Champiñones a la Plancha Bilbaínos

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Cast-iron plancha, griddle, or wide heavy frying pan
• •Small bowl for garlic-parsley oil
• •Toothpicks for serving

Instructions

1. 1

   Clean and dry

   Trim the mushroom stems level with the caps and wipe the caps clean with a damp cloth. Do not soak them; mushrooms drink water quickly, and then the plancha has to fight what you put into them. Pat them dry well. Pésalo, no lo adivines: 500g gives you twelve generous pintxos.

2. 2

   Make the garlic oil

   Stir the minced garlic, chopped parsley, 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, and the white wine or txakoli if using in a small bowl. Keep the salt out for now. Garlic burns fast on a hot iron, so it goes on after the mushrooms have taken color, not before.

3. 3

   Toast the bread

   Brush the bread with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and toast it on the plancha or in a dry pan until lightly crisp at the edges but still able to catch the mushroom juices. Set the slices on a serving plate. They are not decoration; they are part of the pintxo.

4. 4

   Heat the plancha

   Set a cast-iron griddle, plancha, or wide heavy frying pan over high heat for 3 to 4 minutes. It should be hot enough that a mushroom laid down gives a sharp sizzle at once. If it only whispers, wait. This is the whole trick.

5. 5

   Sear the mushrooms

   Lay the mushrooms cap-side down in a single layer, with space between them. Cook 3 minutes without fussing, then turn them and cook 2 to 3 minutes more, until the caps are browned in patches and the edges look glossy. Work in two batches if your pan is small. Crowding makes broth, not Bilbao.

   Salt only after the mushrooms have browned. Salt too early pulls water out and cools the pan.
6. 6

   Dress and finish

   Lower the heat to medium, return all the mushrooms to the pan if you cooked in batches, and spoon over the garlic-parsley oil. Toss or turn for 30 to 45 seconds, just until the garlic smells sweet and loses its raw bite. Season with the salt and black pepper. Do not let the garlic go brown and bitter.

7. 7

   Build the pintxos

   Pile two mushrooms on each slice of toasted bread, spooning any garlicky oil from the pan over the top. Pin each one with a toothpick if you like, tal como se hace allí, and serve at once while the caps are still glossy and the bread is catching the juices.

Chef Tips

• •Buy mushrooms that are firm, closed, and dry, with no wet patches in the box. Sourcing wins here. A tired mushroom throws water before it browns, and no pan can save it.
• •A cast-iron pan works if you don't own a plancha. Heat it properly and cook in batches. The substitute changes nothing except the shape of the cooking surface.
• •Use flat-leaf parsley if you can. Curly parsley will do, but chop it very fine so it gives freshness instead of sitting there like confetti.
• •Serve these with txakoli if you have it, a young Basque white with a little sharpness. A dry cider or simple cold beer also does the job without pretending.

Advance Preparation

• •Clean and trim the mushrooms up to 6 hours ahead, then keep them uncovered or loosely covered in the refrigerator so they stay dry.
• •Chop the parsley and garlic up to 2 hours ahead, but mix them with the oil close to cooking so the garlic stays fresh.
• •Toast the bread 30 minutes ahead if needed; refresh it briefly on the hot plancha before building the pintxos.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 pintxo (about 47g)