These crispy sautéed oyster mushrooms are tossed in rosemary butter and dotted with flaky salt and black pepper. This is my absolute favorite way to prepare mushrooms, and it’s always a hit! Plus, it comes together in less than 20 minutes, so it’s a perfect side dish or topping.
Oyster mushrooms vary slightly in flavor depending on color, but are generally mildly meaty and delicate, with a slight brininess. Pan-searing these mushrooms until deeply seared and crispy yields a lovely texture that highlights their meatiness.
For more tasty vegetable sides, try my smashed fingerling potatoes, maple balsamic brussels sprouts, or eggplant involtini.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The two-step method of pan-frying oyster mushrooms and then sautéing them with rosemary and butter develops a buttery, crispy texture with notes of rosemary and avoids any risk of burning.
- This method treats every mushroom with care, and the result is divine; their meaty texture really shines through!
How to Buy and Store Mushrooms
Buying Tips
- Larger mushrooms will be chewier but provide more flavor; smaller ones will be crispier when fried and stay more tender. Yellow, pink, and blue oyster mushrooms will all work here!
- Avoid wrinkly, dried-out, wet, slimy, or foul-smelling mushrooms. Instead, select mushrooms with smooth caps and a plum, firm appearance.
- Bulk grocery stores like H Mart offer the lowest prices!
Storage Tips
- Store your mushrooms in the fridge and use within 3 – 4 days; after 4 days, they typically start to become wet, slimy, and smelly, but some will last up to a week.
- For best results, store them in your fridge’s produce drawer in a loosely closed plastic or paper bag.
How to Clean and Prep Mushrooms
Oyster mushrooms at the grocery store are typically cultivated, meaning they’re grown under controlled conditions, often indoors. As a result, they won’t be “dirty” and require little to no cleaning. I’ll typically use a damp paper towel to wipe away any dirt on these mushrooms.
If your oyster mushrooms are dirty, gently rinse them under cold water and use a clean toothbrush or a wooden kitchen brush to brush off the dirt.
Additional Tips:
- Before cooking, remove any fibrous or tough parts of the mushrooms; these will be too chewy or tough to consume.
- Oysters are typically clustered in a group, and you’ll want to remove the tougher central stem and separate them into individual pieces.
- The stems will be chewier than the caps. If you don’t like a chewier texture, you can remove more of the stem before cooking.
Ingredient Notes
- Oil: Because we’re finishing the mushrooms in butter, I call for a neutral oil with a high smoke point, like canola or peanut oil. I have tested this recipe with olive oil before, but it sprays everywhere and makes a mess, so neutral oil is best here!
- Lemon (optional): I generally like brightening up earthier flavors with acid, and a squeeze of lemon does just the trick. This is totally optional, though!
For a full list of ingredients and quantities, refer to the recipe card.
How to Make This Recipe
Step 1: Clean oyster mushrooms with a damp paper towel, then trim off the tougher central, fibrous stem to separate them into individual pieces.
Tear any larger mushrooms into bite-sized pieces.
Step 2: Heat oil until shimmering, and add mushrooms in a single layer; you will need to do this in batches to prevent overcrowding.
Don’t touch them for at least a few minutes to ensure they’re browning nicely. Flip and sauté the other side until deeply golden brown and crispy.
Step 3: Remove them from the skillet and transfer to a paper-towel lined plate. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Repeat with the remaining batches.
Step 4: Melt butter in the skillet, and add the sprigs of rosemary. Once melted, toss everything for a minute or so, then transfer to a serving plate.
Serving Suggestions
- Serve with labneh: Mix 1 cup labneh or Greek yogurt with 1 clove grated garlic, salt, and pepper. Spread the labneh on a serving plate and top with the warm mushrooms. I love making homemade Greek yogurt for this.
- Drizzle a little bit of balsamic glaze on top.
- Use a garlic butter instead of plain butter!
I also love these alongside my mushroom carbonara or my egg yolk ravioli as a crispy topping!
Recipe FAQs
You can use this technique for king oyster mushrooms, but they won’t crisp up as nicely as other varieties. They will get a nice sear, though! Slice them in half lengthwise to retain their shape, or into coins cross-wise for a “scallop”-like texture.
Any hardy fresh herbs would be lovely here, such as oregano, thyme, or marjoram.
This is a great question, and if you’re cooking up a bunch of mushrooms for a dinner party, oven roasting is a good option.
I personally think pan-frying yields the crispiest, tender texture, but if you need to do this in a pinch, here’s what I recommend: Lay out the mushrooms in an even layer on a large parchment-lined baking sheet. Toss them with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil.
Bake in the oven at 425°F/218°C for 10 – 12 minutes, turning halfway through, until browned and crispy. Season with salt and pepper, then proceed with tossing them in the rosemary butter.
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Sautéed Oyster Mushrooms Recipe
Equipment
- 12-inch Stainless Steel Frying Pan, Or Cast-Iron Skillet
Ingredients
- 12 ounces oyster mushrooms, such as yellow, pink, or blue oyster mushrooms
- Neutral frying oil, such as canola, grapeseed, or peanut oil
- Salt and black pepper
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- ½ large Lemon, optional
Instructions
- Prep the mushrooms: Clean, trim, and separate any clusters of 12 ounces oyster mushrooms into individual mushrooms. Tear any mushrooms that are 3 inches or bigger into smaller pieces. Pat dry to remove any excess moisture.Meanwhile, set aside a large paper towel-lined plate.
- Pan fry the mushrooms: Set a large stainless steel frying pan over medium-high heat, and add enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Once the oil is shimmering, use tongs to add mushrooms in a single, even layer (you will need to do this in batches). Do not touch the mushrooms for at least 2 minutes, then flip one of the mushrooms with the tongs. If it looks deeply golden-brown in color, it's ready. Depending on the type of stove top you have, this may take up to 8 minutes.Flip the rest of the mushrooms, then cook for another 2 – 3 minutes until both sides are deeply golden-brown and crispy. Transfer the mushrooms to the paper towel-lined plate and sprinkle generously with Salt and black pepper. Repeat the frying process with the remaining mushrooms, adding more oil as necessary. Transfer the rest of the mushrooms to the plate and turn the heat off. Note: Stove tops vary a LOT in heat production and retention, so it's most important to use visual cues here instead of time-based cues. You're looking mushrooms with a deeply golden-brown crusted exterior.
- Finish the mushrooms: Carefully wipe the pan clean, add 1 tablespoon unsalted butter and 1 sprig fresh rosemary to the pan, and set over medium-low heat. Once melted, add the mushrooms back into the pan and saute for 1 – 2 minutes until fully coated. Season again with salt and pepper.
- Serve: Remove from the heat and transfer mushrooms to a serving plate. Serve immediately with a squeeze of lemon (if desired).
Video
Notes
- I know it seems a bit extra, but flipping each mushroom individually with the tongs ensures a super even crispy coating on every mushroom!
- Prep: Oyster mushroom stems are a bit chewy – I personally love the contrast in textures, but if this isn’t your jam, you can trim some of the stems or omit them.
- Lay out the mushrooms in an even layer on a large parchment-lined baking sheet. Toss them with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil.
- Bake at 425°F/218°C for 10 – 12 minutes, turning halfway through, until browned and crispy.
- Season with salt and pepper. You can make this up to a few hours ahead, then proceed with the rest of the recipe and toss them in the rosemary butter just before serving.
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
This looks great! I love oyster mushrooms and usually saute them with garlic and mirin. I’ll try this next time! In our house 12 oz of oyster mushrooms is only 2 servings 🙂
Thank you, Leah! That sounds so good with garlic and mirin, too – it’s also just a great first step for preparing mushrooms, so you can always finish it with some mirin, garlic, and maybe even soy! And totally agree – I could probably eat 8 ounces in one sitting myself, haha.
YUM! I never knew mushrooms could taste this good. It’s wild how simple this recipe is and it makes the crispiest yummiest mushrooms