Gluten-Free Girl and the Chef: chanterelles with thyme

30 March 2010

chanterelles with thyme

Have you tried chanterelles before?

They look like they come from the earth, don't they? I love seeing them splayed out in this rough-hewn box at the farmers' market, since I know the folks at Foraged and Found spotted them in a forest and plucked them up for us. (Well, for everyone who wants to buy them, of course.)

Chanterelles have the most interesting bite when they're cooked right — chewy, with a bit of a squeak. They're meaty without having any meat. They soak up all the flavors of what you cook them with, like tofu. (Chanterelles are better than tofu.)

Sadly, they're only in season in Seattle from July to November, so we have to wait for the summer and fall to enjoy them again here.

However, Chef Dave from Good Bite found some at the Santa Monica farmers' market last month and challenged me to create something with them. Danny and I came up with a quick sauté of chanterelles, shallots, and thyme. You could use it on pasta and pizzas, or as a side dish.

What do you like to cook with chanterelles? Or mushrooms in general?

23 Comments:

At 11:30 AM, Chef John said...: I love them slowly caramelized in butter with a touch of shallot, and then used to top a nice meaty tuna steak. Yum!
At 11:33 AM, Kat said...: Those are my favorite for making a mushroom sauce for a roast. I can actually get them locally in the summer at the farmer's market. So good! Also good just sauteed lightly in butter.
At 11:41 AM, erika said...: My favourite is grilled portabella mushrooms with capers and parm cheese! Although with fresh herbs from the garden just around the corner, I can't wait to try these :)
At 11:45 AM, Anonymous said...: I love to make risotto with chanterelles.

With more boring mushrooms, I like to make a mushroom ragu to serve with pasta or polenta.

Mmmmm, mushrooms. I really hope the morel hunters bring me some presents this year!
At 12:28 PM, JennRenee said...: Risotto with Kale, Chanterelles and fresh sage and rosemary. I've been known to live on it for days at a time.
At 12:45 PM, Anonymous said...: Not Gluten free but I used chanterelles in this couscous recipe (see end of factsheet)
http://www.thebeechgrovegarden.com/factsheet/factsheet.php?fact_id=330
This is from a wild food col that I write for children.
Chanterelle hunting is an addictive game because once you have found one, another will be hiding somewhere. Maxim is easily bored but as soon as he finds a chanterelle he is down on his hands and knees, for just as sure as Christmas comes around, there will be more chanterelles lurking there somewhere.

Here are some of our mushroom foraging hints:
• Never pick mushrooms unless you are with a grown up who knows which are good to eat and which are not – there is a chanterelle called false chanterelle, no prizes for guessing why!
• Chanterelles like beech trees and can often be found underneath them. They also hide behind bracken on the banks of small streams.
• Pull out moss and see what is hiding underneath.
• Cut the chanterelle stems, don’t tug them out and then you will leave the chanterelle mycelium (fibres under the soil) to grow again.
• Follow Maxim‘s advice, mark your spot for another week or even next year. Be sure to mark it with something that is natural to the countryside.
• Don't be greedy when you forage. It is tempting to pick more than you need but forage precisely and only gather for your kitchen table.

©stirrinstuff.org
At 12:57 PM, Cindy said...: I like mushrooms in just about everything: omeletts, pizza, gravy, grilled chicken sandwiches, spaghetti sauce, and of course grilled with onions, butter and red wine (with or without steak).

Cindy
wheatlessfoodie.blogspot.com
At 12:59 PM, beyond said...: Chanterelles remind me of home (Europe), where I would have them regularly. Lightly sauteed with a touch of spring onion, on toast; yum.
At 1:34 PM, SMITH BITES said...: Roasted w/a bit of olive oil, then added to a fresh salad of shaved fennel, baby greens, cauliflower and green onions - oh my!
At 1:41 PM, La Niña said...: Fresh corn off the cob, shallots and chanterelles with a spike of chipotle chili powder... serve that with some fresh grilled salmon, yum.

Thanksgiving turkey with chanterelle and shallot gravy. Same chanterelle and shallot gravy over the garlic-sage mashed potatoes.

Okay. Now I'm starving.
At 2:54 PM, sweetpea said...: My favorite way to use Chanterelles is your Thanksgiving Wild Rice with the cashew sour cream. That recipe swoons me day in and day out!
At 3:12 PM, Katie said...: Sauteed with thyme and shallots and tossed with pasta and creme fraiche.
At 3:17 PM, Katrina Higham said...: Cut them in half, roll them in tapioca flour and shallow fry. Then sprinkle over aromats of rosemary, thyme and sage. Drizzle olive oil and Merediths Goats Cheese. Yum! Serve on toast. What a fantastic find for you!
At 4:57 PM, Mel said...: I don't think I've had chanterelles before, but they look gorgeous!

As for mushrooms... I love portobello mushrooms grilled with garlic, black pepper & balsamic vinegar. Chinese mushrooms in my Grandma's stir-frys. Truffle oil on the top of thick creamy soup. My latest play with mushrooms was mushrooms with pork in home-made pastry, baked to golden perfection...

Oh your post has made me think of so many delicious memories!

I wish I could visit your kitchen. Every time I visit your blog, I think this!
At 7:16 PM, Unknown said...: I love, love, love chanterelles. Come fall I can be found crawling the woods in search of them and other fungal delights. There truly is no greater pleasure then stumbling upon a patch of chanterelles just as they are pushing their way through the forest litter. Oh, and their aroma. It is such a delicate and sensual smell. The aroma pushes the mushroom eating experience to another dimension. My favorite recipes are Cream of Chanterelle soup, Chanterelle Gravy, Chanterelle Stuffing, Chanterelle and Eggs, Sauteed Chanterelles on gluten-free bread. I always dry-saute the mushrooms first to drive off the moisture and then go from there.
At 8:31 PM, GFree_Miel said...: I'm not a mushroom kind of person, but lately I've been trying a lot of new things. After seeing that video I'm putting chanterelles on my list of things to try. They look really great!
At 8:51 PM, Tassiegal said...: That looks yummy. The pork boys at our local farmers market sometimes have Slippery Elm mushrooms, which look WIERD (yellow caps anyone?) but taste amazing. I remember the first time I had them, I chopped them up and fried them in a tiny bit of butter and had them with fresh baked sourdough. They get this kind of sheen on them that isnt butter. Its almost gooey and gives them a lovely wonderfuly earthy taste.
At 11:23 AM, Linda said...: Please tell me how to clean these. I bought some once and tried to wipe the dirt off with a damp towel but when I cooked them, they were gritty. I've been told not to wash them in water. So I haven't tried them again.
At 10:09 AM, EponaRae said...: For me, the first chanterelles of the season always elicit the happy wild food dance--and then I am focused and driven to eat them as often as I may. So much flavor! So much nutrition! So much yum! And alas, we here in the Northwest are once again in not-chanterelle-season. *sigh* Absence does make the heart grow fonder.
Did you know there is now a GF cous cous available in the US? The brand is Bacchini and as you might guess, is imported from Italy. They make 3 types that I have seen (all organic): corn, corn & rice, and the gluten-y semolina. I've had the corn & rice, and oh--how I have MISSED this! Yummy cous cous!
Also, Linda, to clean the mushrooms: I keep several one inch wide, natural bristle (paint)brushes in my kitchen. They are indispenable for basting, yes, but also the proper tool (in my opinion) for gently and thoroughly cleaning all those delicate gills of all the stuff they collected coming up through the forest duff. Give it a try.
Mushroom Love & Peace Out!
At 8:59 PM, Sho said...: Shauna,

I have never heard of Chanterelles until I read about them here. "Chanterelle" is such a pretty word. It sounds like a girl's name.

Anywho, I like to saute mushrooms with diced eggplant and onions.

Wow, so much is happening on this site, and I have been absent for Passover. I have catching up to do. By the way, the topic of gluten-free cooking came up a lot this holiday because of me and because many Passover foods are gluten free. I recommended your site and your book(s) to many.

Take care,

Shoshannah
At 9:03 PM, Sho said...: OH, AND HAVE YOU HEARD???

PASSOVER MATZOS ARE AVAILABLE GLUTEN-FREE BECAUSE OF THE CERTIFIED GLUTEN-FREE OATS OUT THERE?

I CANNOT STOP SCREAMING ABOUT IT!

MATZABREI, WITH CHEDDAR AND SAUTEED MUSHROOMS HERE COMES SHOSHANNAH. I forgot that I always made matzabrei (fried matza in scrambled eggs) with sauteeed onions, sauteed mushrooms, and cheddar. Anyone who has ever eaten my matzobrei has always said it was the best ever.

I think I have stopped screaming now. I hope I did not wake up Little Bean.

Take care,

Shoshannah
At 8:55 AM, Aldara said...: Oh I love chanterelles. We sautée them with onions, parsley, a little white wine/noilly prat and a little cream and eat them over pasta or fried German bread dumplings. Recently we've been making them gluten and lactose free with galettes (buckwheat crêpes made from buckwheat flour, eggs, lots of lactose-free milk, oil and a little salt).
At 11:16 AM, Heidi on Vashon said...: We'll show you our Vashon spots, Shauna. Just let us know when as fall approaches. Sept is a good month.

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30 March 2010

chanterelles with thyme

23 Comments:

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