Lion’s Mane Steak Recipe
A Unity Diner recipe for recreating our award-winning lion's mane mushroom dish in your own kitchen.
This recipe is designed to help you completely recreate our award-winning lion's mane mushroom dish at home, with all the garnishes, sauces and finishing touches included. It is a proper little kitchen quest, so do not worry if you do not want to make every element. The most important part is the mushroom steak itself. Follow the mushroom pressing and marinating steps and you will have a delicious, meaty lion's mane steak that works beautifully with chips and peas, roast potatoes, a Sunday-style plate, a salad, or whatever dish you would love to conjure up.
Quick route: Make the mushroom steak, then serve it however you like.
Full restaurant-style route: add the celeriac puree, confit potatoes, shallots, crispy leeks, red wine jus and herb oil.
Ingredients:
Lion's mane mushroom steak 150g
Celeriac puree 100g
Shallot caramel 30g
Roasted shallots 3 each
Crispy leeks 10g
Red wine jus 20g
Herb oil 5g
Red amaranth or micro herbs 5g
Method:
1. Reheat the lion's mane mushroom steak in a hot pan with a little olive oil, or warm it through in the oven with a little extra marinade.
2. Warm the celeriac puree gently and keep it to one side.
3. Place the confit potatoes and roasted shallots on a tray and heat in a hot oven for 5-10 minutes.
4. Spoon the puree onto the plate, add the potatoes and shallots, then place the lion's mane steak on top.
5. Finish with shallot caramel, crispy leeks, red wine jus, herb oil and red amaranth or micro herbs.
Hero method: lion's mane mushroom steak
Lion's mane mushroom 1 large mushroom
Garlic miso butter 7g
Lion seasoning 20g
Olive oil 7g, plus a little for the pan
Method:
Home-friendly pressing and marinating method
1. Slice the lion's mane mushroom into steaks around 1-1.5cm thick. Place them on a tray.
2. Brush both sides with the garlic miso butter.
3. Heat a large frying pan or cast-iron pan over a medium-high heat with a little olive oil.
4. Place the mushroom steaks into the hot pan. They may look quite thick and fluffy at first, but they will flatten as they cook.
5. Place a second clean pan directly on top of the mushroom steaks. Press down gently but firmly on the top pan. You want to squash the mushrooms slightly so they make good contact with the hot pan, but not crush them completely.
6. Keep the top pan in place for 3-5 minutes. This squeezes out excess moisture and gives the mushroom a firmer, steak-like texture. If the top pan is very light, carefully place a tin of beans or another heatproof weight inside it.
7. Remove the top pan, brush the mushrooms with a little more garlic miso butter, then flip them over.
8. Repeat the pressing process on the second side for another 3-5 minutes, until both sides are golden, browned and slightly crisp at the edges.
9. Lift the mushrooms out of the pan and leave them to cool slightly.
10. Mix the lion seasoning with the olive oil, then brush this over both sides of the mushroom steaks to marinate.
Safety note: Press gently at first, as the mushrooms release steam and liquid. If the pan smokes heavily, turn the heat down slightly. Use a pan that sits comfortably inside the bottom pan so it feels stable.
Lion seasoning
Dried mushroom 50g
Smoked paprika 7g
Onion powder 7g
Garlic powder 7g
Salt pinch
Sugar pinch
Oregano 7g
Sage 7g
Method
1. Blend the dried mushrooms into a fine powder, then tip into a bowl.
2. Blend the oregano and sage, then add them to the mushroom powder.
3. Add the smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and sugar. Mix thoroughly.
Celeriac pureé
Celeriac 1/2 each
Lentil cream 250g
Salt 3g
Nutritional yeast 5g
Method
1. Peel and wash the celeriac, then cut it into bite-sized pieces.
2. Place in a pan with the lentil cream and simmer gently until the cream has reduced by one third.
3. Set the celeriac and cream aside to cool slightly.
4. Add the salt and nutritional yeast, then blend slowly until thick, smooth and creamy.
Confit potatoes
Jersey Royals or small new potatoes 5 each
Vegan butter 20g
Stock powder 5g
Water 100g
Method
1. Wash the potatoes under running water.
2. Place the potatoes in a small roasting tray with the vegan butter, water and stock powder.
3. Cover the tray with baking paper, then foil.
4. Bake for 30 minutes at 150C.
5. Pierce the potatoes with a small knife to check they are soft and tender.
Shallot caramel
Shallots 50g
Brown sugar 5g
Agar agar 10g
Water 50g
Method
1. Peel and slice the shallots, then add them to a hot pan. Cook until they start to brown.
2. Add the brown sugar and continue cooking until glossy and caramelised.
3. Mix the agar agar into the water, then deglaze the pan with this mixture. Bring above 75C so the agar activates.
4. Leave to cool slightly, but do not let it fully set. Blend until smooth while still loose enough to pour.
5. Pour onto a tray and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes, or until set into a gel.
6. Scrape the gel back into a blender and blend again until smooth.
Roasted shallots
Shallots 3 each
White sugar 5g
Smoked salt pinch
Water 50g
Method
1. Peel the shallots and cut each one in half through the root.
2. Place them cut-side down in a hot frying pan until the flat side starts to char.
3. Transfer to a tray, charred side up.
4. Pour the water into the tray and sprinkle the sugar evenly over the top.
5. Bake for around 15 minutes at 180C, until tender.
6. Finish with a pinch of smoked salt.
Herb oil
Parsley 20g
Rosemary 20g
Sage 20g
Thyme 20g
Oil 100g
Garlic 2 cloves
Method
1. Blend all ingredients until the oil turns dark green.
2. Strain through a fine sieve or muslin, separating the green oil from the herb pulp.
Final note
The mushroom steak is the heart of the dish. Once you have mastered the pan-pressing method, you can take it anywhere: chips and peas, mash and gravy, a burger bun, a roast dinner plate, or your own kitchen sorcery. The full recipe gives you the restaurant version; the mushroom gives you the magic.
