Vegan | Gluten-free with tamari

Yield: 2 sandwiches · Prep: 10 min · Cook: 15 min

Certain mushrooms make close to a perfect pulled-pork substitute, and the reason is structural. Comb tooth and lion’s mane have no gills, cap, or stem — the whole fruiting body is a dense bundle of parallel fibers, so pulling one apart with your fingers frays it into ropy, feathered strands. Once the water is cooked off, those strands firm and tighten rather than going to mush, taking a glaze and staying chewy in a way that reads as meat.

Ingredients

• ½ lb comb tooth, lion’s mane, or king oyster mushrooms

• ½ tbsp avocado oil

• Buns and coleslaw, optional

Maple BBQ Sauce

• 2 tbsp tomato paste

• 2 tbsp maple syrup

• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

• ½ tbsp tamari or soy sauce

• ½ tsp Dijon mustard

• 1 tsp smoked paprika

• ½ tsp garlic powder

• ½ tsp onion powder

• ½ tsp chipotle powder or cayenne

• ½ tsp salt

• ¼ tsp black pepper

• ⅓ cup (80 ml) water

Preparation

1. Make the sauce. Whisk all sauce ingredients together until smooth. Taste and adjust.

2. Shred the mushroom. Pull apart into thin, ropy strands. Go finer here than you would for a battered version.

3. Dry sauté (about 9 min). Dry skillet, no oil, medium-high. Press the mushrooms flat and cook until the water it releases fully evaporates and the strands brown and shrink by about half.

4. Add the oil. Push the mushroom aside, add the avocado oil, and toss the strands in it for a minute so they pick up a little fat and gloss.

5. Glaze (about 5 min). Lower the heat to medium-low. Pour in the sauce and simmer, stirring often, until it tightens and clings with nothing pooling in the pan.

6. Serve. Pile onto buns or tortillas and top with slaw if using.

Notes & Variations

• Mushroom swaps: comb tooth and lion’s mane shred best. King oyster is the strongest alternative. We like to run a fork down the stem so it comes apart in the same ropy strands. Blue and golden oyster tear into strips rather than strands, which makes a looser, more delicate sandwich. For blue and golden oysters, reduce the dry sauté to about 6 minutes total since they hold less water.

• How finely you shred determines everything! Thin strands crisp and tighten; thick chunks stay soft and read as mushroom rather than meat.

• Don’t rush the dry sauté. If any water is left in the pan when the sauce goes in, the glaze thins out and never clings.

• The sauce doubles and keeps well, so make extra while you have the spices out.

Storage

Keeps 4–5 days in the refrigerator and freezes well. Reheat in a dry skillet rather than the microwave so the strands tighten back up. The sauce by itself keeps for 2 weeks in the fridge.

More recipes at wellspringforestfarm.com/mushroom-info-hub