Beefsteak Mushroom Biltong | The Oak Gatherer

A glass jar packed with dark, spice-flecked strips of beefsteak mushroom biltong

This is the second year in a row I have had the delight of finding the elusive Beefsteak mushroom whilst out foraging, so I decided to get creative with a few new recipes, one of which being beefsteak biltong!

A wooden board laid out with beefsteak, oyster, parasol, blackening polypore and red cracking bolete mushrooms — A collection of beefsteak, oyster, parasol, blackening polypore and red cracking bolete mushrooms. The rest were either dehydrated without spices or cooked.

Last year we made a Beefsteak tartare, with chopped apples, sorrel, cashew nuts, chilli, olive oil, salt and mint. It went down a treat with our friends, so it was on the menu again when we found a good clump of Beefs at the weekend. But one can only make and consume so much tartare, so I decided to think of some new ways to preserve it. One of my friends recently told me her Beefsteak jerky turned out very well, so this provided the initial direction of culinary travel.

A hand holding a cut beefsteak mushroom, showing the pale marbling through its red flesh

I had previously experimented with an oyster mushroom jerky, and although delicious at first, soon found it far too sickly sweet to continue eating as a regular snack. The marinade, which consisted of coconut oil, maple syrup and soy sauce amongst other things was just far too rich. Slicing into the beefsteak mushroom and seeing the marbling, it reminded me very much of when I had prepped (cow beef) biltong in the past. So why, I thought, would I not try and apply the exact same biltong recipe to these mushrooms?

The end result is quite interesting. Beefsteak mushroom, despite its appearance, has more of a fruity flavour. It combines well with the biltong spices but is a wholly unique flavour vs its meaty counterpart! It’s a tasty snack and a very good way to preserve your mushrooms, it’s also a great one for vegetarian friends who have never been able to try real biltong.

For a kg of Beefsteak mushroom you will need:

100ml apple cider vinegar
100ml Worcestershire sauce
2 heaped tbsp coriander seeds
1 heaped tbsp coarse sea salt
1 tbsp brown sugar
(adding chilli flakes etc is optional)

Equipment

A dehydrator
A pestle and mortar for crushing spices (optional)

Step 1

For this experiment I sliced the mushroom up into thicker and thinner chunks (see pic below). With meat biltong, you want to slice the beef around an inch or two thick, to allow the outer casing to dry out but preserve the softer meat in the middle. I had zero clue as to whether this was possible with a Beefsteak mushroom, hence the need to experiment with thickness. Some slices may end up more like jerky, others more like biltong.

Note: The thicker slices helped keep the texture of the mushroom on the softer side, rather than becoming leathery. You have to make sure that the outside is totally dried so it has formed a “casing”, much like actual biltong.

These were put in a tub and marinated in the apple cider vinegar and Worcestershire sauce overnight in the fridge, occasionally shaking and turning the tub to distribute the liquid.

Beefsteak mushroom sliced into thick and thin strips on a red chopping board, with chunks in a glass tub

Step 2

The following morning, I drained the liquid from the mushrooms (keep this, it’s a tasty sauce you can add to stir fries or use as stock) and ground up my salt, coriander seeds and brown sugar to form the rub. You want to break apart the coriander seeds to release their aroma, but don’t want to grind them into a fine powder, they’re nicer in visible fragments.

Coat the mushrooms in your mix, and in the words of Ainsley Harriot, “give yer ~~meat~~ beef a good ol’ rub”.

A granite pestle and mortar with coarse salt and coriander seed, beside bags and bowls of the spice mix

Step 3

Set your dehydrator to 45 degrees for around 10 hours, this will ensure that the thicker lumps of mushroom are well cured. As with real biltong, some people prefer things wet, and some on the dry side. This is something that’s down to personal preference. Beefsteak mushroom is fine to eat raw, so dry time doesn’t matter too much as long as you’re eating it within the week. For anything being stored for longer, an increased dry time is of course favourable.

For those without a dehydrator, you may be able to use your fan oven on its lowest setting over a similar number of hours (but this is of course far less convenient if you need to cook something in the interim).

I do not possess a true South African style biltong box, but would be interested to see if the strips of mushroom could be hung up in a similar way…

Spice-coated strips of beefsteak mushroom laid out on a dehydrator tray

Step 4

Once your biltong is satisfactorily dry, place it in a glass jar or paper bag for storage and keep in a cool, dark, dry place. I have had mushroom jerky keep for months, this biltong may well do the same if stored correctly!

They do say if you’ve made biltong correctly, it doesn’t need to last for months as you and your friends will have eaten it well beforehand.

An open clip-top jar of finished beefsteak mushroom biltong with the lid resting beside it