Roasted Mushroom, Bacon, Green Onion & Buckwheat Salad

Hey, look at those cute little mâche rosettes! Wonder where they came from?

I did a warm mushroom salad, hm, last spring, I think. This one is more of complete meal in itself, with buckwheat groats and bacon to make it substantial. The two of us ate it all, but if you wanted to serve it with something else, it would stretch to 4. That might not be a bad idea. Not everyone loves buckwheat all that much (*cough* Mr. Ferdzy *cough*) but I am trying to eat more whole grains so he will just have to deal.

2 to 4 servings
45 minutes prep time
plus about 30 minutes to cook the buckwheat

Cook the Buckwheat:
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1/2 cup buckwheat groats

Put the salt and water into a rice cooker or pot and bring to a boil.

While the water comes to a boil, toast the buckwheat in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat, stirring regularly, until it has darkened and shade or two. Turn it out onto a plate to cool.

When the water boils, drop the buckwheat into the rice cooker or pot. Let it cook until it turns itself off if in the rice cooker, or simmer for about 10 minutes until dry and cooked if in a pot. Loosen the buckwheat with a fork and turn it back out onto the plate to cool.

Make the Dressing:
the juice of lemon
1/2 teaspoon sweet Hungarian Paprika
1/2 teaspoon rubbed thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 tablespoons olive oil

Squeeze and strain the lemon juice into a small bowl or jam jar. Add the remaining ingredients and whisk or shake well to combine.


Broil the Mushrooms, Bacon, & Green Onions: 
350 grams (12 ounces) oyster mushrooms
4 to 6 green onions
225 grams (1/2 pound) lean bacon

Trim any tough ends off the mushrooms, and tear them into large bite-sized pieces. Trim the green onions and chop them into 1 1/2" lengths. Mix them and arrange them in a wide, shallow baking dish. Chop the bacon into 1/2" pieces and sprinkle them over the mushrooms and onions.

Broil the mushrooms, etc, for 5 minutes, then turn and mix them and return to under the broiler for a further 4 to 6 minutes, until the bacon is cooked and crisp and the mushrooms and onions also cooked and perhaps slightly browned. Let cool for 5 minutes.

Mix the Greens & Finish the Salad:
2 cups total mixed greens as lettuce, sorrel, mâche, or spinach
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley

While the mushrooms, etc, broil wash, drain well, and chop or tear up the greens. Wash, dry, and chop the parsley. Mix them in a mixing bowl with the cooked buckwheat groats.Turn them out onto a serving platter of shallow salad dish.

Arrange the cooked ingredients over them. Drizzle with the salad dressing. If there is a lot of liquid from cooking the mushrooms, and it is not tooo greasy from the bacon, you could drizzle it on too.





Last year at this time I made Oladi - Russia Yeast-Raised Pancakes.

Posted in: Ontario Food