My cooking has been (unsurprisingly) hurried these past few months. Quick effortless meals are what I’m after: paneer kofte, flatbreads and mezze style dips for lunch with family, a quiche loaded with spinach, ricotta and feta, pressure-cooked curries and dhals, and of course, oven-roasted everything. Quick meals and sides without compromising on flavour.
This is one such: mushrooms—stalks and all—get tossed in a pan and cooked until nicely browned on the bottom. The deep sear concentrates their earthy flavour and also rids them of excess moisture.
Sherry vinegar is the star of the show here. It brings a complex, nutty depth to the mushrooms without being too vinegary like your regular white and red vinegars, and too cloying and overpowering like balsamic. Cook out the vinegar until all that remains of it is a glossy coat on the mushrooms. Stir in a knob of butter and parsley to finish. I know sherry vinegar is not an everyday ingredient but it’s come to become a staple in my kitchen. It adds a certain depth to dishes that makes it almost a cheat’s ingredient, you know?
MUSHROOMS WITH SHERRY VINEGAR
Ingredients
- 600 grams button mushrooms
- 7 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar (see notes)
- 2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon ground pepper (coarsely ground, preferably)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 10 grams butter
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- Try finding small button mushrooms for this recipe. Rinse the mushrooms. Place them (stalks intact) in a large, wide pan over high heat.
- Add olive oil, salt and pepper and shake the pan to disperse. Let the mushrooms sit undisturbed until they start to colour on the bottom.
- Shake the pan a few times to ensure that the overlapping mushrooms touch the surface of the pan. Keep the heat on high the whole time.
- When browned on both sides and all their juices have evaporated, add the garlic to the pan and cook for 30 seconds.
- Pour in the sherry vinegar and turn the heat down to medium. Stir and cook until the vinegar evaporates and only just coats the mushrooms. Add parsley and butter and stir through for 1 min. Serve warm or at room temperature.
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