Marinated King Trumpet Mushroom, Fermented Black Bean Powder, Wild Clover, Sesame Oil & Mirin
When I was thinking about this dish I new that I wanted some type of green to pair with the mushroom. I wanted this to be a dish that when eaten was reminiscent of the earth. I also wanted whatever greenery I used to be small-leaved so as not to take away too much of the attention that the king trumpet deserved. As I was standing at my back door yesterday, looking out onto my concrete slab of a back yard, taking inventory of the plants still growing I saw an abundance of young clover. So I braved the beginnings of Hurricane Sandy and ventured out to pick some for my salad. You can see a picture of the clover picking below. Clover has a very subtle bitter fresh flavor that cut through the rich umami flavor of the trumpet and black bean. It's also loaded with vitamins and minerals.
I started by slicing the King Trumpets in half and tossing them with sesame oil and sherry vinegar. I covered them and let them marinate for an hour or so in the fridge. I then gently cooked them in sesame oil to warm them through and get some color on them. I finished the pan at the end with some mirin. I used some of the liquid in the pan when plating.
I pushed the fermented black beans through a fine mesh sieve to make a smooth puree. I whisked the puree with tapioca maltodextrin to make a fine powder. If you're not familiar with them, fermented black beans are very similar in flavor to miso or soy sauce. Their scent reminds me of that of fermenting cocoa beans. I plated the powder using a small ring mold and placed the clover leaves on top. I liked how the water droplets looked on the leaves so I left any that managed to hold on where they were.
I started by slicing the King Trumpets in half and tossing them with sesame oil and sherry vinegar. I covered them and let them marinate for an hour or so in the fridge. I then gently cooked them in sesame oil to warm them through and get some color on them. I finished the pan at the end with some mirin. I used some of the liquid in the pan when plating.
I pushed the fermented black beans through a fine mesh sieve to make a smooth puree. I whisked the puree with tapioca maltodextrin to make a fine powder. If you're not familiar with them, fermented black beans are very similar in flavor to miso or soy sauce. Their scent reminds me of that of fermenting cocoa beans. I plated the powder using a small ring mold and placed the clover leaves on top. I liked how the water droplets looked on the leaves so I left any that managed to hold on where they were.