12 Pound Mushroom and Firecrackers

I was in the neighborhood of ________________ to get some test done, and there, in the woods, a way off from the main street and away from any idling cars, was a a cream and brown cluster of coral-like growth.  It rose like ruffled feathers from the cool October earth, just over the lower trunk of an oak tree.  A few blades of grass had grown threw the spongy mass the size of a generous pillow.  It was a hen of the woods mushroom.  I sent my husband in to confirm, since he at least had had one course about mushrooming.  In the realm of safe bets, a misidentified hen of the woods would only taste bad and not kill us.  My husband cut it, placed it in a giant paper bag, and took it home.

It resided in our fridge for a few days while I fried up small pieces to try.  A centipede hid from the open-door light.  After two days of larger portions of a mild, chicken-like mushrooms and no ill-effects, we went for it.  I feared what we would find, after seeing the centipede.  And there were more of them.  But overall, this was a very clean mushroom!  I pulled out the grass.  There were a few pieces past their prime we cut away.  There was still a lot of mushroom left.  I washed and sliced a cup-full and sautéed them gently in butter over low heat, about ten minutes.  Much better than the quick fry I did earlier.  The rest of the mushroom was broken into pieces, frozen in bags, dried in the oven, and simmered into stock. The whole house smelled pleasantly of mushroom.  I made Chinese firecracker rolls, ate some, took some to a party, and some to church.  It should be noted again that eating misidentified mushrooms can lead to illness or death.  I've made this recipe with reconstituted shiitake mushrooms, which are also delicious.

Divide and Conquer

Sauté!

Stock!

Drying, 175ºF, about 24 hours

Dried and Ready for Storage

Vegetarian Option

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Firecracker Cabbage Rolls

Taste of China

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Prep: 20 minutes  Cook:  20 minutes  Makes: 20

2 tbs. cooking oil, divided

1 cup chopped, re-hydrated Asian mushrooms (wild option: 

     hen of the woods mushrooms – cook thoroughly)

1/2 pound ground turkey or pork (optional)

2 cups grated cabbage

1 cup grated organic carrots

1/4 cup diced onion

1 tbs. minced fennel leaf (or 1 tsp. fennel seed) 

20 sheets thawed phyllo dough

Chili paste:

2 Anaheim chiles, re-hydrated and chopped

1 tbs. cider vinegar

1 tbs. chile water

1 tsp. white sugar

1/8 tsp. salt

2 cloves garlic, chopped

Preheat oven to 375ºF.  Heat 1 tbs. oil in large sauté pan or Dutch oven over medium heat.  Brown meat, if using.  Add mushrooms*, cabbage, carrots, onion, and fennel, cooking until vegetable are tender, 5-7 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Run chile mixture through food processor and stir into cabbage mix.  Fold phyllo sheets in half length-wise.  Place 2 tbs. cabbage mix on end of sheet and roll tightly to other end.  Twist ends to look like fire crackers.  Place each roll on greased cookie sheet.  Brush with remaining oil.  Bake at 375ºF 18-20 minutes, until golden.  Serve with extra chile sauce, if desired.

* If using fresh wild mushrooms, sauté over low heat in oil or butter until cooked thoroughly.