FOR THE MEATY LOVER in us all, behold a new power for dried shiitake mushrooms. Enjoy “filet mignon” (small strips) that truly satisfy. Surprise! This is a live-cultured recipe that tricks the taste buds.

Picture caravans meeting along the famed North African trade route, bartering and melding Old World spices into a rich, mahogany stew, also known as a tagine.

Enjoy this ferment in any number of ways, as a condiment, a side dish, tossed with pasta

INGREDIENTS: Find dried shiitakes at Asian markets. Ideally stemmed and pre-sliced varieties make life easy. Or choose small, whole mushroom varieties.

1 Quart

• dried shiitakes – 3 oz dry weight [or 4 oz fresh]
• whole apricots, dried – 3/4 cup, 1/4-inch dice
• currants or raisins – 1/4 cup, chopped
• sweet onion – 1 cup, chopped
• garlic – 1 TBS, minced
• ginger root – 1 TBS, grated or finely minced
• SPICE BLEND
  • saffron – 1/2 tsp
  • turmeric – 1/2 tsp
  • cinnamon – 1/2 tsp
  • chile powder – 1/2 tsp [any medium hot variety]
  • clove, powder – 1/2 tsp
  • pepper – 1/2 tsp
• soy sauce – 2 tsp
• aged brine – 2 TBS, [from previous batch of any lacto-fermented pickles]
• sea salt – 2 tsp
• water, filtered – 2 cups

INSTRUCTIONS: Aged brine [in Step 4], is from a jar of lacto-fermented veggies in your fridge. Not necessary, but this batch will be the seed for future aged brine.

1. Poach dried mushrooms in 2 cups water with the saffron for 4 minutes
2. Strain poaching liquid into a bowl
3. Allow mushrooms to cool enough to handle, then lightly squeeze into reserved poaching liquid. If using whole shiitakes, trim away the stem all the way up into the cap, then slice into thin fillets
4. Pour poaching liquid into a 2 cup measure, add 2 TBS. aged brine and 1 TBS sea salt. If needed, add filtered water to make 2 cups total
5. In a large bowl toss the mushrooms with the apricots, currants, onion, garlic, ginger, spices, and soy sauce
6. Pack fermenting jar, tamping down as you go until almost full
7. Add the brine until almost full
8. Seal the fermentor according to manufacturer’s directions

SERVING SUGGESTIONS:

• Make a meaty, yet vegetarian dish-add a few tablespoons of tagine per diner to steamed vegetables and serve on rice, pasta, polenta, or baked potato. I like to warm the tagine slightly, but not to cook, to preserve the microbes

L: Toss pasta with olive oil and crisp-tender broccoli and mushrooms

R: I used a star-shaped clay cutter on an apricot, then made a ginger root star to fill in, then used chop sticks to position into the view [see main photo]

– © 2025, Meat-Believe Recipes by B. Hettig