Lobster mushrooms: uses and recipes

[Gifted Gourmet]

Today, a friend of mine brought me fresh Lobster Mushrooms which have a gorgeous red-orange color, as well as a bunch of morels.

I have never made anything with fresh Lobster Mushrooms photograph here and found a couple of recipes but really would love your feedback on these ...

My questions:

* have you ever worked with Lobster Mushrooms?

* what did you use them in?

* did they retain their bright colors after cooking?

* how does one clean them before using them in cooking?

[Gifted Gourmet]

Just sauteed the Lobster Mushrooms in a bit of butter and olive oil, salt and pepper, and while they have a distinctly mushroomy taste and texture, I noted that they are also somewhat bitter. I think they need to be sliced more thinly and sauteed with onions perhaps next time. Will continue to seek answers to why they are supposedly so marvelous ... at this point, I certainly can't see this.

[canucklehead]

GG - I agree with you - they look great, but taste so so.

I thinly slice them and sauteed them with thyme, garlic, and butter. I cooked them for a while to get them to brown up - I found that they had alot of liquid and needed cooking out. I also agree with the bitterness.

Much more successful are the 'abalone' mushrooms. They cook up sweeter and really do resemble chinese-style abalone.

[eje]

I've never quite worked up the courage to try them. They are such bright "danger" orange.

However, I understand the interesting thing about them is that the orange color comes from a certain type of fungus which is a parasite on the fruiting structure of another fungus.

I guess there are around 3 different similar fungi which can act as host to the orange colored parasite. So potentially, depending on what mushroom was acting as host, I could see that the flavor might be a bit different.

I think, though, that the color is the main attraction.

-Erik

[Gifted Gourmet]

At least I now know that I'm not crazy! Thanks for reassuring me about them ... yes, color alone won't encourage me to re-purchase ...

at least I still have my morels ...

[mrbigjas]

last time i bought them, i played on the fact that they're called lobster mushrooms, and used them in a risotto which i made with lobster stock.

in my mind, fish and mushrooms go together somehow, so it was a natural pairing. the interesting thing was that the mushrooms turned the risotto a brilliant yellow-orange, like saffron but darker.

i really liked the flavor of them, but then again you could probably soak an old shoe in lobster stock and it would taste good, if you like lobster...

[chefboy24]

a few thoughts on these mushrooms.

do not wash or soak. brush off with a brush or towel.

get a pan hot. then add oil. get oil hot. add mushrooms. do not move for 1-2 minutes.

i would also add nicely brunoised shallots or garlic.

they'd go nice with halibut, bass, lobster, steaks, pork chops. enjoy

[tinytim]

a few thoughts on these mushrooms.

do not wash or soak.  brush off with a brush or towel.

get a pan hot. then add oil. get oil hot.  add mushrooms. do not move for 1-2 minutes.

i would also add nicely brunoised shallots or garlic.

they'd go nice with halibut, bass, lobster, steaks, pork chops. enjoy

←

Really? I've worked with these quite a bit and they tend to be filthy.

Edited September 26, 2005 by tinytim (log)

[Kevin72]

Similar to what chefboy said, I'd reccomend searing them in a very hot pan with olive oil. They really open up that way. They do tend to be pretty dirty, particularly in the center or under the folds; I use a wet paper towel and give them a good scrub.

[Sugarella]

I LOVE MUSHROOMS!!!!! Sadly I've never had your Lobster mushrooms, but if they're anything like Enobi (the only mushroom I've tried and hated) then you might like this quick easy way of preparing them. This even makes Enobi taste good....takes the bitterness off.

First, a disclaimer about my 2 mushrooms pet peeves. The first is when people don't wash them. Mushrooms are water so washing them off won't hurt them any, although they do cook up nicer after you've let them air dry half an hour or so after washing. So do prepare them ahead. If you're pressed for time you can even whip them around in a salad spinner. The second, and this is the big one, is that most people sadly undercook them. (At least all the people I know. I realize this place is full of foodies and I may be preaching to the choir, here, so correct me if this is what everyone does already.)

Heat 2 Tbsp. olive oil + 1/4 tsp. sesame oil in a skillet, drop the shredded mushrooms in & sprinkle with kosher salt & grated pepper. (The salt activates the sweating process quicker.) Lower the heat a little and just let them sweat it out until all the liquid is gone from the pan, stirring once or twice. This might take as long as 10 - 15 minutes depending on how thickly they're cut or ripped. Mushrooms aren't done when they start sweating; they're done after they've stopped sweating. This long cooking time exponentially intensifies the flavour! Once done, sprinkle with about 1 Tbsp. of a decent quality Japanese soy like Kikkoman Lite, and cook another 2 minutes or so until the soy starts to carmelize in the pan. ........and you're done.

If that fails and they still taste icky, try roasting them in a coq au vin-type concoction....that'll make anything taste good!

Edited so I make sense.

Edited September 29, 2005 by Sugarella (log)

[fungi_provider]

Lobster mushrooms are somewhat more difficult to clean than other wild species due to the fact that the host mushroom is a "short stalked russula" to use a common name. The name alone tells you something about its growth habits. Close to the ground. Once the parasitical fungi sets in (hypomyces), the mushroom becomes heavy and crevices can be filled with organic matter. Not dirt .....anyhow, upon harvesting the lobster, I bring them home, immediately clean them with a dry brush or compressed air. Never with water. Soil and water become what? Mud. After the cleaning process, I tear them into assorted larger than bite size morsels and place them in a dehydrator. Once dried and allowed to age, upon rehydration, you may then shape them to your own desires. To me a container of dried lobster mushrooms smells awesome. But, I love fungus

[Junior]

I received three pounds of lobster mushrooms today from my mushroom guy before he had to fly off to some remote locale in northern Alberta. So I am left with these huge and very red colored mushrooms. I have never worked with them before. Any ideas on how or what I should be doing with them ?

[Kevin72]

Pan sear them with olive oil, then toss with butter and fresh fettucine.

You could do some sort playful "lobster n lobster" kind of thing where you cook them with lobster; maybe poach them together in butter?

[Jason Perlow]

Saute in high butterfat content butter (80 percent or so, like Keller's/Plugra or Normandy butter if you can buy it), season with salt, pepper, garnish with fresh chopped parsley, finish witch heavy cream. Serve as a side dish to some nice sliced steak.

[chefpants]

GG-,

This morning I made the family an omelette with the diced lobster mushrooms, Brie cheese and green onion. Accompanied by fresh hashbrowns.

Made a very flavorful breakfast, only because we harvested 20 lbs. yesterday did I decide to cook such a breakfast.

I have been harvesting my own mushrooms for the last ten years and I'll tell you what, it is much cheaper than trying to buy these choice edibles shrooms.

As Far as cooking them they are good in seafood stews, marinated and grilled for pizzas, diced an sauteed for pasta dishes.

or just straight up sauteed with some bacon, red crushed pepper, Fresh thyme and a shot of brandy. Seasoned of course with some salt, pepper and granulated garlic.

I sold the remaining mushrooms to my boss and will make a lobster mushroom bisque. Starting with a real lobster stock I will use the mushrooms in place of expensive lobster.

As for these mushrooms they do retain there vibrant orange-red colour.

As far as harvesting and cleaning goes I do not cut them from the ground. I pull away the dirt ane debris then pull them from the ground. I take them home and wash them under cold running water brushing the debris off with a paint brush

Until they are clean and then I trim off the stump or rooting end. At this point they can be refrigerated. How long they last depends on how old they were when you picked them.

Some last for days while some will get soft and degrade.

I hope this helps and Please do not use dried lobtser mushrooms the flavour is horid. Once you have had fresh there is nothing that tastes better

Cheers

Edited October 4, 2009 by chefpants (log)

[chefpants]

Here is a Photo of those Lobster Mushrooms.

Cheers

[Pallee]

I cook with lobster mushrooms alot. I cover them with water and use a pastry brush to clean them. They don't absorb much at all and it's nice to have them clean. Here's a recipe of mine that folks seem to like. You can mess around with it to your taste.

SHRIMP AND LOBSTER MUSHROOM CHOWDER

1 slice thick bacon, cut into small dice

1/2 sweet onion, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

2 red jalapenos, part of a habanera, chilies to taste

1 finger fresh turmeric, minced (or 1/2 t dried turmeric)

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 stalk lemongrass, cut and tied

salt and pepper to taste

3 rounds galangal

1 kefir lime leaf, bashed

5 cups chicken stock

3 - 4 lobster mushrooms, cleaned and diced

2 lb. shrimp, peeled, shells reserved

1 plum tomato, chopped

2 ears of corn, kernels removed and the cobs scraped of any remainder (save the cobs)

3 small potatoes, diced (include a small sweet potato)

2 teaspoons corn starch dissolved into 1 T cold water

1/2 cup heavy cream (or coconut milk)

Fish sauce and lime juice - 1 T each (optional)

1 T cilantro, finely chopped

Sauté bacon, add onion, carrot, chilies, turmeric, garlic and sauté over med-low heat until soft.

In a small heavy pot, combine the shrimp shells, corn cobs and chicken stock. Add the lemongrass, galangal and kefir lime leaf. Simmer for 20 - 30 minutes and strain. Sauté lobster mushrooms in butter in hot pan and add to stock. Add diced tomato.

Add sautéed onion mix. Add diced potatoes. Heat gently until potatoes are soft. Add salt and pepper to taste. Just before serving, add shrimp and corn. Bring to boil. Add cornstarch dissolved in 1 T cold water. Simmer a couple minutes and add cream. Add fish sauce and lime juice, if using.

Adjust seasoning. Garnish w/ cilantro

[Nancy in Pátzcuaro]

Lobster mushrooms are just starting to show up in our mercado, and yesterday I bought a small amount to try. I just finished sauteing them in butter with salt and will probably pair them with pasta. I was amazed at how much liquid they produced, and the interesting reddish color the butter turned while they were cooking. We are old hands at mushroom foraging but this is a new one for us. I suspect the host mushroom is a russula since they didn't exude any latex when I cut them up.

 

So now I'm doing the usual test to determine if I can tolerate them--there are some very edible mushrooms that make my throat itch--by chewing a piece and spitting it out. The next step is to eat another piece and swallow it. If all goes well I can eat that mushroom--or at least the mushroom underneath the parasitic organism.

 

In future I'm going to try to pick out the mushrooms I want rather than letting the vendor do it for me. Some of the ones I bought were wormy and spongy, plus they were very hard to clean. I don't subscribe to the theory that you shouldn't wash mushrooms, so I cleaned them as best I could under running water. When we gathered chanterelles and porcini in Colorado we tried very hard to keep them clean at the source so we wouldn't have to do so much clean-up in the kitchen, but even then we needed to wash them at least a little bit.

 

Nancy in Pátzcuaro, Michoacán

 

 

 

 

[Nancy in Pátzcuaro]

I used the lobster mushrooms I cooked yesterday, combined with onion and chopped bacon, for a pizza. These are big, meaty mushrooms that hold their own with the bacon and onion. A favorite way to cook chanterelles is with bacon and onion, so I thought these would benefit from that treatment. And I was right. Very tasty.

 

Nancy in Pátzcuaro, Michoacán