent's horse farm in Illinois, helping to gather hickory wood for smoking and watching his grandmother make her family recipe for BBQ sauce.  After training at the Culinary Institute of America in NYC and 13 years of experience at the Fairmont Resort in Scottsdale, Bryan decided to open his own restaurant.  

The result was Bryan's Black Mountain Barbecue in Cave Creek, Arizona (near Phoenix).  The place was designed with the feel of the "old cowboy west".  They smoke with pecan wood and serve the BBQ classics such as pork ribs, beef brisket, chicken, and pork.  Their sides include things like olive slaw, baked potato salad, and "six pack" cowboy beans.  Bryan's even has vegetarian options like the "Romain Ribs" and a pulled squash sandwich.  Yes, pulled squash.  I read about it on a Phoenix food blog and they liked it.  

I might have a business trip to Phoenix this year and I definitely have Bryan's place on my itinerary when that happens.  In the mean time, I made Bryan's Firebird chicken at home.  (If you can't bring Mohammed to the mountain......)

Photo of Firebird Chicken at Bryan's Black Mountain BBQ by Lauren Gilger

My Firebird Chicken - Not as saucy and no fiery habanero rings.

Firebird Chicken (aka The Chicken From Hell)
Source:  slightly adapted from Bryan's Black Mountain Barbecue - Cave Creek, AZ
[ORIGINAL RECIPE]

Ingredients

• 2 chickens, split into halves*
• 1 ounce BBQ rub*

For the Firebird sauce

• 1/2 cup BBQ sauce
• 3/4 cup honey (orange blossom if available)
• zest from half an orange
• juice from an orange 
• 2 habanero chiles, seeded and finely diced*
• 1/2 ounce fresh ginger, peeled and finely diced 

For garnish

• 4 green onion, thinly sliced on a sharp bias
• 2 habanero, thinly sliced into rings (Optional...probably not advisable) 
• 8 slices Texas Toast

Instructions

1. Preheat your smoker or charcoal grill to 250f set up for indirect heat.  I used my Big Green Egg with 3 chunks of cherry wood and 2 chunks of hickory buried in coal.  Plate setter in legs up, drip pan on top.
2. Season the bird halves with the rub.  Don't forget to season the backside (formerly it's "inside"), in fact, I season it extra heavy.  People aren't going to eat the rib cage anyway so you can't over season it and it helps impart flavor into the meat as it cooks. 
3. Smoke the chickens skin side up for about 3-4 hours until they hit internal temps of 160-165f in the breast and 175f in the thigh. 
4. Mix all of the sauce ingredients into a small sauce pan, bring to a simmer and then simmer for 10 minutes*.
5. Glaze the chicken halves while they rest for 10 minutes*.  You have to let them rest.  They've been cooking for 3 hours and are tired!    
6. Serve each half on two slices of bread*.  Garnish with green onion and habanero rings (if you dare).  Ladle remaining sauce over chicken.

Notes

• We used 4.5 lb fryers (remember when fryers were 3.5 lbs?).   You can ask your butcher to cut them in half for you, but it's easy enough with a large sharp knife.  Also, I brined my chickens for 2 hours.
• I used Albukirky Seasonings rub and sauce for this one, sticking with the Southwest theme.  (Kirk is a fellow Egger.)
• We have a moderate heat tolerance and two chiles was just the right heat. If you like hotter, toss in another and/or don't deseed them.
• Next time I might saute the ginger for a minute or two first.
• Next time I would glaze the chicken while still in the cooker when the internal breast temps hit 150-155f.  
• A "half chicken" is just way too big of a portion for us.  We do quarter chicken portions and I'm never left hungry.  I also skipped the Texas toast, mainly because we forgot to get some.

Hard to believe that just 5 ingredients can make such a powerful sauce.

It would also work on spatchcocked chickens but halves are what the recipe calls for.  Do whichever you  prefer.

Before the glaze - they smell so good already.

Liberally apply the sauce, don't forget to get up under the wings too.

Glazed and amazed....

We served ours with Robyn "GrillGrrrl" Lindars' Chipotle Cilantro Coleslaw and Texas Ranchero beans for an excellent meal.  The tender smoked chicken is emphasized, not covered up by the bold sauce, it's a nice balance.

Fire Roasted Chili Lime Wings

Can you remember the first chicken wing you had?

I don't mean a fried chicken wing left over because it was the last piece from a Sunday fried chicken dinner or a bucket from KFC.  I am talking about a real wing.  A chicken wing cooked for the purpose of being a wing, not an "also ran".  Like buffalo wings or hot wings.  My first ones were at Stadium Club where my friend Carson worked as a cook. 

It is the Third Annual Week of Wings over at Hot Sauce Daily, a celebration of wings.  Brian and Marilyn will be grilling up wings, reviewing wing sauces, and checking out all things wing related. Hop over there and check their wing-centricity all week.  

Here is my tribute to Week of Wings.

Traditional "buffalo sauces" have hot sauce, butter, spices and an acid, such as vinegar and/or Worcestershire sauce.  For this one, I relied on the lime juice in the Cholula Chili Lime sauce as the acid.

Fire Roasted Chili Lime Wings

servings: 4

• 12 chicken wings, cut into drummettes and wingettes, tips reserved for stock

For the dry rub

• 1 tsp seasoned salt
• 1 tsp turbinado sugar
• 3/4 tsp garlic salt
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flake
• 1/2 tsp black pepper 
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano

For the sauce

• 5 Tbsp butter
• 1 clove garlic, very finely minced
• 1/4 cup lime flavored hot sauce*
• 1/2 tsp of the dry rub

Instructions

1. Preheat a charcoal grill to 350-375f set up for indirect heat*.
2. Season the 24 wing pieces with the dry rub (reserve 1/2 tsp of the rub for the sauce).
3. Roast the wings on a covered grill for 30 minutes.
4. Flip the wing pieces and roast for 20 minutes.  
5. Meanwhile, melt 1 Tbsp butter over medium heat in a saute pan and saute the garlic for 2-3 minutes.
6. Add the remaining butter and dry rub, whisking continuously until well blended (another 2-3 minutes).  
7. Once the wings have roasted a total of 50 minutes, remove them to a large bowl, pour the sauce over them, and toss to coat thoroughly.
8. Roast the wings another 7-10 minutes, or until the sauce bakes on and the wings reach an internal temp of at least 170f.  

Notes

• I used Cholula Chile Lime Hot Sauce. 
• You can use your oven for this instead....if you insist.  Just remember, it doesn't taste as good and every time you use an oven instead of a grill, an angel loses it's wings.   Mmmmmmm fire roasted angel wings, heavenly! 

[Standard Disclaimer]  I received no compensation from Hot Sauce Daily for this post but Brian did threaten to boil ribs if I didn't post something wing related this week.

Grilled Portobello Tacos

I think I saved the best for last for Fungus Among Us week.

How do I know that?  Because it is obvious that my home is inhabited by "meat-a-tarians".  We love our meat. So tonight when I made these grilled portobello tacos I thought my picky meatasaurus kids wouldn't like them so I also made our standard beef tacos as a back up.  

To my amazement, after trying one, everyone opted for the portobello tacos over the beef ones.  Even me.  (Don't tell anyone....I don't want my BBQ Card revoked.)

The last topic of Fungus Among Us week is one easy tip.

Grow your own.

There are several advantages to growing your own mushrooms.

1. Freshness.  You'll get the freshest mushrooms you have ever had.  If you think "store fresh" is good, farm fresh or growing your own will blow your mind.  They have a silky taste and a texture that dances in your mouth.  
2. Exotic Variety.  You can get grow mushrooms that you'll NEVER EVER EVER find in your chain grocery store and probably not even local markets.  I've never seen a fresh oyster mushroom in a grocery store but a specialty like the blue oyster mushroom?  Fuhget about it!
3. Micro-farming (or should I say myco-farming...pun fully intended).  There is a big trend towards self sourcing food ingredients.  Gardening, canning, and heck, sourcing your own eggs.  But growing takes land or at least space.  Mushroom kits can be done just about anywhere.

Mushrooms can be grown on inoculated logs or even more easily, in grow kits of sterile hay in bags like this one held by Hugh Brewer.

Photo courtesy of Brewers Mushrooms.

All you have to do is keep them moist and in a mild environment.  I'm absolutely no expert on growing mushrooms but Hugh is.  Check out Tammy and his website for more info, it has tutorials on how to grow your own.  If you still have questions, they'll be more than glad to answer any questions you have.  If you're close enough, they can ship you a "ready to grow" kit.

Grilled Portobello Tacos

Makes 6 tacos

Ingredients

• 2 ea portobello mushrooms
• 6 ea white corn tortillas 
• oil for frying
• shredded cheese of your choice
• thinly sliced lettuce

For the marinade

• 1/4 cup oil
• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 lime juice
• 1 Tbsp Mega's Taco Seasoning (recipe from HotSauceDaily)

For the Pico De Gallo 

• 3 small tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 onion, finely diced
• 1 jalapeno chile, seeded and diced
• 2 Tbsp cilantro chopped
• 1 Tbsp lime juice
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Mix the marinade ingredients and marinate the portobello mushrooms overnight*.
2. Mix the pico de gallo ingredients and refrigerate for an hour before dinner.
3. In a small sauce pan, heat 1/2" deep of peanut or vegetable oil to 350 degrees*.  
4. Place a tortilla in and allow to puff up for 10 seconds.  Poke with the tip of a sharp knife.  Press half of the tortilla under the oil with a metal spatula and fold the other half over with a pair of metal tongs for 30 seconds.  Flip and repeat.  Remove when golden brown, season with salt and place on a rack over newspaper* or paper towels to drain.  Repeat for other tortillas.  
5. Preheat a charcoal grill to 375f.  
6. Remove the 'shrooms from the marinade and drain well.  Grill 5 minutes per side.
7. Have the taco shells already loaded with shredded cheese*.  Dice the mushrooms into 1/4" pieces and divide among the tacos.  
8. Top with lettuce and some of the pico de gallo.  
9. Serve with Black Bean Fiesta and pico de gallo on the side.

Notes

• I intended to do a 4 hour marination time.  Things happened and I cooked it the next night, worried the mushrooms might be over marinated.  Nope!  They were neither soggy nor "burned" from the marinade.  They were perfect!
• This is NOT a tutorial.  If you don't know how to safely heat oil on a stove top, don't try this.  Go buy a cup of hot coffee from McD's and pour it on your lap but don't sue me.  
• Do NOT use the online version of your newspaper for this purpose.  It will totally jack up your laptop, tablet, or smart phone.  I told you so, don't sue me.  
• The mushrooms cool off pretty quick so you want the cheese already in there so the diced 'shrooms are still hot and give a little melty action.   

I switched to a Glad zip top bag when I realized this was going to go overnight.  Works better for flipping and keeping it in the marinade anyway.

This series was written in conjunction with Brewer's Mushrooms.  It is a joint project with a local expert and is not a paid advertisement.  Hugh Brewer is trained in mycorestoration and Brewer's Mushrooms has been specializing in fresh gourmet mushrooms for years.  Brewer's Mushrooms offers fresh mushrooms at local markets, CSA shares, grow kits, and workshops.

National Pie Day

Taking a break in the Mushroom series for a quicky post..

Did you know today is National Pie Day?  Yep, sure is.  And you know I rarely do desserts but I know someone who does.

On behalf of Kingsford Charcoal, World Champion Pitmaster Chris Lilly has come up with some great recipes for coal-fired sweet and savory pies.   I've been fed by Chris three times, the most recent at 2011 Kingsford University, and every time I have been impressed.

I was going to make it myself this weekend but work and weather preempted that idea.  So I'll be lazy, use the "reprinted with permission" and just show you his! 

Photo courtesy of Kingsford Charcoal

Old-Fashioned Grilled Peach Pie
Pitmaster Note: In the South, mouths drool whenever fried pies are mentioned. Traditionally they are fried in a pan with butter until crisp and brown. To heat things up, I have taken the this traditional dessert to the backyard barbecue. By grilling the peaches prior to making the filling and then crisping the dough pocket over hot charcoal, you can make this Southern dessert a coal-fired masterpiece.
Makes: 8 pies
Prep time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:
For the Dough

• 2 sticks butter
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup flour for rolling out dough

For the Sugar Rub

• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/16 teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 pounds ripe peaches (3 large or 4 medium)
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 6 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 1 tablespoon oil

Instructions

1. Cut butter into 1/2 inch cubes and refrigerate. Measure the water and refrigerate. In a small mixing bowl add flour and salt and mix well. Add in the cold butter until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs. Slowly add water, mixing continuously, until a dough ball is formed. Seal the dough ball in GLAD® ClingWrap and place in the refrigerator overnight.
2. Sprinkle countertop or cutting board generously with flour. Remove dough from the refrigerator and place onto the floured prep area, roll out to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Cut the dough into 5- to 6-inch diameter circles. Removing extra dough from the prep area to re-roll and make more pie shells. Immediately peal, lift and flip the dough circles making sure they don’t stick. Yield should be 8 pie shells.
3. Preheat the grill using Kingsford® charcoal, until the internal temperature reaches 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
4. In a small bowl add the sugar rub ingredients and mix well.
5. Remove the pit from the peaches and cut each peach into 8 wedges and remove skin. Generously coat the peach wedges with the sugar rub mix. Immediately place the peaches on the grill grate for 2 minutes on each side, or until they caramelize. Remove the peaches from the grill and dice them into 1/2 inch pieces. Place the peaches and butter into a medium mixing bowl. When the butter melts, add the brown sugar and flour and mix well. Stir in orange juice.
6. Place 2 heaping tablespoons of peach filling onto the center of each circle of dough. Lightly moisten the edges of the dough with water. Fold the dough in half creating a half moon with peach filling. Gently press the pie edges together and crimp them with a fork.
7. Prep the charcoal grill grate by using a grill brush and to brush on a light coat of oil. Transfer the pies to the grill and cook over direct heat, uncovered, for 3 minutes on each side or until the dough turns a crispy golden brown. 
8. Remove from the grill and serve.

Notes

• Recipe created by world champion pitmaster, Chris Lilly on behalf of Kingsford® charcoal

For more grilling ideas for "pies and otherwise", check out Grilling.com.

Mushroom Swiss Burger

I tried to stay away from the totally obvious recipes this week for mushroom week but there is one I can't pass up.

The mushroom Swiss burger is a classic.  It's on menus, dinner plates and backyard grills everywhere.  

But first, it's mushroom week...

Today's topic is the care and handling of fresh mushrooms. 

Before I could understand how to care for harvested mushrooms, I had to learn about what happens to them once harvested.  What surprised me is that the mushroom is very much like meat when harvested.   At first, it's a lot like dry aging beef.  Enzymes react and start breaking down the mushroom into flavorful amino acids and the 'shrooms start to lose moisture, concentrating flavor.  

The problem is that occurs much faster than the long periods of dry aging beef, it happens in something more like 4 days (McGee 9489) instead of the month or more that beef needs.  After that, the process begins to shift from "aging" to "deterioration".  That is why buying fresh mushrooms from a local source is better than buying "fresh" mushrooms that you have no idea how long it took to get from farm to shelf. 

The good news is that you can slow that whole process with a two practices.

• Keep it cool, fool.  Refrigeration at 40-45f slows the activity of the enzymes and will prolong the life of your mushrooms.  
• Keep it dry, guy.  As mushrooms age, they will give up moisture.  While that does concentrate the flavors, moisture condensing on the surface of the mushrooms invite bacteria which begins spoilage.  If you buy one of those cellophane wrapped pack of mushrooms, take them out, and store them in a closed paper bag.  

Speaking of dry, that's another area of controversy.  I have read, heard, and been told a kajillion times NOT to wash mushrooms because they'll soak up all that water, be mushy, and bland.  So I was surprised to learn that it is fine to wash them in water as long as you use them immediately afterwards (FlavorBible 15282 and McGee 9490). 

Truth be told, I wasn't even going to post a recipe for this because it's just a burger.  Grill your burger, throw Swiss cheese on it and top with some sauteed mushrooms.

Grilled Mushroom Swiss Burger

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 4 ciabatta rolls
• 4 slices baby Swiss cheese 

For the burger patties

• 1.25 lb ground chuck
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp whatever signature seasoning you want to add

For the mushrooms

• 8 oz white mushrooms, sliced 
• 3 Tbsp butter
• 2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 1 Tbsp parsley, finely minced

Instructions

1. Preheat a charcoal grill set up for direct heat to 450f.
2. Mix the burger ingredients together and form into four 5 ounce patties about 1/2 inch thick.
3. Grill patties for 4 minutes per side. Top with a slice of cheese during the last minute.
4. Remove and keep warm.
5. Place a skillet on the grill and melt the butter.  
6. Add the mushrooms and cook 6 minutes, tossing frequently.  
7. Add the garlic and parsley, cook two more minutes or until the mushroom liquids are mostly evaporated.
8. Serve burgers topped with the 'shrooms.

Marinated Mushroom Antipasto Kabobs

For this recipe, you could buy a jar of marinated mushrooms from the grocery store....

Or you could buy mushrooms and make your own and they will taste infinitely better.

When you buy mushrooms, you not only have to decide what variety (porcini, shitake, etc) to purchase, you have to choose what kind to buy (fresh, dried, jarred).  So what kind is the best?  That's up to you.  Here are my thoughts on each.

Clockwise from left:  Dried porcini, dried wood ear, portobello,  dried oyster, shiitake, button, &  Green Giant.

Fresh Mushrooms

General:  Fresh is relative.  Store fresh is good but farm fresh from local producers is even better.  Days spent on trucks in shipping make a difference with fresh mushrooms.

Pros:  Better taste and texture, more nutrients,

Cons:  Highly perishable

Dried Mushrooms

General: "With a few exceptionas (chantrelles, oysters, matsutakes, drying intensifies mushroom flavor by a combination of heightened enzyme activities and browning reactions between amino acids and sugars." (McGee 9491)

Pros:  Easy storage,  easier to find exotic varieties, last for eternity, you can use the reconstituting liquid as a flavorful broth

Cons:  even when reconstituted, the texture isn't the same, relatively expensive compared to fresh by weight

Canned/Jarred Mushrooms

General:   If I do use them, I prefer to use ones in glass so you can at lease see what you are getting and you can store a partial jar. 

Pros:  Available long term

Cons:  precooked texture, lack of quality control in cheap brands, can seem slimy.  Probably are the reason that most people who hate mushrooms (cough - Jenn's Chris - cough) hate mushrooms.

Fire roasted mushrooms make these kabobs much more interesting to the palate. First, the lower temperature cooking (instead of sauteing or direct grilling) takes advantage of the mushrooms enzymes (McGee 9498).  Second, the subtle kiss of wood smoke brings out the earthiness of the 'shrooms.

Marinated Mushroom Antipasto Kabobs
Servings: 6 appetizer portions

• 12 ea white mushrooms, wiped clean and stems removed
• 6 slices hard salami, cut in half
• 12 stuffed olives
• 12 cubes of smoked gouda

For the marinade

• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp roasted red pepper, finely diced
• 1 Tbsp parsley, fresh and finely chopped
• 1 Tbsp stone ground mustard
• 1.5 tsp Mediterranean Spice Sea Salt*
• 1/2 tsp black pepper, ground
• 1/2 cup olive oil

Instructions

1. Preheat a charcoal grill to 300f and set up for indirect cooking*.  You could also roast these in the oven.
2. Mix the marinade ingredients together.
3. Dip the mushrooms in the marinade to coat them.
4. Toss a small handful of wood chips* on the coals and roast the mushrooms on the grill with the lid closed for 15 minutes.
5. Remove mushrooms and return them to the marinade.  Allow to marinade for at least 4 hours.*
6. Remove mushrooms from the marinade (reserve marinade) and assemble the kabobs on cocktail skewers.  
7. Drizzle with some of the reserved marinade

Notes

• Mediterranean Spiced Sea Salt is from the McCormick's Gourmet Collection.  Alexis bought a jar at Food City about a month ago and I've liked using it in several dishes.  You could substitute half kosher salt and half Italian seasoning.
• Instead of the normal ways of indirect grilling (offset coals, plate setter, etc), I used a ceramic pie pan as a heat diffuser.  
• Use a mild wood like alder wood or fruit woods.  Hickory and oak would probably be too harsh on mushrooms, overpowering them with smoke flavor.
• If you were just making marinated mushrooms and not eating them immediately, once you have marinated them overnight, drain the marinade and pour in enough olive oil to cover the mushrooms.  I will keep them like this for up to a week or more on refrigeration.

Quick bath before fire roasting.

My "quickie indirect grill set up".  

They are done when they brown and start to shrink, 15-20 minutes at 300f should do.

This series was written in conjunction with Brewer's Mushrooms.  It is a joint project with a local expert and is not a paid advertisement.  Hugh Brewer is trained in mycorestoration and Brewer's Mushrooms has been specializing in fresh gourmet mushrooms for years.  Brewer's Mushrooms offers fresh mushrooms at local markets, CSA shares, grow kits, and workshops.

Butter Poached Lions Mane Mushrooms

"It tastes just like chicken."

You hear that a lot when someone is trying to describe something to someone who has never tried it.  It is such a worn out phrase that people make jokes about it.

But when Hugh Brewer of  Brewers Mushrooms dropped off the Lions Mane kit and told Alexis that these mushrooms taste like LOBSTER, I was intrigued.  A mushroom that tastes like lobster?  Now I just needed some ideas for what to make.

Mushroom Flavor Pairings

I've heard people say that mushrooms go with anything because they have a tendency to take on the flavors of what they are cooked with.  But mushrooms actually are a natural flavor enhancer.  According to Harold McGee, mushrooms contain many free amino acids including glutamic acid, making them a organic source of monosodium glutamate (McGee 9473).   The flavor enhancer Guanosine monophosphate was first discovered in shiitake mushrooms (McGee 9473).  So they don't just "take on" flavor, mushrooms amplify flavor.

Gourmet exotic mushrooms offer a world of flavor possibilities with hints of things like cinnamon, pepper, garlic, pine needles, butterscotch and in the case of Lions Mane, shellfish (McGee 9481). 

Here are some common flavor pairings for mushrooms as listed in The Flavor Bible.  John "Patio Daddio" Dawson recommended The Flavor Bible to me and it quickly became one of my most frequently used kitchen tools.  If you develop your own recipes, you want this book.  It was money well spent for me ($17 Kindle edition).   These are only partial listings from the book but give some good general ideas.

Mushrooms in general 

asparagus, bacon, beef, butter, carrots, cayenne, chicken, chives, cognac, chives, cream, garlic, ham, leeks, lemon, oil, onions, oregano, parsley, peas, pepper (black, white), pine nuts, pork, potatoes, radicchio, rice/risotto, rosemary, sage, salt, seafood, sesame oil, shallots, sherry (dry), sour cream, soy sauce, spinach, stocks, tarragon, thyme, vinegar (esp balsamic, red wine, sherry), wine

Chantrelle - same with emphasis on beef and chicken stocks

Cremini - same and goat and parmesan cheese, truffle oil,

Matsutake - savoy cabbage, black cod, custard, sashi, fish, chervil, Japanese cuisine, mirin, other wild mushrooms, sake, shrimp, tempura, tofu, rice wine vinegar

Morels - asparagus, caraway seeds, cheese (fontina, goat, parmesan), chicken mousse, heavy cream, eggs, faro, fava beans, fiddlehead ferns, Serrano ham, lamb, Madeira, thyme, sherry vinegar, ramps, sweetbreads

Porcini/Cepes/King Bolete - almonds, arugula, brandy, cheese (fontina, garrotxa, parmesan), chervil, roasted chicken, cream, eggs, hazelnuts, Italian cuisine in general, mint, button or cremini mushrooms, pasta, arborio ric, sake, tamari, white truffles, balsamic vinegar

Portobello - cheese (manchego, parmesan, ricotta), mint, pasta, polenta, spinach, thyme, sun dried tomatoes (I personally like with fire roasted chiles, cilantro)

Shiitake - bacon, basil, brandy, clarified butter, chile peppers, coriander, Japanese cuisine in general, oyster mushrooms, onions (esp red and white), polenta, pork, spinach, chicken stock, balsamic vinegar, dry white wine. (I like fresh ginger too, they didn't list it but it works)

Since Lions Mane has a shellfish flavor, I decided to make a mock "surf and turf".  One thing I had read was that to get the most out of the flavor enhancers and enzymes, it was best to cook mushrooms slowly (McGee 9498).  Hmmmm slow cooked "lobster".......I got it!  I was going to butter poach the mushrooms and pair them with slow roasted beef. 

Butter Poached Lions Mane Mushrooms
serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 Lions Mane mushroom*, cut into 1/4" slices
• 1/2 cup clarified butter
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 1/4 cup chicken stock
• 1 large clove garlic, coarsely chopped
• 1/8th tsp kosher salt
• 1/8th tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp fresh parsley, finely minced

Instructions

1. Place all of the poaching ingredients except the mushroom and parsley in a small pot and bring temperature to 160 f over med-low to low heat. 
2. Add the mushroom and allow to poach for 30 minutes.  Add the parsley and poach another five minutes.
3. Serve over grilled steaks.

Notes

• I'm not sure how this would work with any mushroom other than lions mane since it has a unique shellfish flavor.  
• The mushrooms should poach for at least 30 minutes to get tender but will hold just fine over low temps longer than that.  Our older son didn't get home until an hour after dinner and they were still great then.

Alexis declared that these were the best mushrooms she had ever eaten and the boys scraped the last leftover bits out of the pot.  The butter poaching does give them a luxurious texture that I have to admit, does have a shellfish taste and feel.  The best part was when you would get a chunk of buttery sweet garlic and mushroom together in one bite.  Delicious! I served them with a slow roasted top sirloin but I think the mushrooms would be even better served with a nice grilled strip steak or ribeye.

Lions Mane on the grow kit.  Odd looking things, right?

The flesh is thick, white, and meaty.

This series was written in conjunction with Brewer's Mushrooms.  It is a joint project with a local expert and is not a paid advertisement.  Hugh Brewer is trained in mycorestoration and Brewer's Mushrooms has been specializing in fresh gourmet mushrooms for years.  Brewer's Mushrooms offers fresh mushrooms at local markets, CSA shares, grow kits, and workshops.