Japanese cuisine could never be just one thing. It’s a mixture of sitting in an alleyway eating street pancakes at 2am. It’s drowning yourself in the bizarre dessert of kakigori shaved ice. And it’s enjoying the posh and decadent ingredients like a maitake mushroom. Maybe that’s why I have been completely captivated by Japanese food for as long as I can remember. She’s different each and everyday… you never know what you’re going to get.
The “Dancing” Mushroom
Maitake mushrooms mean “dancing” mushroom in Japanese. How fitting, considering you are what you eat and as a self declared dancing queen… I could never get enough of these decadent little shrooms. Some other important things to know about maitake mushrooms…
- Also known as Hen of the Woods
- Pronounced “my-tah-keh”
- Has a woodsy aroma
- Grows in feather like clusters
- Considered a gourmet mushroom (perfect for all your fancy-shmancy dishes)
Dry-Fry Mushroom Method
If you have never dry-fry prepared your mushrooms, I think this will change your life (or maybe just your mushroom game). The method is really quite simple and the reward is meaty, crispy, flavorful mushrooms. Some of the issues you run into when sautéing mushrooms is too much moisture, and nobody likes a soggy shroom. So dry-fry is a great way to extract that extra moisture.
- Tear mushrooms into bite sized pieces. You don’t want them too thin or small, larger pieces are ideal.
- Turn heat up to med-high and sauté mushrooms dry with nothing in the pan.
- When they golden, turn heat down to medium-low and add fat. I use 2 tablespoons of plant butter.
- Once plant butter is absorbed, add in Japanese sake and sauté until the wine is completely reduced.
- Add seasoning of your choice. I just use some simple salt, since these mushrooms are woodsy/peppery- there is no need for black pepper.
