Ben Moy, retired chef-owner of The Bird, a popular restaurant on the North Shore and later in Melrose Park, is something of a Renaissance man. He’s passionate about music and plays the violin. He’s as skilled at growing food as he is at cooking it. He even hunts mushrooms in the wild and dries them for later use.
Dried mushrooms, he insists, “in many ways are better than fresh. The flavor is more concentrated, more intense, and there is so much variety. You have to buy fresh mushrooms at the last minute and the quality is variable. Dried keep almost forever and they represent good value even at $20 a pound, because they provide so much quantity when reconstituted.”
Moy cooks with all manner of mushrooms, but most often with Asian varieties. He recommends buying them in Chinatown at “a store with a big choice” (and an English-speaking owner or clerk who can describe them).
One distinction to be made is whether the mushroom in question is strong or mild.
“Intensely flavored mushrooms require much longer cooking,” Moy says. “They should be served alone as a separate course or with full-flavored meats such as beef, wild game, lamb shanks or even raccoon. Mushrooms with more delicate flavors can go with game birds, veal and pork. Also, if you are making a stew, the mushrooms need a firm texture so they can survive several hours of cooking.”
Moy offers several cooking tips: He warns that mushrooms tend to magnify the intensity of salt, so be stingy and add it only at the very end of cooking. Nor does he use soaking water in cooking because he finds the mushroom flavor too heavy. As for fresh mushrooms, they “should be firm and tight. If they are open, don’t buy them, because they will become watery and flavorless when cooked.”
FRAGRANT BOX ELDER MUSHROOMS BRAISED WITH PORK
Eight servings
3/4 to 1 pound dried box elder mushrooms or fa-goo (dried Chinese mushrooms)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 boneless pork loin roast, about 3 pounds
1 piece dried orange peel (silver dollar size)
1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
1/4 leek, cleaned and chopped
1 large shallot, chopped
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
3 tablespoons bourbon
2 to 3 cups chicken stock or water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 cup shredded Virginia ham or prosciutto
1. Wash the mushrooms in warm water, then soak in cool water at room temperature for a half-hour, changing the water several times and rinsing at the end. Halve or quarter mushrooms to make them bite-size.
2. Choose a wok or heavy skillet with a cover, or a Dutch oven. Coat the bottom with 1 tablespoon vegetable oil. Brown pork, then add the mushrooms, orange peel, ginger, leek, shallot, parsley, bourbon and 2 cups liquid. Bring liquid to a boil, lower heat to a simmer, cover the wok and cook without boiling until tender, 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes. Baste from time to time and add liquid as needed to keep level constant.
3. Roast may be cooked ahead. Rewarm over low heat. Remove pork and carve into slices. Stir salt, soy and sesame oil into liquid just before serving. Arrange pork slices in the middle of a plate or platter, surround with mushrooms, ladle broth over all and garnish with shredded ham.
COGNAC MUSHROOMS
Six to eight servings
1/2 pound fa-goo
2 quarts chicken stock
2 to 3 tablespoons brandy, Cognac preferred
1 piece chicken fat, 2 by 3 inches, optional
1 piece dried orange peel
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon light soy sauce
8 to 10 coriander leaves (cilantro), for garnish
1/2 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and cut into thin strips, for garnish
1. Wash fa-goo (mushrooms), rinse several times and pat them dry. Combine chicken stock and brandy.
2. Pour mushrooms into a heavy pan with a tight-fitting lid. Add optional chicken fat (for a richer texture), orange peel and enough stock to reach the top of the mushrooms. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, lower the heat and cover the pan.
3. Cook for 3 to 4 hours, stirring occasionally and making sure the liquid is not boiling. Add more liquid as needed. Dish can be made ahead. Let cool to room temperature and cover. No need to refrigerate unless preparing the mushrooms a day before the meal.
4. Reheat, uncovered, until the liquid boils. Add salt and light soy. Serve mushrooms as an individual course, in a bowl garnished with the coriander leaves and red pepper strips. As an alternative, serve them with a roast of lamb or duck.
CHICKEN SOUP WITH JUK-SAN AND HAM
Four to six servings
2 ounces juk-san (bamboo fungus)
6 cups very rich chicken or game bird broth
2 cups coarsely chopped Napa cabbage
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon dry sherry or Cognac
2 tablespoons shredded Virginia ham or prosciutto
1. Soak juk-san 30 minutes in cold water, changing water several times. Drain and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces.
2. Heat broth in a medium pan. Add juk-san pieces and simmer 3 to 5 minutes. Add cabbage. Cook only until cabbage begins to wilt. Add salt, soy and sherry. Cook another minute or two.
3. Transfer soup to a serving bowl and garnish with shredded ham. Serve.
