I like boiled white oak acorns in soup or stew.
I like them warm, so I experimented with a variation on my warm chicken mushroom salad. I cooked the mushrooms and froze them when they were fresh. I have defrosted steamed mushrooms for this recipe.
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup chicken mushrooms baked* or steamed**
- 1/2 cup boiled acorns***
- Olive oil or any oil - or butter if you prefer
- 1/2 cup onions
- 1/2 cup celery
- 1/2 cup red pepper
- 1-2 cloves of garlic
1. Chop mushrooms into bite-size pieces
2. Break or chop acorns into bite size pieces (soak acorns if they are brittle)
4. Dice onions, garlic, celery and peppers
5. Coat fry pan with oil or butter and sauté onions, garlic, celery and peppers
6. Stir in mushrooms and cook until all vegetables are golden
7. Stir in acorns and cook another minute
8. Add salt and pepper to taste
* To bake mushrooms:
1. Marinade in liquid to cover for 2-4 hours
2. Bake in liquid at 350 degrees for 30 minutes
3. Drain mushrooms
** To steam mushrooms:
1 Place mushrooms in the top of a vegetable steamer
2. Fill the steamer bottom with water and bring to a boil
3. Put the top of the steamer onto the bottom once the water is boiling
4. Cover, reduce heat and steam over medium heat for 20 minutes or until tender
*** To boil acorns
1. Peel the outer shells from acorns
2. Split the acorns and put them in a pot of cold water
3. Bring the water to a boil
4. Pour this first pot of water into a container to use as an astringent, skin toner, or soothing agent for irritated skin
5. Rinse acorns, put fresh cold water in the pot and repeat the process
6. Taste an acorn, if it bitter repeat the process until it acorns are palatable and ready to use