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King Oyster Mushroom “Scallops”

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Am I the only person who looks at food magazines at the gym? My local iron crushing spot graciously displays an entire rack full of magazines that I viciously comb through every day to find a new one that I have yet to browse through (I am continually looking for some inspiration to get me through my time on the treadmill). I open up the pages and find the recipes that awaken my creativity and then set the jogging number to 4.8 (yeah yeah yeah, so I’m a slow runner–don’t judge!) and then I let my mind wonder and dream about well, food.

King Oyster Mushroom "Scallops" and Pasta (gluten-free vegan) - Fork & Beans

Last month, as I embarked upon the above-mentioned routine, there was a magazine that had this beautiful spread on a Clam Bake. I remember just staring at this page in awe because I marveled at the thought of creating my own gluten-free vegan “seafood” bake. I had to do it. I’m all about setting out to prove that you can do anything with food regardless of your restrictions. So that is what is going on over here for the next two weeks: Fork & Beans’ First Annual Gluten-Free Vegan “Seafood” Bake! The first thing that sparked into my head to make was King Oyster Mushroom “Scallops.” I’ve been day-dreaming about making these for over a year (I know, I’m slow to action at times) when I saw a similar recipe on the menu at a local restaurant.    

King Oyster Mushroom "Scallops" and Pasta (gluten-free vegan) - Fork & Beans

Having not personally tried it, I was skeptical. I mean, they are just mushroom stems. Big whoop. There is no way that they will taste similar to the real thing, right? Oh, I was so wrong in my judgments. But come on, I took a small bite from the raw mushroom stem at first and it was gross. Took a second bite from the soaked stem (surely if I soaked it in hot bath it would soften up). Nope. But my mouth hit the floor when I took the first bite after I cooked them in the skillet with the broth and wine. I bow in your general direction King Oyster Mushrooms. Your talent and ability to taste like scallops should be enough to enlist you onto Star Search.  

King Oyster Mushroom "Scallops" and Pasta (gluten-free vegan) - Fork & Beans

In terms of the initial preparation of the mushroom stems (I needed soaking consultation) I was guided by two recipes from two awesome bloggers: Kathy from Lunch Box Bunch‘s King Oyster Vegan Mushroom Scallops and Cucumber and Erin from Olives For Dinner‘s Vegan Bacon Wrapped Scallops*

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King Oyster Mushroom “Scallops”

★★★★★ 4.4 from 14 reviews
  • Author: Cara Reed
  • Prep Time: 1 hour
  • Cook Time: 30 mins
  • Total Time: 1 hour 30 mins
  • Yield: 12 "Scallops" 1x
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Description

These soaked mushroom stems are the perfect substitute for the scallop lovers out there. Absorbing the broth and wine, they eerily mimic their texture and incredible taste.

Scale

Ingredients

For the King Oyster Mushroom Scallops:

  • Stems of 4 king oyster mushrooms, rinsed and cut into 1 – 1 1/2″ sections (I got about 4 pieces from each stem)
  • 1 c. vegetable broth
  • 1/4 c. white wine
  • 1 Tbsp. vegan butter
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 shallot, minced

For the Pasta:

  • 4 oz. uncooked gluten-free pasta (approx. 2 c. cooked), cook according to package
  • 1 c. vegetable broth
  • 1/4 c. white wine
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/2 c. fresh tomatoes, cut into small cubes or 2 Tbsp. sun-dried tomatoes, drained from the oil and chopped
  • 1/4 c. fresh parsley, finely chopped
  • 1 Tbsp. red pepper flakes

Instructions

  1. In hot water, soak the mushroom stems for 1-2 hours. Drain completely.
  2. On medium-high, place the mushroom stems into a skillet. Add the broth and white wine to the skillet, getting the liquid to a simmering boil. Allow the mushroom stems to absorb the liquid completely (might take about 12-15 minutes) Please note that they will shrink in size a little once cooked.
  3. Toss in 1 Tbsp. vegan butter, garlic, and shallot and nicely brown the stems on each side, making sure you don’t burn the garlic and shallot. Remove from heat and place the “scallops” on a plate. Keep the garlic and shallots in the pan for the pasta.
  4. Add the vegetable broth, wine, and minced garlic in your skillet used for the mushrooms and allow to simmer over medium heat until half of the liquid is absorbed.
  5. Mix in the tomatoes, parsley and pepper flakes into the skillet. Simmer for another minute and then add the cooked and drained pasta. Allow the liquid to almost completely absorb (you want the bottom of the pan to be lightly coated with liquid).
  6. Divide the pasta into two 1 c. servings (I know, the correct serving size is 1/2 c. but who doesn’t love more pasta?!) and divide the “scallops” equally on top. Garnish with more fresh parsley.

Nutrition

  • Calories: 445
  • Sugar: 7g
  • Sodium: 929mg
  • Fat: 9g
  • Saturated Fat: 4g
  • Unsaturated Fat: 3g
  • Trans Fat: 0g
  • Carbohydrates: 68g
  • Fiber: 10g
  • Protein: 20g
  • Cholesterol: 15mg

 

For the king oyster mushrooms, I found mine fresh at Whole Foods. They came in a pack of four are unfortunately more of a specialty mushroom, making them harder to find. Keep in mind that these mushrooms really are the only mushroom stem recommended for this recipe due to its size, shape, and texture.  

namastasty        

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. If you live somewhere with an Asian grocery you can often get king oyster mushrooms year-round. In Austin I pay about $2.50 for a package of 2.

  2. Oh man! This recipe was hella good! I think, though, that I put too much red pepper flakes because it was very spicy. Question: Is there a special way to store the cooked king mushrooms if they are not consumed?

  3. The Best I have tasted. I used sun dried tomatoes instead of the fresh. I also used apple juice instead of white wine as we do not consume alcohol. 1 teaspoon red pepper instead of 1 tablespoon to control heat (more available on the table. Hands down! the best. Soaking the mushrooms really gave the texture of scallops. Thank you!

  4. Made it for a third time. It is our new favorite. The guests went nuts for it at our party.We made a huge vat of it. We were asked who the caterer was who made it. I said “I did!” The complement goes to the creator of this post. Thank you for sharing.

    ★★★★★

  5. Well on the one hand I love the mushrooms….we couldn’t fund king oyster so we did it with portabellas. TASTY! The tablespoon of red pepper was a bit much even for my spice luvin hubby. The kids were champs and ate it with lots o bread and milk. Overall, without so much red pepper its a winner!!

    ★★★★

  6. I soooo wanted to love these mushrooms, but I just could not eat them. Like Nancy’s 2016 comment, I found them to be slimy and I could not get past that consistency. I followed the recipe EXACTLY and even read nearly all the comments. Any ideas on what happened would be appreciated. I soaked and pat-dried them, caramelized them, cooked them in the sauce, but there was no taste and the consistency was off-putting. Hubby liked them, but I could not even get through one (and I tried a few to make sure the one I was eating wasn’t an anomaly! We have a great Koren market where these mushrooms are available and I really wanted them to work. I am willing to try these one more time, but it was not a pleasant experience for me first time around.

    ★

    • If you go to the Korean market, you should be able to find Dashima, also called dried sea tangle or kelp. I boil about a 3″x3″ piece in water for 10 minutes until the water tastes kind of ocean-y. If you can’t taste or smell it, you can add a little more of the Dashima.

      I then soak the mushroom in this after it cools a little, instead of just plain water. I also soak for 3 hours instead of 2. It really helps add flavor to the mushrooms. I hope this helps!

  7. I subscribed to your newsletter solely on the brilliance of this recipe – AND I just happened to buy King oyster mushrooms yesterday 🙂 I will report back! Thanks!

    ★★★★★

  8. Okay, so I tried and tried to find a store that sells King Oyster Mushrooms. No one sells it. Not even the Whole Foods near me. They have Oyster Mushrooms but not King Oyster Mushrooms. I substituted it with sliced Shiitake Mushroom. Very delicious but still would love to experience vegan scallops. Anyone know anywhere else to find these King Oyster Mushrooms? – Thank in advanced

    ★★★★★

  9. 1 tbsp red pepper flakes makes it like a 6 star dish. Holy moses I’m in physical pain. Maybe 1 tsp. Maybe. Pretty much ruined it since i couldn’t eat more than a few bites after spending 3 hours cooking.

    Also
    4) add to what? Absorb into what? Badly written. I had to just mess around since you lost me there.

    The mushroom stems were DELICIOUS. Soaked in hot water first per instructions. May try again with no red pepper. Or like 3 flakes.

    ★★★

  10. Great recipe! Definitely hit the seafood craving spot. so strange how these mushrooms also have the same texture as scallops when cut into. Some were tough while others were perfect maybe I’ll use less of the bottom of the mushroom next time. Is there a trick to picking them out at the store to get the most tender? Firmer softer smaller larger?

    • Isn’t that crazy? So glad you liked it! As for the finding the more tender ones, I have no tricks for that. It just might be as you say and cut the bottoms a little more smaller?

  11. When a recipe like the King Oyster Mushroom “Scallops” calls for white wine what kind do I use. I don’t know much about wines but want to try this recipe. What is a white wine I can buy to use? Thank you

    • You can use Sauvignon Blanc or a Chardonnay. I go to Trader Joe’s and just buy their simple (and cheap!) Charles Shaw brand.

        • You can also use spanish cooking wine called “Vino Seco”. It’s not alcoholic, and is a white wine. At least according to my mormon buddy; he says it’s okay because whatever small amount of alcohol that is in the cooking wine is burnt away during cooking.

          There are also lots of non-alcoholic cooking wines on the market these days and, at least in this case; you could always use white grape juice in a pinch. I don’t like subbing broth in because you lose that tart undertone cooking with a wine adds to the overall flavor. Another option is apple cider; which I have tried and I thought it played really well with this recipe.

          ★★★★★

  12. Fantastic recipe Ty
    I marinated the mushrooms overnight in the wine broth and garlic then threw them in the fry pan with some of the bath and butter cooked out most the liquid removed and added the pasta tomatoes etc tossed and served. We all loved it will be in the dinner rotation for sure

  13. I followed the recipe exactly, but the mushroom slices were much chewier than scallops and a bit slimy. The mushrooms I bought were much bigger around than the ones in your photos and that may be the whole problem. Any suggestions to solve that problem? I really want to be able to enjoy these mushrooms the way I enjoyed scallops.

    ★★★

    • Probably too much liquid, mushrooms can retain and expel lots and lots of liquid. After taking the mushrooms out of their “bath” try cooking the water out, drain, and then try frying with the “butter” (or whatever preferred) and wine. Or just skip a step and don’t boil the mushrooms, just cook, drain (and pat dry), then fry in seasonings.
      You could also bake the mushrooms, I believe this could work out okay, just broil until brown and baste occasionally before they dry. Remember you want them crispy AND tender, so you could bake them, and after about 5-7 minutes, if looking dry, put a little of the wine/ butter baste

    • This was great inspiration for me. I read, in other recipes that soaking overnight works well. After following your soak for 1-2 hrs my scallops which were more the size of medium sea scallops were still a bit hard in the center. I then left them out on the counter with a plate atop the water to keep the mushrooms submerged. I had guests who are all omnivores so this first attempt was a bit courageous on my part. It was AMAZING!! I dried my scallops, put a small amount of vegan butter in a cermamic nonstick fry pan and sautĂŠed them till brown on each flat side. I then, in s separate saute pan with higher sides proceeded to do something similar to your recipe, which was great inspiration, thank you! I purchased mushroom infused eggless fettuccine from Germany, which was just over the top. The addition of the dried sunflowers (which I use moist no oil sun dried and soaked a bit first in warm water to reconstitute) was a great, yet simple ingredient to add- good idea, thank you again! The mouthfeel, eye appeal, and textures of the King Oyster (aka trumpet mushrooms) is absolutely crazy amazing…way better than using Hearts of Palms. THANK YOU for the inspiration.

  14. Received a few of these mushrooms. Never worked with them before, but decided to use your recipe as inspiration. Followed your recipe with a few modifications. They came out great. Thanks for the recipe. Keep up the great work.

    ★★★★★

  16. Hi! I made the scallops but used a yoghurt/cheese sauce for the pasta with lots of white wine and pureed shrimp head (I live in the tropics, don’t know if it’s available in other countries.), which is basically pure shrimp fat. LOL. Anyway, the “scallops” went so well with my sauce! King oyster mushrooms are now my favorite mushroom. Thanks to this recipe!

    ★★★★★

  17. Thanks for the inspiration! I didn’t soak the mushrooms, and the scallops coming from the bottom were a bit chewy, but overall it was pretty amazing.

    I made the sauce asian style (tomato, chili, cilantro, lemon, thai basil and an egg yolk).

    Question: why not soak the mushrooms in broth + wine?

    ★★★★★

    • Why soak the mushrooms if they’re raw/fresh? I would’ve thought to to do that only if they were dried.

      • They really need to be soaked. It tenderizes the scallops so they have more of the mouthfeel of a sea scallop. Otherwise, they can be tough and chewy- unlike a true scallop. The larger the stem on the oyster mushroom and the thicker you make your scallop, the longer the soak. Be sure to dry them off between paper towels before sautĂŠing. I don’t recommend soaking them in a marinade, in my experience, the mushroom can break down and have a mushy mouthfeel. Use your fingers (index and thumb) to feel the center of the mushroom to determine if it has soaked long enough. It should have a slightly soft yet firm feel. If it is more firm than soft, let soak a little longer. Mangia Bene!

  18. Made it again…still amazing! We took out GF pasta just a couple of minutes before it was done from cooking water. Then added to sauce in skilled to let cook the rest of the way. Everything came out awesome! Thanks again:)

    ★★★★★

  19. Absolutely heavenly! This King oyster “scallop” & pasta recipe is amazing! I’ve never left a comment before, but my husband and I loved this so much I had to say thank you!! I followed the recipe exactly, absolutely NO “tinkering” w/ the recipe required.

    • I LOVE hearing this Kolet, hooray! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave this comment…really appreciate it! xo

  20. I like your blog and the recipes, but something on this page is running a script that crashes my browser, and reloads the page constantly, eating up bandwidth, and crashing the browser.

  21. This was incredible! The pasta with sauce in itself was divine…and then the brilliance of the “scallops.” Think we might soak longer or even overnight next time because not all of the “scallops” were as soft as we would like. Or even cut less than 1″. Funny enough…the bigger ones (in diameter) got softer than the smaller ones. Might just be us though because I see others had no problem. We did both fresh tomato and a couple of sun dried tomatoes. Also added some other veg – eggplant and asparagus. I threw in the wine first into a hot pan and let cook down before adding broth. Just the way I was taught not to make a broth taste like alcohol. A personal preference! That sauce is out of this world. Would like to try on other dishes…thanks again!

    ★★★★★

  22. Cara, you are one of the most creative cooks on the web. This is the third recipe I’ve tried, it was delicious. I think next time I’ll add a second soak in a little watered down Braggs and dulse for 20 minutes. The noodles were amazing, the whole recipe is definitely a keeper.

  23. Can you help me find a GF pasta? Also, I’d like to make fresh GF pasta. Have you had any luck with that?

  24. Just tried these tonight. We are NOT Vegans…just curious. They were absolutely amazing. Taste like a scallop? hmmm…texture yes…the sear was amazing too, but not quite a scallop..but oh so close! Beautiful, meaty and tasty. I added it over our zucchini noodles and clam sauce just for the texture. We were happy. We are going to try it next with a little bit of Old Bay seasoning to see if we can come closer to a scallop taste. Thank you so much for posting this!!! Delicious!

    • Yeah it’s definitely hard to say that a mushroom is comparable to a scallop but they come pretty darn close, don’t they? So HAPPY you are open to trying new things and that you and your fam liked them, xo 🙂

  25. I really liked the mushroom’s consistency. I also added to the pasta mix 1/2 a leek, a bunch of asparagus and the heads of the mushrooms thinly sliced and it was a very nice addition but I regretted that there wasn’t a creamier sauce to bind all the elements together. Maybe a light vegan lemon butter sauce?

  26. I want to make these today, but when reading the recipe I noticed that there is a little error. In part 2 you instruct to use the wine and broth to cook the mushroom stems, then again in part 4 we must use the wine and broth. If I follow instruction 2 my wine and broth are gone… Are we supposed to halve the quantities in each process?

    • Hi Aline! No error, if you notice for the mushrooms you will need wine and broth listed and then for the pasta it also calls for wine and broth in the ingredients. Good luck and let me know what you think! xo

  27. I’m allergic to alcohol. Is there a substitute I could use to get the taste and texture of scallops?

  28. Sorry, but you would normally throw away the stems? Wow. Who can throw away money (and food) with such abandon? I always cook mushroom stems.

    • I read it that she was skeptical they would work as a scallop sub. Not that she normally would have thrown them out. Speaking of, I love to cut the outside hard stem of broccoli to use the inner lighter section. Lots of people throw the stems away or buy them without. I wish they sold just the stems. Great raw or cooked! Another one is collard green stems. They are sweet and tender when boiled. Yay to using all parts of veg!

  30. Why do you need to soak the mushrooms in hot water? can I bi-pass this step. I want to make this for dinner tonight…..

    • Hi Tina, you need to soak these in hot water in order to soften them. It is an important step because it gives them that texture that can be sliced easily through.

      • I’m wondering if CARA is using dried mushrooms, and the rest of us are using fresh. I used fresh, and didn’t need to soak beforehand.

        • I actually did use fresh mushrooms as the recipe suggests. I just found soaking them made them more tasty but hooray for you if you didn’t have to 😉

  31. I just made them and they were good. I’ve used these mushrooms in the past in all sorts of ways, faux pulled pork, chinese stir fries, straight up barbequed them as if they were tofu (we don’t eat soy) and all of the times I did it I found them to be overly chewy and without a ton of flavor. what’s nice about this recipe is that soaking them really makes them more porous and certainly they absorbed the broth/wine in no time. In the end I still found them a little too mushroomy both in texture and flavor to be a close scallop flavor but hey, they were good! Also, I didn’t follow this perfectly, I soaked them for less time and didn’t have shallots so maybe that small change would’ve done the trick. my husband and I are impressed at how they cooked into a different texture, we’re going to try the same technique but with a teriyaki sauce which I think will take better to the mushroom flavor. Also, Cara… do you think this would’ve been good in a more lemony flavored cooking sauce?

    • Well thank you for that! I wish I could take credit for it but at least I am a genius for eating them 🙂 xo

  35. Hmmm, I’m skeptical, but if you say mushroom stems taste good this way, I trust you! Never actually had any real scallops in my life, so I thankfully don’t know what I’m missing out on.

    • I’m telling you, you would never taste the mushroom flavor. Something magical really does happen…

  36. XD Don’t you love/hate it when you think”OMG I HAVE A GREAT IDEA!” And then found out someone else did it. Great minds think alike right? I think you have some great ideas for “fake meats” without too much “fake.” This recipe looks similar to one my in-laws use to make for me with real scallops. Maybe I will make it for them one day and see what they think.

    • Ugh, happens all of the time for me Jennifer. ha! I guess you are right though–it’s all about the great minds 🙂 xo

  37. What about other foods in original picture? Looks like corn, clam chowder, fried clams. Yum!

    • They are coming in the next 2 weeks! You can expect: Vegan Chowder, Fried Shiitake “Shrimp”, Baked Mushroom Casino, and a Berry Wine Spritzer 🙂 Stay tuned… xo

  38. OoOoh so excited about the Fork & Beans First Annual Gluten-Free Vegan “Seafood” Bake!!! Everything on that table looks incredible.

    I’m not a huge fan of mushrooms, but may have to get over that because I’ve heard they’re a great replacement for seafood. These scallops look so good! Well done, Cara! 😀

    • I’m telling you, you would have NO clue that it is a mushroom. The stem has a different flavor and texture than the tops of the ‘shroom so you are good. Try them and then you better let me know what you think!

  40. I saw these at an Asian market too. They look really good. Wondering how they’d cook up on the grill? I’m planning to have a big grill full of veggies/fruits for my upcoming birthday.

    • Ha! I saw your grilling FB status too. I think that they would be great if you allowed them to simmer in the liquid first before grilling them. Cannot wait to hear how it works out!

      • Didn’t get to the Asian market so I’ll have to put it on the list for next grill session. I plan on that happening a lot this summer.

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