A Tale of Two Mushrooms from The Slanted Door

San Francisco Eater reported in 2014 that Charles Phan's SF waterfront establishment, The Slanted Door, was California's top grossing restaurant that year.  Serving Vietnamese cuisine, the restaurant secures the corner of the Ferry Building culinary complex with great views of the waterfront and Bay Bridge, and some of the most flavorful Asian cuisine you will find in a city known for its great food. I love Phan's story of opening at his first location and then becoming so successful that a larger space was needed.  In true entreprenuerial spirit (meaning: he took a huge risk and had a lot of obstacles to overcome), Phan bit the bullet and closed his original South of Market location and then orchestrated a wildly successful relaunch in the Ferry Building.  

With dishes like crispy wild Florida frog legs with Thai chiles  or banh bot loc gulf shrimp & pork belly tapioca dumplings, you can see why reservations can be hard to come by.  After trying for several months a couple of years ago to get a table on a Saturday night, I finally gave up and bought Phan's flagship cookbook, The Slanted Door.  Phan's talent for creating umami-packed vegetable dishes is why today's project - Roasted Mushrooms with Buckwheat Crepe Noodles - is probably my favorite plate made so far in this month of vegetable posts.  

King Trumpet Mushrooms:  Meaty, Tender & Meant for Great Things

I adapted this recipe to suit the ingredients I had on hand; it was 5 AM in the morning when I cooked this, and I was not interested in going to the store to pick up the things I was missing. Additionally, I had a few items on hand that I wanted to use up like kumquats from the over-ladened bush outside my kitchen window and fresh wood ear mushrooms that I'd picked up at Ranch 99 (the most amazing market - a huge Far Eastern megapolis filled with thousands of Asian foodstuffs with unfamiliar pictures and undecipherable labels).  

Buckwheat crepe batter poured over hot parchment

One ingredient called for in Phan's recipe was Yuba which is a thin, noodle-like tofu skin. I didn't have this, so I decided to try to construct a noodle out of egg whites instead. It dawned on me that I could make something like a crepe and then cut that into noodles. I had recently tried making David Lebovitz' recipe for buckwheat crepes, which are dark brown in color and have a very nutty/earthy taste and texture.  Building on this concept, I blended a little buckwheat flour with some eggs, milk, and spices to come up with a batter. I then heated a parchment-covered baking tray in the oven for a few minutes before pouring the egg mixture over it into a very thin layer.  

Gently pull the crepe off the parchment

Roll it into a log 

Slice it into "noodles"

The batter was baked for about 10 minutes, until it was firmly set.  The crepe peeled easily off the parchment, and I was able to roll it up then cut 1/2 inch pieces to make crepe strips.  They worked really well as noodle substitutes -- they were firm enough to hold together without tearing, yet porous enough to soak up the sauce for an amazing taste eruption when eaten. I also loved their color for this dish, because their dark color blended in so well with the mushrooms

The thing that really makes this dish sing is the infused oil which becomes a main part of the sauce.  Yotam Ottolenghi, master of Middle Eastern vegetarian cooking, uses a lot of sophisticated oil infusions in his recipes, and I was really excited to see one pop up in Phan's recipe as well. Blending some flavors I'd used before with Ottolenghi's preparations into Phan's recipe made an extra-special oil blend.  I ended up doubling the amount called for so I'd have leftovers to use in something else. 

Roasted wood ear mushrooms

Sliced, Roasted King Trumpet Mushrooms

The recipe calls for roasted mushrooms, and the aroma of these and the crepes was overwhelmingly inviting so early in the morning. I had intended to save the finished product for dinner later that day but Bob and I could not resist and we ate the whole thing for breakfast instead.  Yum!  If the recipe was doubled, it would make a very hearty stand alone vegetarian main course for lunch or dinner.

RoastedMushrooms with Buckwheat Crepe Noodles
 Preheat oven to 375 degrees

1 lb mixed fresh King Trumpet, thinly sliced, and Wood Ear mushrooms
4 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt

3/4 cup egg whites (whites from about 3-4 eggs)
2 tbsp buckwheat flour
1/4 cup lowfat milk
1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup grapeseed oil
1 large shallot, sliced thinly
1 two inch long, 1 inch thick knob of fresh ginger, peeled and cut into fine julienned batons
3 pieces star anise
1 kumquat, thinly sliced, seeds removed

3 Tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp splenda or sugar
1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Line a rimmed baking tray with parchment paper and place in the oven as it preheats.  Mix the eggs, flour, milk and salt in a blender for 30 seconds, then let sit for 5 minutes so the flour becomes hydrated. Remove the baking tray from the oven and pour the crepe mixture over the parchment paper, spreading it out into a thin rectangular layer. Return to the oven and bake for 10 minutes. When completely cooked and firm, remove from the oven and let cool while you prepare the remaining ingredients.

Mix the shallots, ginger, star anise, and kumquat together in a small bowl or jar.  In a second microwave safe bowl, heat the oil in the microwave for 1 1/2 minutes then pour over the shallot mixture. It should sizzle as you add it.  Stir to combine then set aside to marinate for at least 15 minutes.

Slice the king trumpet mushrooms.  Line two baking trays with parchment and brush a layer of sesame oil over the parchment.  Place the mushrooms on the parchment, leaving space between them to prevent them from steaming each other.  Sprinkle with salt then brush the tops of the mushroom with additional oil. Roast in the preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes, until they begin to brown but before they become dry and crisp.

While the mushrooms are cooking, mix together the soy sauce, splenda or sugar, and cilantro into your serving bowl.  When the mushrooms are roasted, add them to the sauce and toss well.  Strain out about 1/3 cup of infused oil into the mushroom-noodle mix. (Reserve the rest for another use).   Scoop out about 2 tbsp of the shallot mixture from the oil, taking care to remove any pieces of star anise, then finely chop and mix in with the mushrooms.  Add the crepe noodles, toss lightly, and serve.