A vegan faux oyster
This is a very strange question. But I am a near-omnivore who is having an oyster-themed party next week and I want to make something oyster-y for my vegan boyfriend to enjoy.
My thought was to cook up oyster mushrooms and place them, along with a little sauce for slurping, into those large Asian-style ceramic soup spoons.
My quandary is, how to cook the mushrooms? I'd love to replicate the briny-ness of an actual oyster but am not sure how to do that beyond simply adding a crap ton of salt.
So far my thought is to cook them in olive oil with shallots and a splash of veggie broth with plenty of sea salt, but I'd love other chowhoundy opinions on what else might be interesting.
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Thinking a little outside of the box here, what about a "seawater" or "vegan miso soup" jello shot? You could even use a tiny melon-baller on a radish to make a "pearl"!
Or I bet you could do something with Korean rice cake...›3 Replies-
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re: jdoyle2254
babette feasts
Nov 4, 2011 06:19 PM
Pectin needs high levels of both sugar and acid to gel, so it wouldn't work well with miso. Agar would work, but it is a little tricky to get a soft set, and when it is too firm it gets crumbly, definitely un-oyster-like.
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babette feasts
Nov 4, 2011 04:05 PM
Have you ever tried salsify? It is also called oyster plant and does taste oystery. The mushroom is probably a lot easier, just thought I'd mention it.
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OK, I'm no oyster fan, and I really don't know if this will be accurate, but you can buy vegan "oyster" sauce; http://importfood.com/sadf2001.html (there are several brands, this is just one
)If that doesn't work flavor-wise (I'm truly clueless; sorry), then soaking the mushrooms in a seaweed broth should give it a definite seafood flavor. Just simmering some kelp/kombu in water should be sufficient to create a broth. You could either soak the mushroom in the broth before cooking the mushroom, or use the broth in cooking your dish. Though I think oyster mushrooms are rather oyster-y as-is. Or so I hear.
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cowboyardee
Nov 4, 2011 01:08 PM
Flavoring with some of the wakame seaweed you can find in Asian specialty stores can definitely get a little of that ocean-y flavor. It's not uncommon to find both said seaweed and mushrooms in a Japanese soup, so the flavors shouldn't clash too bad. Simmer it in the vegetable broth, then maybe garnish with a bit of the simmered seaweed.
While you're at it, consider slipping him this article. Many of the rationales for vegans not to eat meat or meat products don't apply particularly well to oysters,which can be raised sustainably and also have no central nervous system or ability to experience pain (or consciousness) as other animals do. From an ethical standpoint, they may actually be more analogous to eating plants than to eating other animals, even other invertebrates like lobsters.
http://www.slate.com/articles/life/fo...
The comments and counterarguments are interesting as well.›2 Replies-
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re: eclecticveggie
cowboyardee
Nov 4, 2011 02:06 PM
Worth a try. ;)
Another option would be to simmer the mushroom until soft, coat it in bread crumbs (panko is usually vegan, right?), and then deep fry it. Replace the egg wash with a slurry of soy milk and cornstarch thickened to an egglike consistency. Again you could garnish with bits of the wakame seaweed, then maybe some vegan tartar sauce (if you can't find it - basically, vegan mayo with lemon juice, relish), and little bit of a quick-pickled vegetable slaw. A few drops of hot sauce too, if you like.
Obviously, it's more work, But it should taste pretty good to vegans and non vegans alike. It also sort of disguises the mushroom visually and tastewise, enhances the illusion. Rather than oyster mushrooms, I might consider shiitake caps for this kind of thing.
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