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Beech mushrooms have a delicious savory, nutty flavor and crunchy texture! Here’s more about this variety and a recipe for how to cook them.
Here’s a unique variety of mushrooms you should grab if you ever see them at the grocery or market: beech mushrooms! The small clusters of fungi look right out of a fairy tale. Turns out, they’re also some of the tastiest around! Sauté them up and the flavor is earthy and savory, with a crunchy pop in each bite.
Here at A Couple Cooks, we’ve made it our goal to try all the types of mushrooms we can find at our local grocery. After over 10 different varieties, beech mushrooms have solidified their place as one of Alex and my favorites. Here’s more about them and a recipe!
What are beech mushrooms?
Beech mushrooms are worth grabbing if you see them: this variety is one of the tastiest around. Here’s what you need to know this unique type of mushroom:
- Beech mushrooms (Hypsizygus tessellatus) are a type of edible mushroom that grows on beech trees, hence the name. They’re also known as Buna shimeji or clamshell mushrooms, and native to East Asia (they’re also cultivated in the US, Australia and Europe). They grow in clusters and are small and thin, with round tops. There are two types: the brown beech mushroom and the white beech mushroom.
- Where to find it? You can find this type of mushroom at some grocery stores or health food stores, farmer’s markets.
- What do beech mushrooms taste like? They have a lightly sweet, savory and nutty flavor, with a subtly crunchy texture. They should always be served cooked, since the flavor is slightly bitter when raw.
How to store and clean them
Grabbed a bunch of beech mushrooms? Great! Here’s how to store them once you bring them home, and clean them before cooking:
- Store the mushrooms in a paper bag in the refrigerator (not produce drawer). You can leave them in the package they come in. But the best way to store mushrooms is in a paper bag, which allows them to breathe. Leave them in the main part of the refrigerator to get good airflow, not the produce drawer.
- Clean them with a quick rinse. Slice off the base of the mushroom clump, then give the mushrooms a quick rinse. Just don’t soak them or they can become soggy. Here’s How to Clean Mushrooms…the Right Way.
How to cook beech mushrooms
Beech mushrooms should always be served cooked, since their flavor can be slightly bitter raw. A quick toss in a pan with soy sauce and lime, and you won’t believe the flavor! Here are the basic steps (or jump to the recipe):
- Slice off the base of the mushrooms and rinse them. Slicing off the base of the cluster separates them into individual stems. Give them a brief rinse to remove any dirt.
- Cook on medium heat for 3 minutes. We like using sesame oil (standard, not toasted).
- Reduce to medium heat, add seasonings and cook 1 to 2 minutes. We like to add soy sauce, lime juice and a hint of Sriracha for a punch of savory, nuanced flavor. But you can add any seasonings you like, like lemon or other herbs and spices.
Ways to serve beech mushrooms
Once you’ve cooked these beech mushrooms, you can add them to other dishes, or use them in place of other varieties in a stir fry, risotto, or pizza. Here are some more ideas:
- Soba noodles: Add them to soba noodles for a quick meal.
- Stir fry: Throw them into a stir fry, like broccoli stir fry, cauliflower stir fry or tofu stir fry.
- Grains: Add them to farro with mushrooms or mushroom risotto (made with homemade mushroom broth!).
- Pasta: Use them in a mix of mushrooms in this mushroom pasta with goat cheese
- Pizza: Top them on a mushroom pizza.
- Ramen: Add them to a big bowl of mushroom ramen.
Dietary notes
Beech mushrooms are vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free.
Beech Mushrooms (Info & Recipe!)
Beech mushrooms have a delicious savory, nutty flavor and crunchy texture! This recipe accentuates their flavor by pairing them with soy sauce and lime.
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 7 minutes
- Yield: 2 to 3 servings 1x
- Category: Side dish
- Method: Sauteed
- Cuisine: Mushrooms
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 8 ounces beech mushrooms
- 1 ½ tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
- ½ tablespoon lime juice
- ½ teaspoon Sriracha hot sauce (or other hot sauce)
- 1 ½ tablespoons sesame oil (standard, not toasted)
- Kosher salt
Instructions
- Slice off the bottom tough part of the mushroom stems. In a small bowl, stir together the soy sauce, lime juice and Sriracha.
- Heat the sesame oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add the beech mushrooms and cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add a few pinches of kosher salt while cooking.
- Reduce the heat to medium and carefully pour in the bowl of sauce. Continue cooking 1 to 2 minutes until browned and glossy.
More types of mushrooms
There are so many types of fungi to try! We’ve found all of these mushroom varieties at our local grocery store. Sample them all:
- Button Mushrooms are the most common variety, with a mild, neutral flavor
- Cremini Mushrooms (aka baby bella) are ultra versatile for stuffed, soups, pizza, pasta and more
- Portobello Mushrooms are a treat stuffed, grilled or dolled up as a burger
- Shiitake Mushrooms are one of the most umami-packed and delicious you’ll find!
- Oyster Mushrooms have delicate flavor and are great sautéed
- King Oyster Mushrooms are large and meaty, fantastic as a meat substitute
- Maitake Mushrooms (aka Hen of the Woods) have feathered edges and an earthy, peppery flavor
- Lions Mane Mushrooms are ultra meaty and great for adding fried to a sandwich
- Enoki Mushrooms are great for sauteeing or using to top ramen or a hot pot
Made this the other night and had to sub lemon juice for lime juice – it was still delicious. Then toasted 2 Tbsp. of sesame seeds and added to the mushrooms…
used this for pasta.
Quite the treat, thank you!
I buy beech mushrooms at Trader Joe’s. I cut some of the bottom off but leave in tact, slice in Half and pour buttermilk over them and then coat with chicken breader (House of Autry brand) and fry them. They are like eating fried chicken. The texture is so close and delicious and filling!
Yum!
You can also find these mushrooms in Asian markets, and they tend to be quite inexpensive. So that’s another place to hunt them down.
I like to stir fry mine with some butter and garlic and use them as a steak topping. They pack more flavour than the standard criminis and complement beef very well. They’re also good when tossed in egg drop soup or hot and sour soup, too.
I found some of these at the store yesterday and was curious about them. Turned out I also had some soba noodles, too, so I tried this and it was fantastic!
I followed the recipe except omitted the kosher salt & adjusting for having 3.5 oz of mushrooms.
Added to Mapo Tofu—Delicious!
The soy sauce provides enough salt.
can you freeze them
This type of mushroom is difficult to freeze because it is so delicate. However here are some instructions and more info on how to freeze mushrooms! https://www.acouplecooks.com/can-you-freeze-mushrooms/
Great info and pictures on different types of mushrooms. I love all kinds of mushrooms and now I’m excited to try sauteed Beech shrooms! Love your website!
Thank you!