Vegan Mushroom Scallops
I love mushrooms, you can use them in so many dishes, in so many different ways. Today, I’m going to teach you how to make mushrooms in the style of sea scallops and they will blow your mind! The taste and texture comes out amazing, and not mushroom like at all! Let’s get started. If you like this recipe be sure to check out this one too! and this one!
Mushroom Prep
First, I quickly wash about two pounds of king oyster mushrooms. I then slice them into large, scallop-like, shapes (cut off the tops and bottoms, we don’t need those). Next I toss them into a large pot, filled with enough water to cover the mushrooms. Also add in two tablespoons of sea salt, three quarters of a cup of white vinegar and bring it to a boil. Let them cook for about twenty minutes.
Brine
Now we can start our brine. In a separate, smaller pot, I’m going to use two cups of water with a quarter cup of white vinegar along with one tablespoon of salt, a tablespoon of sugar, a tablespoon of miso paste, one to two small sheets of nori or kelp and one stick of lemon grass. For the lemon grass, I had a stalk of it so I chopped the top and tail off, then peeled back the first few layers, and then chopped the lemon grass into smaller pieces. Toss that onto the stove, kick up the heat, and bring it to a boil.
Pickling
Meanwhile we can drain off the mushrooms, and toss them into a large container. Let them cool for a bit, then cover them with the brine mixture. Cover the mushrooms then toss them into the fridge to pickle overnight. The next day they look amazing! I pull a few of them out of the brine to let them rest on a paper towel and dry off. Time to get the griddle on the stove, get it hot on both sides. And in a separate pan I am going to melt a whole stick of vegan butter, toss in some minced garlic, minced shallot, a splash of white wine vinegar, and about a half cup of vegan cream (I used oat milk).
Cooking The Mushrooms
Bring that to a slow simmer, then zest in one whole lemon. Give it a whisk, bring it to a gentle simmer, lower the heat, and let that sit for just a moment so it comes down by about half. Meanwhile I add some vegan butter to the griddle and start searing the mushrooms. I’m using a press to make sure they are pressed evenly. On the other side of the grill I toss on some baby broccoli, season those up with some salt and pepper. Time to flip the scallops to the other side.
Final Steps
Now let’s get ready to plate, I’m going to juice the rest of the lemon into the sauce. Then whisk one last time and pour it through a strainer into our bowls, enough to cover the bottom of the bowl. Add on some of the broccoli, toss in our scallops, sprinkle some pepper and I meant to add in some cherry tomatoes but completely forgot. These are awesome, they have a very scallop-like, meaty texture. It has a bite, snap and bounce to it. The sauce is delicious too, and goes amazing with the scallops and broccoli. Watch the full video here!
How I Made Vegan Mushroom Scallops
Ingredients
- 2 pounds king oyster mushrooms
- 2 tbsp sea salt
- 1 cup white vinegar
- salt
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp miso paste
- 1 or 2 sheets of nori or kelp
- 1 stick lemon grass
- 1 stick vegan butter
- broccoli
- 1 lemon
- minced garlic
- shallots
- .5 cup oat milk
Instructions
- Wash then slice mushrooms into scallop like shapes.
- Add them to a large pot with water, sea salt, white vinegar, then bring to a boil. Cook them for 20 minutes.
- In a smaller pot add water, white vinegar, salt, sugar, miso paste, nori/kelp, and lemon grass. Put it on the stove, and bring it to a boil.
- Drain the mushrooms then add them to a large container and let them cool. Pour the brine mixture over them, then cover the container and let them sit in the fridge overnight.
- Pull out a few and dry them on a paper towel. Put the griddle on the stove, get both sides hot.
- In separate pan I melt the vegan butter, add the minced garlic, minced shallots, white vinegar, and vegan cream. Bring it to a simmer.
- Zest in the lemon then whisk it. Bring it to a simmer then lower the heat. Let it sit for a moment.
- Add vegan butter to griddle and start searing mushrooms. Flip them over.
- Cook the broccoli and season it.
- Juice the rest of the lemon into the sauce then whisk again. Strain the sauce into the bowl, add the broccoli, then scallops, then some pepper. Enjoy!