Crimini Mushroom

I like to use a fairly flat noodle, such as farfalle, with mushroom sauces. Do try to use one of the varieties of brown mushrooms suggested for a full-bodied flavor.

What luscious flavor from such basic ingredients! Pureed soft tofu or white beans make a deceptively rich base for a soup sure to please mushroom enthusiasts. Serve this soup as an introduction to light pasta or potato dishes.

This nicely flavored miso soup is made more substantial with the addition of tofu. Fresh shiitake mushrooms impart the best flavor to the broth. Follow with an Asian-style noodle dish, such as Asian Sesame-Soy Noodles (page 85).

If you find yourself with too much lettuce and some leftover rice, here’s a great way to use both.

A trip to an Asian market to find exotic noodles is no longer necessary. Most well-stocked supermarkets feature an array of imported noodles in the Asian foods section. See the menu with Instant Tofu and Mixed Vegetable Stir-Fry (page 144).

This is a great dish to serve on Sunday night when The Sopranos come on. It’s classy and understated. A good way to add more intense mushroom flavor is to throw the mushroom stems in with the chicken stock. Just be sure to brush the mushroom stems first for any loose dirt.

Here’s a quick hot-roasted meal that’s as ideal for entertaining as it is for a busy weekday. All you need to add are some tossed greens and crusty bread.

Dress up this humble cut of meat by rolling it around a stuffing of mushrooms and greens.

Chef Graham Elliot, of restaurants Graham Elliot and Grahamwich in Chicago, shared this recipe as part of a Tree-Trimming Party Menu he created exclusively for Epicurious. The hearty winter dish conjures memories of childhood, with a comforting mix of red meat, mushrooms, cream, and dumplings. If you need to save time, store-bought egg noodles can be used as a substitute for the spaetzle. Black trumpet mushrooms tend to be very dirty from the forest floor. They should be rinsed multiple times before being considered clean. Once rinsed and cleaned, let them rest and drain on a rack or dry towel.

Editor's note: Use this recipe to make Alex Brown and Evan George's Savory Rolls . The next best thing to foraging your own wild mushrooms and huffing their death-matter musk from a Hobbitshire-like hillside in NorCal while your guide trips on psilocybin shrooms is (obviously) slurping crispy hot shrooms right out of the cast-iron skillet they were cooked in. Admittedly, it's a distant second. But it still feels nasty. Thanks to the whole steak joint steeze revival, it’s now totally acceptable to eat out of cast-iron. Here we do a mushroom mélange of various shapes, sizes, textures, and prices. Omit and add as you like, especially if you actually get to forage for wild ones.

I grew up calling any side dish of seasoned, moistened, and baked bread cubes "stuffing," but I've been corrected enough times to have changed my ways: If it goes inside the turkey or chicken, it's stuffing. If it's cooked in a dish of its very own, it's officially dressing. As it so happens, I like to serve this side with more than just poultry, and I especially love the browned crust, so dressing it is! Two other key factors in delivering dynamic texture are to toast the cubes of tangy sourdough bread first and to use a combination of thinly sliced and coarsely chopped mushrooms. Roasting the mushrooms before mixing with the other ingredients heightens their deep earthy flavor while cooking off any excess liquid. Studded with salty bits of bacon and fresh herbs, this side dish is destined to become a favorite of your Thanksgiving—or any dinner—table.

Pizza is a universal crowd-pleaser, and part of its charm is the doughy bed it rests on, along with gooey, wonderful cheese. You'll get no argument from me. I love pizza. But not all pizzas are created equally. This pizza is loaded with cheese, mushrooms, sausage, and peperoncini, but not calories. So for watching your weight, this pizza is a delicious solution. It's meaty, yet amazingly low in fat. You'll love the crust's wholesome taste.

This traditional French sandwich is topped with a classic Mornay sauce (a béchamel sauce with cheese).

Bourguignonne refers to any dish cooked in the style of Burgundy, France. This dish is similar to classic boeuf bourguignonne (French beef stew), which is beef braised with red wine and mushrooms. Although oxtail was once the tail of an ox, these days the bony cut is beef or veal. Mashed potatoes would make the perfect side dish.

Here is a sumptuous side dish to accompany roast poultry, for the holidays or otherwise: sautéed mushrooms tossed with chestnuts, tender pearl onions, and thyme. Peeling chestnuts is a painstaking task. To save time, purchase vacuum-packed whole peeled chestnuts.

Slightly bitter Swiss chard (which is a variety of beet) was reportedly named for the Swiss botanist who identified the green. In this dish, chard's earthy flavor balances out the rich, creamy béchamel sauce.

A whole side of salmon makes for a light, delicious—and impressive—main course.

It's hearty and health-helping: Eating mushrooms regularly may help lessen women's breast cancer risk.