Sautéed Shiitake Mushrooms

I’m always on the hunt for super easy side dishes to go along with dinner. Some of my favorites include sautéed Napa cabbage, vegan mashed potatoes and these savory sautéed mushrooms.

We always have mushrooms in the fridge – they’re inexpensive, nutritious and can be flavored in so many different ways. These sautéed shiitake mushrooms are coated in a simple garlic butter sauce and are the perfect accompaniment for pretty much any meal.

Ingredients needed

This easy shiitake mushrooms recipe uses super simple ingredients. Put them together and you get a wonderful, perfectly flavorful side dish! You’ll need:

• Shiitake mushrooms. We’re using 1 pound of shiitake mushrooms for this recipe. You can slice them up or keep them whole before cooking.
• Butter + olive oil. To sauté the mushrooms and give them a rich and delicious buttery taste.
• White wine. Optional, but recommend to give these mushrooms an extra pizzaz.
• Garlic + parsley. My go-to herbs for making this recipe, but feel free to experiment using other favorite fresh herbs. Some great options are thyme, oregano or rosemary.
• Salt + pepper. To really make the flavor pop!

How to cook shiitake mushrooms

As always, the printable recipe is included below at the bottom of this post, but here is a brief overview of the process for how to cook shiitake mushrooms.

1. Prep the mushrooms. Use a wet paper towel to clean the mushrooms by gently wiping off any dirt. Avoid rinsing them with water because they absorb water easily and can become chewy when cooked. Slice as desired.
2. Cook the mushrooms. Add the butter and olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add in the mushrooms and let them sit at medium heat. Avoid stirring or moving them around for about 3 minutes. This creates lovely caramelization around the edges of the mushrooms. Stir and cook for 2 more minutes. 
3. Add the wine. Pour in the wine, if using, and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic and parsley and cook for 1 additional minute.
4. Serve. Season with salt & pepper, and garnish with additional herbs and enjoy!

Tips for recipe success

A few notes for perfect sautéed shiitake mushrooms every time you make them!

• Prep before cooking. This recipe is a quick one, so I like to have all of the ingredients measured and chopped before beginning to cook.
• Be patient. When you add the mushrooms to the pan, it’s important to let them cook for several minutes without disturbing them. This will help to caramelize the edges of the mushrooms and give them the BEST flavor.
• Don’t burn the garlic. I recommend adding the garlic during the last minute or so of cooking because it can burn very easily and result in the entire dish having a bitter taste.
• Vegan option. To make this recipe vegan, simply use a plant-based butter.

Ways to serve

These garlic butter shiitake mushrooms are wonderful eaten straight out of the pan or as a simple side to so many different main dishes, but here are some other ideas for ways to serve them:

• Burger or sandwich topping. Pile mushroom slices over your burger patty or on a sandwich. You can even melt some cheese over the top. So good!
• Pizza. The perfect pizza topping!
• Quesadillas. Use them as a filling in quesadillas along with your favorite cheese.
• Meat topping. Serve over a grilled steak, pork chop, chicken or fish.
• Pasta. Chop the mushrooms and stir them into your favorite pasta dish.
• Salad. Add them as a topping over any green or vegetable salad.

Customize this recipe

While I enjoy this recipe as-is, sometimes I add other ingredients that I happen to have in the house to spice things up a bit! Here’s some options:

• Shallots. Substitute 1/4 cup minced shallots for the garlic. Add the shallots to the pan when mushrooms are about halfway done cooking.
• Spicy. Add 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or a pinch of cayenne red pepper.
• Cheese. Sprinkle about 1/4 cup parmesan cheese over the mushrooms before serving.
• Pine nuts. Add 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts right before serving.

Frequently asked questions

What are shiitake mushroom benefits?

Shiitake mushrooms are really good for you and have many health benefits! They are a great source of key vitamins and minerals; including antioxidants, copper and potassium. They are also low in calories and carbohydrates. Due to some of the properties they contain, they are great for heart health and can even work to decrease cholesterol in the blood and they are great for immune health too! Learn more HERE. 

Shiitake mushrooms contain many complex polysaccharides (as mentioned in THIS webMD article) but these can be difficult for the body to properly break down. Adding some wine to the mushrooms while they cook will help make the benefits of the mushrooms more available to your body. The alcohol will cook off so this recipe is still safe to feed to kids!

Are shiitake mushroom nutritious?

Here’s some information on shiitake mushroom nutrition:

In one shiitake mushroom there are:

• 6 calories
• 0 grams fat 
• 1.3 grams carbs
• 0.4 grams protein

I love that this dish is easy enough to whip up on a busy weeknight, yet looks elegant enough to serve to company. You can’t go wrong with these simple but satisfying flavors!

As usual, please let me know if you end up making this recipe and how you like it. You can come back here to leave a comment or snap a photo and tag me on Instagram @foodwithfeeling! I always love to see what y’all are making from the blog!