Sauteed Corn, Green Onions, and Shiitake Mushrooms Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

Do you saute onions or mushrooms first? ›

Do You Sauté the Onions First? To keep the onions from cooking in the mushroom juices, wait to add the onions until the mushrooms have released their excess liquid and almost all of that liquid has evaporated. Once you get there, add the onions and let them sauté and brown in the fat alongside the mushrooms.

Special Precautions & Warnings:

“Auto-immune diseases” such as multiple sclerosis (MS), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), or other conditions: Shiitake mushroom might cause the immune system to become more active. This could increase the symptoms of auto-immune diseases.

Sautéed mushrooms with butter have their benefits, but so do sautéed mushrooms with olive oil. I use both oil and butter for a dynamic duo that pairs searing (oil) with rich, satisfying flavor (butter). (I also use both in my Sauteed Spinach.)

For this reason, the amount of Guanylate is maximized when the dried Shiitake is soaked in water at a low temperature of 10℃ or lower in a refrigerator overnight to produce a large amount of Guanylate. The Umami taste is maximized when the rehydrating water temperature is close to 0℃.

Add sliced onions and worcestershire sauce and cook, stirring occasionally for 3-4 minutes or until edges start to get a little brown. Add mushrooms and cook additional 5-8 minutes depending on the size of the mushrooms and your preference for doneness. Whole mushrooms will take the longest.

Cooking onions longer at a lower heat results in soft and golden brown onions. This breaks down the natural sugars, so the onions taste extra sweet. We recommend using butter for the best flavor.

Special Precautions and Warnings

Shiitake mushroom is possibly unsafe when used in larger amounts as medicine, or when the uncooked mushroom is eaten. It can cause stomach discomfort, blood abnormalities, and skin swelling.

Shiitake is not a poisonous mushroom. But may produce some side effects if not cooked well. Proper cooking reduces the effects of Lentinan (Beta glucan), a bio active compound in Shiitake, which rarely produces Shiitake dermatitis a type of allergic skin reaction, which usually subsides on its own.

Shiitake are rich in polysaccharides like lentinans and other beta-glucans. These compounds protect against cell damage, help your immune system, and boost white blood cell production for fighting off microbes. Polysaccharides also have anti-inflammatory properties.

But which one — butter or oil? Each is best suited for different kinds of sautéing: When cooking over very high heat, use oil, which is less likely to burn. When sautéing with medium-high heat, you may opt for butter, which adds a nice flavor.

Is butter or oil better for mushrooms? ›

Butter is great because it adds lots of flavor and produces a nice golden brown exterior, while adding oil allows the mushrooms to cook a little more quickly at slightly higher heat.

Should I salt the mushrooms before cooking them? Never salt the mushrooms before cooking. Salt draws out moisture and will therefore make them extremely mushy. We want a nice meaty delicious bite to them with color and texture, so salt at the end always.

In actuality, the stems of shiitake mushrooms are technically edible and are not poisonous. Still, most people choose not to use the stems because they have an unpleasant woodsy flavor and are too fibrous and chewy to eat.

Olive oil: I cook my mushrooms in the skillet with olive oil (I like how it adds a golden brown crust and flavor). Butter, garlic, lemon, and thyme: After cooking my mushrooms, I stir in butter, garlic, fresh lemon zest, fresh thyme leaves, and a bit of lemon juice.

Never eat shiitake mushrooms raw. Cook shiitakes for at least 5-7 minutes until they are tender and lightly browned. Mushrooms must reach an internal cooking temperature of 266-293 degrees Fahrenheit. To make sure shiitakes are fully cooked, insert a candy thermometer into the meaty center of the mushroom.

If sautéing more than one vegetable at a time, what vegetables do you sauté first? Start with the hardest vegetables first, such as sweet potatoes, carrots, or cauliflower. Onions also need quite a while to cook, whereas zucchini and squash need less time, and garlic needs even less.

To help cooks avoid burning their garlic, a lot of recipes call for sautéing other aromatics first, like onions, carrots, and celery, and then adding the garlic for the last few minutes.

This is the big one: Do not salt the mushrooms too early in the cooking process. Salting too early often draws out too much of the inherent moisture or liquid, which can be a bit overwhelming if you're a mushroom newbie making a large batch.