Marinated Mushrooms

These marinated mushrooms are the perfect make ahead canapé, delicious antipasto or tapas dish, and take only 15 minutes to prepare.

Not only is this easy mushroom recipe gluten free and vegan, but it can be made up to a few days ahead, making it a great recipe for entertaining. The mushrooms are gently boiled until cooked but still firm and with some bite, then tipped into a simple homemade marinade made with olive oil and vinegar and flavoured with bay, thyme, garlic, mustard seeds. They are then stored in the fridge to soak up all this flavour, and actually taste better if made a few days ahead.

Marinated mushrooms may conjure up images of the Mediterranean, but they actually remind me of Canada. There was a bar a couple of streets away from where we lived in Montreal which served locally brewed beers. On a bleak winters day there was nothing better than walking the 10 minutes, shaking off the snow and having a glass of beer (or in my case wine) in a warm bar, chatting to friends.

More often than not we would order nibbles of some kind to accompany our drinks. Most of the items on the bar’s menu were larger items such as burgers, fries, and pizzas, but there were a few lighter options, and one of them was marinated mushrooms. Fresh and zingy and packed with flavour; once we had tried them we were hooked, and ALWAYS ordered them whenever we visited the bar.

So I have since made my own version of marinated mushrooms: beer and  freezing cold weather are optional.

Ideas for serving these marinated mushrooms:

These marinated mushrooms make a great canapé with summer drinks such as this refreshing Hugo Cocktail, or serve with marinated cheeses and sliced meats as part of an antipasto platter. I also love serving them as part of a worldwide tapas themed party with Spanish baked patatas bravas, Venezuelan Guacamole,  Hungarian Paprika Cheese and some bowls of olives, various cheeses and fresh bread.

Other serving ideas:

• Top flatbread with mashed avocado, some mushrooms and sprinkle over a little feta or goats cheese.
• Stir through pasta.
• Toss through a salad with spinach and walnuts.

Storage:

The mushrooms will keep, covered, in the fridge for up to 4 days. The oil will solidify in the fridge, but just take them out of the fridge about an hour before you want to use them, and the oil will return to its normal consistency.

Freezing the mushrooms:

I wouldn’t recommend freezing these marinated mushrooms.

Make them your marinated mushrooms:

Spicy Chilli Mushrooms: If you like some spice, then a finely sliced chilli instead of the chilli flakes would work really well.

Different Herbs: Add a sprig of rosemary instead of the thyme, or instead of bay use on of these substitutes for bay leaves.