Mushrooms turn out really good when cooked on the grill. I’m going to show you how to grill mushrooms that are full of flavor. The nice thing about mushrooms is that they will soak up marinades and smoke, which is perfect for us grillers who love to experiment with different marinades and smoking woods.
The only real challenge when grilling mushrooms is making sure that they do not fall through the grates. That isn’t a problem when you are grilling big caps like with Portobello mushrooms, but if you are going to be grilling smaller mushrooms it can become a problem. Making sure that they cook up evenly is another issue, but I’m going to show you how to deal with both.
The best way to grill up mushrooms without having uneven cooking and issues with falling through the grate is to use either skewers or a grilling wok or pan. Most of the time I like to use a grilling wok like this one, because it allows you to toss the mushrooms around and it lets in the heat and smoke better. When you grill mushrooms in a wok like this you do it over high heat and grill them quick so you don’t looks all that juices in the mushrooms.
First off you are going to need some mushrooms. Get yourself about a pound of mushrooms. Feel free to use the common mushrooms you find at the grocery store, or branch out and get something more exotic like morels, or shiitakes. There are tons of different mushrooms out there, so grilling different ones is a bunch of fun.
Set up your gas or charcoal grill for direct cooking over high heat. If you wanted to add smoke you will want to add the chips or chunks once the grill has heated. Clean your mushrooms and chop any large ones so they are roughly all the same size. If you are using a grill wok, preheat it on the grill and brush it with a bit of oil.
Toss your mushrooms with a bit of olive oil, salt, pepper, and minced garlic. Add them to the wok. You will want to grill them until they have browned which will be around 5 to 10 minutes. Make sure you shake or stir the mushrooms in the wok several time throughout grilling.
If you want to use skewers you can do that as well. Just slide your mushrooms onto some bamboo skewers and baste with a bit of olive oil. Place them on the grill and cook from about 3 to 5 minutes per side. Baste throughout grilling.
Once done transfer the mushrooms to a large bowl and toss with a bit more olive oil and garlic. Add salt and pepper to taste. That is how to grill mushrooms the easy way. Now it is time to experiment. Try using different marinades and seasonings, also add it some onions, or jalapenos to really kick up the flavors. The options are endless.
I love using a grill wok for cooking up a variety of grilled foods, not just mushrooms. I find this grill tool to be pretty much indispensable. If you would like to check it out, here is the one I use.
image courtesy of cookbookman17/flickr