When a friend told me about this I really didn’t believe them but tried it anyway…
astonishingly, the end result was deliciously bacon-y.

This is not so much a recipe; more like an amazing chemistry experiment in which a rather fusty-smelling shiitake mushroom is transformed into ‘bacon’.

Vegans and vegetarians should be hopping with delight and meat eaters could be fooled. Obviously, a small slice of shiitake won’t turn into a large rasher of bacon but you’ll have pieces big enough to add to salads, pizza, omelets, soup, baked potatoes with sour cream and anything else that cries out for a bacon flavor.

So throw away that ‘fake bacon’ made from processed soy and get slicing. This couldn’t be easier!

SHIITAKE ‘BACON’

Ingredients:

(Makes about 1 cup)

5 oz (160g) of thinly sliced fresh shiitake mushrooms (not dried)

2-3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, if you like pepper bacon

Action:

Pre heat the oven to 350F (180C)

Toss the sliced shiitake in a bowl with 2-3 tablespoons of extra v olive oil – make sure everything is well coated and the mushrooms will really absorb a lot.

Add sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, if using.

Arrange in a shallow roasting pan in a single layer.

Oven temps vary so go by the color of the shiitake – roast for approx 25-30 minutes, giving them a good stir every 10 minutes until they’re a deep brown – you’ll want to take them out of the oven before they get burned black.

They’ll have reduced dramatically and there will be quite a bit of oil in the pan so transfer them with a slotted spoon onto a few sheets of paper towel to drain any excess oil.

I liked them so much I ate them all there and then, so had to make another batch.

Thanks, Dave!