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Hello!
In my experience, if you love mushrooms, you LOVE them. If that’s you then this newsletter will be a treat, because today we’re talking about mushrooms and steam ovens.
Although mushrooms contain a lot of water already, added steam when cooking helps give them a silky soft texture when cooked. They retain their shape while still softening into submission, rather than drying out as they sometimes can in a pan.
Instead of a long-form informational article, as I often give you here, today I’m sharing not one, but three original mushroom recipes. My aim is to show off mushrooms’ versatility and deliciousness when cooked with steam. I really enjoyed working on these dishes, and I hope you enjoy cooking them!
The first recipe is a gorgeous hummus-stuffed mushroom delight that I’ve added to the Insiders recipe index. Then there’s a risotto with an unusual ingredient, and a gorgeous mushroom salad. You’ll find both of those in the Season Flip section below.
Happy steam oven cooking, see you again in a couple of weeks.
Emily x
New to Cook: Hummus Roasted Mushrooms
I know hummus roasted mushrooms sounds a little odd, but this is a fantastic recipe. The chickpea-laden mushrooms are savory and creamy, fast-to-make and protein packed. And most or all of the short ingredient list can be found in your local supermarket.
Oh, and did I mention they’re vegan?
I believe every stuffed mushroom dish is great in combi steam, and these are particularly good. The mushrooms hold their shape but soften to a silky texture that’s hard to beat. The warmed hummus is lush and creamy, and it doesn’t dry out as it would in a regular oven. And the chickpeas get a little chewy-crispy on the edges while their insides stay tender and soft. All good things, as far as I’m concerned.
The Season Flip
More mushroomy goodness; a warming risotto and a shoulder-season garlicky salad.
Southern Hemisphere
Miso Mushroom Risotto (+ vegan option)
Steamed risotto is controversial because you don’t stir (much) during cooking. But, well, you don’t need to stand around and stir it, so I’m a fan!
Here, we’re roasting mushrooms with miso paste (an ingredient that isn’t usually near risotto, but should be more often), then cooking the risotto before stirring the mushrooms back in at the end. You don’t need parmesan cheese because the miso carries enough umami ‘oomph’ by itself, so you can make the risotto vegan by using vegetable stock rather than chicken.
Preheat your oven to Combi Steam, 400°F/200°C, 50% (medium) steam. Slice 3-4 cups of mixed mushrooms and toss with a finely diced onion and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Spread them out in a stainless steel pan, then into the oven to roast for 10 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons of miso paste (I like the milder, white miso, but use whatever you prefer), then cook for a further 5 minutes. Transfer the mixture into a bowl and set aside; don’t scrape or wash the pan because you’ll use it for the risotto.
Turn off your oven and leave the door open to cool it down for 5-10 minutes, because we need the oven to cool down enough for steaming.
When your oven has cooled, set it to Steam, 212°F/100°C, 100% humidity. Put 1½ cups risotto rice (Arborio or Carnaroli) and 3 cups vegetable or chicken stock into the pan. Steam for 17 minutes.
Add the miso mushroom mixture to the almost-cooked rice and stir, then return the pan to the oven for a further 5 minutes, or until the rice is al dente. If the risotto is too thick, loosen it with a little extra stock. Season well with black pepper and serve immediately.
Northern Hemisphere
Garlic Mushroom Salad
A very simple salad idea that packs a big flavor punch! Basically garlic-butter-roasted mushrooms with a green salad and crunchy nuts, this is at home with so many other dishes and ingredients that you’ll be making it all the time.
Preheat your oven to Combi Steam, 450°F/230°C, 50% (medium) steam. Throw a few good handfuls of sliced or quartered button mushrooms into a baking dish or tray, then add salt, pepper, a few knobs of butter and 2 cloves of minced garlic. Put the dish into the hot oven and roast the mushrooms for 10-15 minutes, stirring after the first few minutes to distribute the now-melted butter.
Remove the cooked mushrooms from the oven and set aside while you fill a bowl with mixed salad leaves. Scatter the warm mushrooms over the leaves, reserving any juices from cooking (don’t worry if you don’t have any, it depends on how much water was in your mushies to begin with).
Make a quick dressing with cider vinegar, miso paste, olive oil and any leftover mushroom cooking juices. Drizzle over the salad, and scatter with toasted walnuts and sunflower seeds.
Crusty bread or a poached egg makes this a meal, or serve it alongside a protein as a vegetable side dish.
A Thing I'm Loving
A couple of months back I bought my first ever Mason Cash mixing bowl, and I now feel compelled to buy the entire range. These are heavyweight, solid ceramic mixing bowls, with a beautiful wide top and a perfect shape for mixing, well, almost anything. You could buy cheap big-box store bowls (and I have), but these are truly a joy to use and worth the cost for people who love cooking. I’ve requested a second, smaller bowl from the range for Mothers Day in a couple of weeks; perhaps if you’re in line for a Mothers Day gift too, this could make it onto your list?
Ask Me Anything (AMA)
Here’s your opportunity to ask me anything you like related to combi steam cooking!
I really encourage you to submit questions, and will do my best to answer as many as possible. Though I may not be able to get to every single question, I will carefully curate ones which are relevant and represent a variety of topics. We all learn from each other, and I often learn new things based on questions from all of you!
If you have an AMA question, please email it to [email protected]. Make sure you include the phrase INSIDERS AMA in the subject line so I can collate and read all your submissions.
From Clair
Q: I’ve been looking at buying a yoghurt maker such as this one where you heat the milk to just under boiling, cool it before adding a ‘starter’ and then putting it in a water bath type-set up for a specified time. Is it possible to use steam for any or all of the yoghurt making process?
And, can you cook Tahdig in a combination steam oven?
A: As long as your steam oven can accurately hold temperatures as low as 104°F/40°C, you can do everything that yoghurt maker does in your steam oven! Most of the higher end models are able to do this; some of the less expensive steam ovens are not so accurate at low temps, though.
I both heat the milk for my yoghurt and ferment the yoghurt itself using my steam oven. And I sanitise the jars I use in there as well.
My milk gets heated to 176°F/80C for about an hour, then I let it cool to lukewarm before whisking in the starter. Then I ferment my yoghurt for around 10 hours at 104°F/40C (I usually do this part overnight). All you should need is a nice deep stainless steel pan for the initial milk heating, and some lidded glass jars to hold and store the yoghurt when it’s done. I love Weck brand jars but any preserving jars will do.
For the Tahdig (Persian crispy rice, for those playing along who don’t know what the dish is); I have not tried it in my steam oven, but I can’t see why it wouldn’t work. I’d definitely recommend a non stick pan for it, but otherwise I’d think you can switch out the part where it’s cooked over a low stovetop heat to crisp the rice, and do that using combi steam, perhaps at around 320°F/160°C and low to medium steam. I’d love to hear if you try it.
From Ellen
Q: Question about the Hollandaise sauce. My steam oven only gives an option for 165 or 170 (but your recipe calls for 167). What do you recommend?
Also, I do not have an immersion blender. What else can I use in its place, to blend at the end?
A: The minimum foodsafe temp for egg based dishes is 160°F, so I think setting your oven to 165 should be ok in this instance. If you don’t have an immersion blender you’d need to transfer the sauce to a regular blender or food processor to get it smooth and emulsified; I expect you may be able to whisk it by hand in a pinch but I’m not certain it’ll come together as smoothly as with some kind of blending device.