Sunday Treat — Soft-scrambled Eggs with Wild Mushrooms
Saturdays are usually a busy day around the house. Shopping, chores, many times I have to work. So Sundays tend to be a little bit more laid back . After spending the day at work, I casually mentioned at the dinner table on Saturday night that I was going to make brunch for us on Sunday. No sooner had I said it than Charles and Mom started asking what I was going to make. Something special, I replied — soft- scrambled eggs with wild mushrooms. We had recently received a box of dried mushroom samples from Marx Foods with instructions to have fun, create recipes and write about them.
“The mushrooms came to us courtesy of Justin Marx, CEO of Marx Foods, a purveyor of fine foods that supplies restaurants and has branched out to supplying us mere mortal home cooks through an online mail-order site. His online store came up in a Google search when I was looking for a local source for tender fiddlehead ferns. I was amazed at the selection of hard-to-find and wild-foraged produce, mushrooms and other items from the Pacific Northwest.
“I later wrote and asked if he’d like to send us some samples that we could test, develop recipes for and write about. An affirmative reply came. We would be getting samples of a variety of wild mushrooms from his source in Eugene. A few days later, a small box came and Charles and I eagerly peeled back the packing tape and gingerly pulled out dried samples of black trumpet, maitake, porcini, lobster, and matsutake mushrooms. We’ve never mail-ordered dried mushrooms before and haven’t ordered anything from Marx Foods before either, so we were eager to examine the quality of what was shipped to us. The mushrooms were individually packed in Ziploc bags w ith labels and there was no doubt about the quality of the product. The mushrooms were either almost entirely in whole pieces, as the black trumpets were, or in nice slices. Broken bits were at a minimum. We opened each bag to smell the aroma of the individual mushrooms and could tell that they were fresh, not stale.”
— in Baked Flounder with Black Trumpet Mushroom Beurre Blanc Sauce
I think Charles may have had a clue about what I was up to as he spied me reading up on the proper French technique for soft-scrambled eggs à la Julia Child in Mastering the Art of French Cooking while he was making dinner.
After dinner, which was a fantastic Dungeness crab and wild mushroom lasagna with béchamel sauce, it didn’t take long for all of us to drift off into slumberland.
Sometime around 8 a.m. on Sunday, I thought I was dreaming when I heard a voice whispering, “Scrambled eggs, wild mushrooms, bacon.” I didn’t really think of it much until about half an hour later when I heard the whisper again: “Scrambled eggs, wild mushrooms, bacon.” At this point I opened my eyes to find Charles hovering at the foot of the bed, smiling. I had a fleeting thought to throw a pillow at him, but obliged him and dragged myself out of bed to fix breakfast for the family.
In the past, my scrambled eggs turned out runny or overcooked. I made the mistake of adding cream or milk to the eggs and beating them together. Following Julia’s technique, the eggs came out creamy, moist and custard-like. Julia recommends beating the eggs with seasonings and any herbs you wish to use for about 20-30 seconds to blend the yolks and whites. Then, smear the bottom and sides of the pan with butter and pour in the eggs and set over moderately low heat. You should stir slowly and continually with a spatula or wooden spoon, reaching all over the bottom of the pan. Nothing seems to happen at first but after 2-3 minutes the eggs will gradually heat and begin to thicken into a custard. At this point you should stir rapidly, moving the pan on and off the heat, until the eggs are almost the consistency you want. Then remove them from the heat and they will continue to thicken slightly. When the eggs have reached the consistency you want, stir in additional butter or a little cream if you wish. This will stop the cooking and you can season to taste, turn out onto the serving platter, garnish with parsley or chives and serve.
The addition of wild mushrooms lends a wonderfully savory and earthy flavor and aroma to the scrambled eggs. The black trumpets have a flavor similar to truffles. The lobster mushrooms have a peppery, paprika-like aroma and provide a nice crunchy counterpart to the scrambled eggs. Using dried mushrooms instead of fresh mushrooms has its benefits, as the flavors and aromas of wild mushrooms are more concentrated when they’re dried.
Soft-scrambled Eggs with Black Trumpet and Lobster Mushrooms
Serves 3
- Approximately ¼ cup (60 ml.) dried lobster mushrooms and dried black trumpet mushrooms (you can also use any other varieties you wish)
- 6 eggs
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 4 tablespoons (60 ml.) butter
- Soak the dried mushrooms for 10-15 minutes in very hot water until they’re fully reconstituted, then drain.
- In a bowl, beat 6 eggs for about 30 seconds until yolks and whites are incorporated.
- Add reconstituted mushrooms and stir gently to incorporate.
- Spread 2 tablespoons (30 ml.) of butter on the bottom and sides of an omelet pan.
- Add beaten eggs to pan and cook over moderately low heat.
- Stir slowly and continually with spatula or wooden spoon, making sure to reach all over the bottom of the pan.
- After 2-3 minutes the eggs will begin to thicken into a custard. At this point, stir rapidly, moving the pan off and on the heat, until the eggs have almost thickened to the consistency you want.
- Remove from the heat and they will continue to thicken slightly. When the eggs have reached the consistency you want, add 2 more tablespoons (30 ml.) of butter and stir into the eggs.
- Garnish with chopped chives or parsley and serve.
More about Marx Foods
As Charles and I have been experimenting with the wild mushroom samples sent to us by Marx Foods, we’ve also been exploring their Web site and have been very impressed. On their site, you’ll find a wide range of gourmet foods, many of them wild foraged from the Pacific Northwest. And there’s plenty of information on their Web site: how to store and use the ingredients; recipes; a conversion method for substituting dried mushrooms in recipes that call for fresh mushrooms, and much more. They even have a food blog that’s fun and informative.
Enjoy!
— Vic
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About the Author (Author Profile)
Victor Panichkul is a journalist and writer by training; a cook, wine lover and photographer by passion; and a lover of the outdoors since moving to Oregon more than 10 years ago. He is a native of Bangkok, Thailand.
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