Grilling
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[Photographs: Joshua Bousel]

About the author: Joshua Bousel brings you new, tasty condiment each Wednesday and a recipe for weekend grilling every Friday. He also writes about grilling and barbecue on his blog The Meatwave whenever he can be pulled away from his grill.

Adapted from Chow

About This Recipe

Yield: makes 24 mushrooms, serving 4 to 6 as an appetizer
Active time: 45 minutes
Total time: 1 hour
Special equipment: Grill

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 3 tablespoons finely chopped shallots (About 1 medium)
  • 2 tablespoons dry white wine
  • 1/2 cup panko-style bread crumbs
  • 1/3 pound fresh lump crabmeat
  • 1/2 cup shredded Italian fontina cheese, divided
  • 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice from 1 lemon
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • Pinch of cayenne pepper
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 24 medium crimini mushrooms, wiped clean, stems removed
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  •  
  • Type of fire: two-zone indirect
  • Grill heat: high

Procedures

  1. Melt butter in medium skillet over medium heat. When foaming subsides, add shallots and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add white wine and cook for 1 minute more. Stir in panko bread crumbs, remove from heat, let cool for 10 minutes. Stir in crabmeat, 1/3 cup fontina cheese, lemon juice, and paprika. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

  2. In a large bowl, gently toss mushroom caps in olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

  3. Remove mushrooms to plate and stuff each with crab stuffing mixture. Top mushrooms with remaining cheese.

  4. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange the coals on one side of the charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate. Arrange mushrooms over cool side of the grill. Cover and cook until cheese is melted and lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from grill, let cool for 5 minutes, then serve.