GRILLED MUSHROOM SALAD
I had a really awesome salad once with my friend Blair at a restaurant in Charlotte called Luna’s Living Kitchen; it was a huge bowl of kale greens topped with the most delicious mushrooms I’d ever eaten. That restaurant is a mostly raw vegan place, so I think they prepared them closer to the Button Mushroom Ceviche (here) than this recipe, but it definitely inspired me to start playing with mushroom textures, and also adding them to salads, as here. SERVES 2
PREP TIME: 10 minutes
COOK TIME: 5 minutes
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove, minced
6 to 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced (shiitake or portobello)
2 to 3 cups arugula greens
½ cup cherry tomatoes, sliced
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
- In a large bowl, mix together the vinegar, olive oil, Dijon mustard, and garlic. Add the mushrooms, and stir well to cover all sides with the dressing.
- Use a slotted spoon to transfer the mushrooms to a large grill pan (or a regular skillet) over medium-high heat, and quickly cook the mushrooms for 3 to 5 minutes.
- Toss the arugula with the dressing you marinated the mushrooms in, and add the tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper, top with the warm mushrooms, and serve.
VARIATION 1 SESAME-MUSHROOM SALAD: Swap the balsamic vinegar for white vinegar and the olive oil for sesame oil. Garnish the salad with 1 tablespoon sesame seeds.
VARIATION 2 BACON OR PANCETTA MUSHROOM SALAD: In a skillet over medium-high heat, cook 4 slices bacon (or ½ cup diced pancetta) until crispy, about 5 minutes. Remove from the pan, and sauté the mushrooms in the fat. Break up the cooled bacon into bite-size pieces, and top the salad with the bacon and mushrooms. Make the marinade from the original recipe into a dressing.
PREP TIP: Cook the mushrooms ahead of time, and warm them up in the microwave for 30 seconds before topping the salad with them.
