Lion’s mane steaks.

This is the simplest way to understand what lion’s mane is. Two thick slabs, a hot dry pan, a weight on top, and eight minutes. The press forces water out and the surface goes properly golden rather than pale and squeaky.

The finish — lemon, butter, capers — is deliberately close to a piccata, because that is what the flavour wants.

What you need

Mushrooms

• 1 large lion’s mane block (about 12 oz)
• 1 tbsp neutral oil
• Salt

Lemon butter

• 3 tbsp butter
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp capers, drained
• Juice of ½ lemon
• 2 tbsp parsley, chopped
• Black pepper

Method

1. Cut the block into slabs about ¾ inch thick — two or three from a large block. Cut across the block so each slab holds together.
2. Dry pan, medium-high heat. Lay the slabs in with no fat at all and put a weight on top: a second pan, a foil-wrapped brick, or a heavy lid.
3. Press for 3–4 minutes. You will hear the water hissing out. The slab will compress to roughly half its thickness.
4. Flip, re-weight, another 3 minutes. Both faces should now be dry and starting to colour.
5. Add the oil and a pinch of salt, and sear each side 1–2 minutes more until genuinely golden brown.
6. Butter, garlic, capers into the pan. As it foams, spoon it over the slabs for a minute, then add the lemon juice off the heat.
7. Finish with parsley and pepper, and pour every drop of the pan butter over the top.

Press it, do not rush it

Without the weight you get a mushroom that is cooked but pale, spongy and faintly squeaky — the complaint almost everyone has the first time they cook lion’s mane. The press is doing what a paper towel does for tofu, except with heat, so the water leaves as steam and the surface can brown.

Cook it past the squeak. If the slab still squeaks against your teeth, it holds water and needs another two minutes a side.

Serving it as a main

On a purée — white bean, celeriac or potato — with the pan butter spooned over and something sharp alongside: a dressed rocket salad, or fennel and lemon. It has enough presence to be the centre of the plate without any support.

Same technique, other uses

Pressed and seared slabs are the starting point for a sandwich, and pressed-then-shredded is the base of crab cakes. This is the parent recipe for the species.

Common questions