Cast Iron Skillet Broasted Oyster Mus

Oyster mushrooms, whether wild foraged or cultivated, are just plain great in the pan and even better in your stomach. Most foragers in the Pacific Northwest wait until fall to hunt for wild oyster mushrooms (pleurotus ostreatus) growing on trees throughout the dank, lush forests. Shortly after the first rains of the season you can find basket loads of the delicate snow-grey treasure growing on living trees and dead legs in shelf like clusters. These days almost every designer grocery store will carry cultivated oyster mushrooms, and if you are lucky enough to have a mushroom farm close to you, you may be able to find them at your local farmers market or directly from the farm. Then it’s time to break out that old school cast-iron skillet. Yeah, that one.

Oyster mushrooms are known to contain a number of substances thought to influence your health and have been linked to helping to treat diabetes, high cholesterol, and respiratory infections. In addition, oyster mushrooms have been reported to help stimulate the immune system to help protect against some forms of cancer. The Journal of Physiology and Biochemistry and The Journal of Traditional and Contemporary Medicine have both reported the results of their recent research and studies. I’m glad to know that oyster mushrooms have been used for thousands of years as a culinary and medicinal ingredient. Getting your fulfillment of immune-boosting foods such as these oyster mushrooms, ginger, and garlic is vital. They may also help enhance your immune system’s functions and we already know that they can be downright delicious. After all, boosting one’s immune system should be delicious, right?

My preferred method of preparation is charred and broasted in that cast-iron skillet I mentioned previously (smoking hot). The following recipe is super simple and incorporates other ingredients that reflect the same area and region that you would find wild oyster mushrooms growing. If you don’t have access to Douglas fir syrup you can use maple, birch, or shagbark hickory syrup with the same delicious results.

More recipes from Chef Carosi:

Recipe: Cast-Iron Skillet Broasted Oyster Mushrooms with Smoky Douglas Fir Lacquer

PREP TIME: 15 minutes
COOK TIME: 20 minutes
YIELD: 3 to 4 servings
TOTAL THC/CBD: depends on the potency of the products used
STATUS: delicious AF, as a side or with rice for a vegan meal

EQUIPMENT

• Cast-iron skillet
• Tongs
• Chef’s knife
• Cutting board
• Whisk
• Medium stainless-steel mixing bowl
• Foil lined baking sheet

INGREDIENTS

• 1½ lbs. oyster mushrooms
• ¼ cup peanut oil
• 5 cloves garlic (peeled + crushed)
• 3 Tbsp grass fed cannabis butter
• 1 tsp sea salt
• ½ tsp cracked black pepper

LACQUER

• ½ cup Douglas fir syrup (or maple syrup)
• 1 Tbsp chipotle paste
• 1 Tbsp chili garlic paste
• ¼ cup cannabis infused soy or tamari
• 3 Tbsp dark brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp hoisin sauce
• 2 tsp grated fresh ginger
• 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1 drop True Terpenes pinene

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Make the lacquer first by combining all the lacquer ingredients except the terpenes in a small saucepan, over medium heat, simmer for 10 minutes stirring occasionally then remove from the heat and stir in the terpenes.
2. Set lacquer aside.
3. Preheat a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat.
4. Preheat an oven to 450°F.
5. Break the mushrooms into desired sized clusters.
6. Add some of the peanut oil and a clove of garlic to the hot skillet and in batches char the mushroom clusters on both sides. Add more oil as needed.
7. When the mushrooms are charred, place on a foil lined baking sheet.
8. Discard garlic cloves.
9. Drizzle the lacquer over the mushrooms and randomly place nubs of butter on the mushrooms.
10. Mix everything together with your hands, distribute on the baking sheet evenly.
11. Turn the oven to broil.
12. Broil for about 2 or 3 minutes then stir and broil another 3 minutes or until golden brown and delicious (GBD).
13. Stir the mushrooms around to sop up the glaze.
14. Place on desired serving vessel, drizzle with remaining pan lacquer, sprinkle with green onions or chopped chives.
15. Garnish with pickled magnolia blossoms.