Mushrooms: From one chef’s passion, a trove of irresistible tastes

  • By T. Susan Chang, Special to The Washington Post
  • Thursday, March 19, 2015 5:30pm
  • Life

Every once in a while, a cookbook comes along that you realize you’ve needed for years. “Shroom: Mind-Bendingly Good Recipes for Cultivated and Wild Mushrooms,” by Seattle’s Becky Selengut, is that kind of book. The private chef, cooking teacher and author of “Good Fish” has a clear and disarming style. Her passion for woodsy treasures underfoot is infectious.

Plenty of mushroom books on the market focus on how to hunt down and identify the scores of varieties, or they tantalize readers with recipes calling for the ones most difficult to find. Selengut, however, skips the foraging instructions and zeros in on 15 commonly available species. (I would be surprised if you couldn’t find at least eight of them, growing wild and at markets, no matter where you live.) Then she works them for all they’re worth, drawing deep for flavor and casting wide for multicultural flavor influences, which makes for an irresistible blend of practicality and romance.

Fresh porcinis and lobster mushrooms are stubbornly scarce where I live, and black truffles stubbornly expensive. Even so, the sheer abundance of good-looking and doable recipes for more-common specimens in this book inspired me to undertake a veritable testing spree.

Portobellos, creminis and button mushrooms act as gateway fungi in “Shroom’s” first chapter. A cremini-and-beef bourguignon bubbled its leisurely way through the hours into a hearty but straightforward stew.

Portobellos lent their beefy heft to tacos, loaded with cabbage-and-lime slaw and doused with a surprising cacao-chili sauce. The sauce hid an ingredient: dried goji berries, whose high-five dose of power sugar sent mixed messages in an otherwise messily satisfying dish.

Oyster mushrooms were new to me as a cook. I was happily surprised by both their depth of flavor and their reasonable price; check your local Asian market. Melted into a boozy ragout, they draped in savory splendor over egg noodles and would probably do the same for polenta or even pizza.

Selengut turns to the now-common shiitake to good effect in Asian dishes. Its dense texture and baritone character make a good match for soy flavors. Powerful on its own, it goes nuclear when seasoned with a soy dressing and porcini powder. The combination of an accompanying nuoc cham, herbs, rice noodles and charred shiitakes created a salad so unforgettable, I didn’t even mind that the parchment ignited when I broiled the mushrooms as directed. Next time, I’m using aluminum foil.

Hedgehog mushrooms stood in for meat in a chili studded with cashews; despite bold seasoning with ancho chili, oregano and fire-roasted tomatoes, it just doesn’t compare in flavor to a beef chili. The toasted cashews provided a pleasant surprise, though, supplying a hint of butter and a flicker of texture every few forkfuls.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Sarah Jean Muncey-Gordon puts on some BITCHSTIX lip oil at Bandbox Beauty Supply on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Langley, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Bandbox Beauty was made for Whidbey Island locals, by an island local

Founder Sarah Muncey-Gordon said Langley is in a renaissance, and she’s proud to be a part of it.

A stroll on Rome's ancient Appian Way is a kind of time travel. (Cameron Hewitt)
Rick Steves on the Appian Way, Rome’s ancient superhighway

Twenty-nine highways fanned out from Rome, but this one was the first and remains the most legendary.

Byrds co-founder Roger McGuinn, seen here in 2013, will perform April 20 in Edmonds. (Associated Press)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

R0ck ‘n’ Roll Hall of Famer Roger McGuinn, frontman of The Byrds, plans a gig in Edmonds in April.

Mother giving in to the manipulation her daughter fake crying for candy
Can children be bribed into good behavior?

Only in the short term. What we want to do is promote good habits over the course of the child’s life.

Speech Bubble Puzzle and Discussion
When conflict flares, keep calm and stand your ground

Most adults don’t like dissension. They avoid it, try to get around it, under it, or over it.

The colorful Nyhavn neighborhood is the place to moor on a sunny day in Copenhagen. (Cameron Hewitt)
Rick Steves: Embrace hygge and save cash in Copenhagen

Where else would Hans Christian Andersen, a mermaid statue and lovingly decorated open-face sandwiches be the icons of a major capital?

Last Call is a festured artist at the 2024 DeMiero Jazz Festival: in Edmonds. (Photo provided by DeMiero Jazz Festival)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Jazz ensemble Last Call is one of the featured artists at the DeMiero Jazz Festival on March 7-9 in Edmonds.

Kim Helleren
Local children’s author to read at Edmonds Bookshop

Kim Helleren will read from one of her books for kids at the next monthly Story Time at Edmonds Bookshop on March 29.

Chris Elliott
Lyft surprises traveler with a $150 cleaning charge

Jared Hakimi finds a $150 charge on his credit card after a Lyft ride. Is that allowed? And will the charge stick?

Inside Elle Marie Hair Studio in Smokey Point. (Provided by Acacia Delzer)
The best hair salon in Snohomish County

You voted, we tallied. Here are the results.

The 2024 Kia EV9 electric SUV has room for up to six or seven passengers, depending on seat configuration. (Photo provided by Kia)
Kia’s all-new EV9 electric SUV occupies rarified air

Roomy three-row electric SUVs priced below 60 grand are scarce.

2023 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE Premium AWD (Photo provided by Toyota)
2023 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE Premium AWD

The compact SUV electric vehicle offers customers the ultimate flexibility for getting around town in zero emission EV mode or road-tripping in hybrid mode with a range of 440 miles and 42 mile per gallon fuel economy.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.