Marinated Mushrooms

 

Great for pre-dinner munchies Keeps for ages in the jar     Ingredients   Large quantity of small to medium button mushrooms (gills unopened) Red and/or White Wine Vinegar Olive oil (Light or Extra Virgin) Parsley (several sprigs to taste) Thyme (several sprigs to taste) Bay Leaves (several) Fresh Garlic cloves, sliced 1/2 - 1 lemon juiced Red/yellow/green Capsicum (optional) Hot Chillies (optional) - leave whole but slice to make petals, remove seeds Coriander seeds (a dozen or so) Teaspoon of fresh green Peppercorns in Brine (can substitute with black peppercorns)       Method   Trim mushroom stems; brush or rinse clean if necessary. Blanch mushrooms in boiling water and lemon juice for 10 minutes. Drain and set aside. Combine vinegar and oil in a 2:1 ratio. For a stronger vinegar flavour, use red wine vinegar exclusively (or a larger proportion of red). Note that Extra Virgin Olive Oil has a very strong distinctive flavour that may overpower the other flavours; Extra Virgin and Light Olive Oil may be mixed for a more mellow flavour but use good quality oil only - don't skimp. Add other ingredients (except mushrooms) to vinegar/oil mix and simmer for at least 20 mins. Thin strips of Capsicum may be added for last 5 mins to add colour. Add blanched mushrooms. Mix well and refrigerate in jar with tight fitting lid fro 24 hours to allow flavours to be absorbed. To serve, drain and add to other side salads or part of antipasto. Note that before draining, mix should be warmed to room temperature and shaken to blend the oil and vinegar mix. Alternative : Omit blanching the mushrooms. Add lemon juice to the vinegar/oil mix, add mushrooms and all other ingredients and simmer for 20 mins (again, add capsicums last 5 mins only). In addition to being simpler, this makes a more tangy, less watery mushroom. Guess which method I usually employ?     Enjoy !