Mexican Sautéed Mushrooms Recipe (Hongos Saltados) (2024)

FAQs

How to sauté mushrooms so they are crispy? ›

2Heat the olive oil in a large, wide skillet over medium heat. 3Add the mushrooms and spread into one layer. Then cook, without moving, until browned on one side, 3 to 5 minutes. 4Stir then cook another 3 to 5 minutes or until mostly golden brown on all sides.

2. Enhanced Mushroom Flavor: Mushrooms bring out their inherent tastes when cooked in water. The earthy, umami-rich flavor of mushrooms is well-known, and adding water preserves and enhances this flavor without interacting with extra lipids.

Mushrooms have long been used in Mexican cooking. In fact, indigenous people in the region were eating them long before the Spaniards arrived. A particular fungus that grows on corn, called huitlacoche, is an especially prized variety. And a wide range of mushroom tacos are fairly common throughout Mexico.

For perfect sauteed mushrooms, Alton Brown adds water into the mix before browning with butter to ensure firm, yet floppy mushroom slices.

Never salt the mushrooms before cooking. Salt draws out moisture and will therefore make them extremely mushy. We want a nice meaty delicious bite to them with color and texture, so salt at the end always.

Oil and butter: For the best and richest flavor, cook the mushrooms in a mixture of olive oil and butter. Mushrooms: A pound of sliced button mushrooms should comfortably serve about four people. Wine: A tablespoon of red cooking wine enhances the flavor of the sautéed mushrooms.

Butter: Butter can add richness and flavor to sautéed mushrooms. It has a low smoke point, so it is best used over low to medium heat. Coconut oil: Coconut oil has a high smoke point and a distinctive flavor that can complement the taste of mushrooms. It is also a good source of healthy saturated fats.

It is generally recommended not to wash mushrooms before cooking them. Mushrooms have a high water content and are porous, which means they can absorb water quickly. Washing them under running water can make them become waterlogged and affect their texture and taste.

Generally, the advice is to cook dry mushrooms directly in fat to create that ever-desired sear. But the downside of that technique is that the mushrooms quickly absorb all the oil or butter in the pan, prompting you to add more and more.

Do Mexicans eat a lot of mushrooms? ›

A 2023 study in the International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science found that wild edible mushrooms are popular amongst urban consumers in Mexico, even though they tend to be expensive and are only available in certain seasons. In Mexican dishes, mushrooms may be pickled, like carrots, or served in soups.

I still remember the first time, as a child, I heard of her — it was February 1983 and at a traffic light in Mexico City, my parents had seen the headline and bought a newspaper from the vendor. María Sabina, the great mushroom priestess, oral poet, and healer/shaman, was ailing.

While this high moisture content gives mushrooms their spongy texture, it begins seeping out when exposed to heat. And for a cooking method like sautéing, the liquid needs to fully evaporate before the mushrooms get super brown and crispy.

Mushrooms are mostly water. You have to drive that water out to concentrate their flavor and prevent them from being mushy. Sautéing them in hot oil, getting them nicely browned and cooking them until they are dry will give you the best results.

The critical step is to wait to wash them until right before you cook with them so they don't get bogged down with water. After giving the mushrooms a rinse, dry them off, and you're ready to cook.

Make sure the pan is throughly heated and greased.

Cooking mushrooms in a pan that isn't properly heated will cause them to boil and steam in their own released moisture rather than brown. That's why Susan suggests preheating the skillet over a medium to medium-high heat for around 2 to 3 minutes beforehand.

Sautéing on High or Low Heat

"Medium-high heat is the way to go with mushrooms. You want their liquids to slowly evaporate while they caramelize," says Norton. High heat can burn mushrooms, while low heat will make them cook in their own liquid, she says. You also want to be mindful of the pan.

Mushrooms are naturally high in moisture (they're typically 80-90% water), which means they risk becoming soggy when cooked. The trick to making sure your mushrooms taste as delicious as they should is to cook them in a way that brings out their best qualities and flavors.