I improvised these on a whim and they turned out far better than they had any right to: deeply savoury, gorgeous on the plate, and surprisingly easy.

King oyster mushroom steaks
The thick, wide-cap king oysters, treated like a steak.

I was lucky enough to find king oyster mushrooms (cardoncelli) that were thick, about 3 cm, with really wide caps, around 20 cm across, so I treated them like steaks. You can also make this with large pleurotus mushrooms, but they’re thinner, so the timings change a little — you’ll find the adjustments in parentheses throughout the method.

Quick info

  • Servings: 2
  • Preparation: 10 minutes
  • Cooking: 20 minutes
  • Tools: baking tray, parchment paper, heavy 24–26 cm pan, spatula, tongs, (optional) pastry brush

Ingredients

  • 400g king oyster mushrooms with wide caps, 2–3 cm thick (or 500g large pleurotus)
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (1 for the oven, 1 for the pan)
  • (optional) ½ tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 knob of butter (I use vegan butter)
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 1 sprig of rosemary (or thyme)
  • Fine salt to taste
  • Black pepper to taste

Procedure

Prep

  1. Clean the mushrooms gently with dry paper. If the stem is long, trim it flush with the cap. If the mushrooms are very thick, you can press them lightly between two sheets of parchment, or flatten gently with a meat mallet (or a glass).

  2. Lightly score the surface of the king oysters in a grid pattern. Shallow cuts, not deep. (Don’t score the pleurotus: they’re thinner and tear.)

  3. Lightly salt both sides. Let them rest 10 minutes on parchment. Blot the moisture that comes out. (With pleurotus, 5–8 minutes is enough.)

  4. Brush with 1 tablespoon of oil.

Oven

Bake on a tray with parchment at 180°C fan-assisted for 10–15 minutes. They should soften without colouring too much. (With pleurotus: 170°C for 8–10 minutes.)

Searing in the pan

Dark crust on the mushroom steak
The dark crust from searing — the moment not to miss.

Heat a heavy pan over medium-high heat. When it’s hot, add 1 tablespoon of oil and lay in the mushrooms. Settle them and don’t move them for 3–4 minutes. If you want a more compact effect, press them lightly with a spatula.

Flip and sear the other side for the same time. They should form a dark crust.

Optional glazing and basting

(Optional) Lower the heat a touch and pour the soy sauce into the empty part of the pan. Let it reduce for 20–30 seconds. Slide the mushrooms over the thickened soy to glaze them.

Add butter, garlic and rosemary in the last 1–2 minutes. Tilt the pan and baste the mushrooms with the hot fat.

Turn off the heat and let them rest for 2 minutes before serving. Pepper only at the end.