Sweet and Sour Marinated Mushroom Recipe

Do you think cherries wouldn’t work in a marinated mushroom recipe? Think again! Sweet is delicious, and if you add a balancing sour taste the result is a rich depth of flavor. This recipe is very easy, tastier than you’d think, and goes with all sorts of other dishes.

Here I’ve used maraschino cherries, but you can use regular cherries if you like them better. It’s more work, as you have to take time to remove the pits. (I prefer regular cherries when I have the patience to de-pit them).

Serve these as an appetizer, with spicy dishes, or as a topping for sweet and sour chicken. It even makes a good side dish while having drinks!

Recommended mushrooms: Any, although white buttons or cremini from the grocery store work best.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb mushrooms
• 1 cup maraschino cherries, diced (or diced, pitted regular cherries)
• 1/4 cup cherry rum
• 1/2 cup lime juice
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp lemon zest

Clean the mushrooms with a damp cloth and slice them into pieces. You can remove the stems if you want, but I often like to include them chopped as I like their chewy flavor. It’s up to you.

Place all ingredients in a container and refrigerate for 1 hour to overnight (longer is better).

Put everything into a pot or skillet and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, or until the mushrooms are at your desired softness.

Let them cool and serve.

Variations:

• Experiment with other sweet fruits, but keep in mind the acidity level. Cherries are considered a low-acid fruit, as are blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, and sweet apples. Some people have trouble with fruits of a higher acidity level such as oranges and pineapples, although lemons have a high acidity level too. Keep in mind your own personal tastes and tolerances before you start substituting fruit. One low acidity fruit that I’ve always wanted to try with this recipe is mango!

• Add 1/2 tsp of red chili paste or sriracha sauce for more heat.

• Chop and add two shallots to the mix.

• Add 1 tsp of herbs such as rosemary or thyme.

• Mustard and apple cider vinegar is a good combination to add to this recipe. Start with just a teaspoon each and taste the marinade until it’s to your liking.

• If you don’t like alcohol or the taste of rum in general, feel free to omit the cherry rum. It imparts a nice flavor but isn’t absolutely necessary for this marinated mushroom recipe.