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Grilled Mushrooms with Garlic-Parsley Basting Butter

By David Pazmiño

Published on August 8, 2022

Time

1¼ hours

Yield

Serves 4

Grilled Mushrooms with Garlic-Parsley Basting Butter

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley 1 teaspoon minced garlic 1 teaspoon pepper, divided1 pound white, cremini, shiitake, portobello, oyster, maitake, and/or king oyster mushrooms, at least 2 inches wide½ teaspoon vegetable oil ¼ teaspoon table salt

Before You Begin

Use any mix of mushrooms you like, as long as the caps measure at least 2 inches in diameter. A grill basket is helpful here but not essential. These mushrooms make a great accompaniment to other grilled foods. The parcooked mushrooms can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours.

Instructions

  1.  Melt butter in small saucepan over medium heat. Add Worcestershire, parsley, garlic, and ½ teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until mixture is simmering and fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Cover and keep warm until ready to use.
  2.  Trim tough ends of stems on white and cremini mushrooms and cut in half. Remove stems from shiitake mushrooms. Remove stems from portobello mushrooms and halve caps if smaller than 4 inches; quarter if larger. Trim oyster and maitake mushrooms and tear into 2- to 2½-inch pieces. Trim stems on king oyster mushrooms and slice crosswise ¾ inch thick.
  3.  Combine mushrooms and ½ cup water in bowl. Cover and microwave for 1 minute. Stir well; re-cover; and microwave until mushrooms have reduced in size by about one-third and liquid has increased to almost 1 cup, about 2 minutes. Remove from microwave and let rest, covered, for 5 minutes to finish cooking. Drain well. Dry bowl and return mushrooms to bowl. Let stand at room temperature while preparing grill.
  4. FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open bottom vent completely. Light large chimney starter three-quarters filled with charcoal briquettes (about 4½ quarts). When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour evenly over half of grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.FOR A GAS GRILL: Turn all burners to high; cover; and heat grill until hot, about 15 minutes. Leave primary burner on high and turn off other burner(s).
  5.  Clean and oil cooking grate. Toss mushrooms with oil, salt, and remaining ½ teaspoon pepper. Arrange mushrooms on hotter side of grill. Cook (covered if using gas), flipping mushrooms every 2 minutes, until well browned on all sides, 4 to 6 minutes. Carefully brush mushrooms with half of basting butter and continue to cook until butter is sizzling and fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Transfer to bowl with remaining basting butter and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve.
Grilled Mushrooms with Garlic-Parsley Basting Butter
Photography by Daniel J. van Ackere. Styling by Ashley Moore.

Grilled Mushrooms with Garlic-Parsley Basting Butter

Save

Time

1¼ hours

Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon pepper, divided
1 pound white, cremini, shiitake, portobello, oyster, maitake, and/or king oyster mushrooms, at least 2 inches wide
½ teaspoon vegetable oil
¼ teaspoon table salt

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon pepper, divided
1 pound white, cremini, shiitake, portobello, oyster, maitake, and/or king oyster mushrooms, at least 2 inches wide
½ teaspoon vegetable oil
¼ teaspoon table salt

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon pepper, divided
1 pound white, cremini, shiitake, portobello, oyster, maitake, and/or king oyster mushrooms, at least 2 inches wide
½ teaspoon vegetable oil
¼ teaspoon table salt

Test Kitchen Techniques

Why This Recipe Works

Mushrooms have great potential at the grill. They're almost impossible to overcook, and they're packed with umami that mingles with the fire's smoky char to create deep, all-purpose savoriness. And as long as you choose relatively large (2-plus-inch) specimens that won't fall through the cooking grate, you can use just about any variety. Because steam conducts heat very efficiently, parcooking the mushrooms in the microwave with a small amount of water in a covered bowl quickly rid them of their own excess liquid and air, forcing them to give up their sponginess and turn firm and meaty. Even better, this step can be done well in advance so that they're ready to be seared on the grill any time the mood strikes. Tossing the drained mushrooms with oil encouraged browning and prevented sticking. Brushing them with flavored melted butter during the last minutes on the grill enhanced their complexity; the butter started to brown, creating rich caramelized flavors, and the aromatics bloomed. Tossing the mushrooms with more of the butter off the heat drove home the richness and complexity.

Before You Begin

Use any mix of mushrooms you like, as long as the caps measure at least 2 inches in diameter. A grill basket is helpful here but not essential. These mushrooms make a great accompaniment to other grilled foods. The parcooked mushrooms can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours.

Instructions

  1.  Melt butter in small saucepan over medium heat. Add Worcestershire, parsley, garlic, and ½ teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until mixture is simmering and fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Cover and keep warm until ready to use.
  2.  Trim tough ends of stems on white and cremini mushrooms and cut in half. Remove stems from shiitake mushrooms. Remove stems from portobello mushrooms and halve caps if smaller than 4 inches; quarter if larger. Trim oyster and maitake mushrooms and tear into 2- to 2½-inch pieces. Trim stems on king oyster mushrooms and slice crosswise ¾ inch thick.
  3.  Combine mushrooms and ½ cup water in bowl. Cover and microwave for 1 minute. Stir well; re-cover; and microwave until mushrooms have reduced in size by about one-third and liquid has increased to almost 1 cup, about 2 minutes. Remove from microwave and let rest, covered, for 5 minutes to finish cooking. Drain well. Dry bowl and return mushrooms to bowl. Let stand at room temperature while preparing grill.
  4. FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open bottom vent completely. Light large chimney starter three-quarters filled with charcoal briquettes (about 4½ quarts). When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour evenly over half of grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.FOR A GAS GRILL: Turn all burners to high; cover; and heat grill until hot, about 15 minutes. Leave primary burner on high and turn off other burner(s).
  5.  Clean and oil cooking grate. Toss mushrooms with oil, salt, and remaining ½ teaspoon pepper. Arrange mushrooms on hotter side of grill. Cook (covered if using gas), flipping mushrooms every 2 minutes, until well browned on all sides, 4 to 6 minutes. Carefully brush mushrooms with half of basting butter and continue to cook until butter is sizzling and fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Transfer to bowl with remaining basting butter and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

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