Wild mushrooms, portobellos in particular, grill as well as any food on earth. This dish doubles the pleasure with a dollop of mushroom ketchup. If you don't have time to make the condiment, substitute the faster alternative suggested. You sacrifice the double play but certainly won't strike out.
SERVES 4
| 1 | pound portobello mushrooms, sliced ⅓ inch thick |
| Porcini-flavored oil, other mushroom-flavored oil, roasted garlic oil, or olive oil | |
| ½ | teaspoon salt |
| ½ | cup Spicy Mushroom Ketchup ([>]) or ¼ cup Super Wooster Sauce ([>]) or other Worcester shire sauce mixed with ¼ cup bottled steak sauce |
| 2 | small red-ripe tomatoes, diced, for garnish |
Fire up the grill, bringing the temperature to medium (4 to 5 seconds with the hand test).
Place the mushrooms in a shallow bowl or dish. Drizzle them with just enough oil to coat and toss them gently with the salt.
If the mushroom ketchup is refrigerated, take it out now to take the chill off of it.
Few food companies in the country have done more than Kraft to promote grilling. The corporation always cared mostly about its profits, of course, rather than the glory of the craft, but the marketing department never reached the bottom of the bottle in finding ways to sauce up outdoor cooking.
Americans once called vinaigrette "French" dressing, but Kraft changed that by the 1950s, popularizing a new commercial style under that name that contained a strong suggestion of ketchup. When the company released a purer vinaigrette a few years later, the topping had hopped the Alps to become Italian. Both dressings, according to the ad campaigns, were meant for much more than lettuce. The French version, among many possibilities, made a bragging-rights baste for "New Way Steaks," "Tasty Grilled Spareribs, " and "Company Hamburgers," while the Italian variation gave the "gourmet touch" to a range of chicken dishes.
Kraft introduced the first nationally distributed bottled barbecue sauce in 1960 and it's still the top seller in its field across the country today. The new product offered outdoor cooks the chance to stake their "claim to barbecue fame" with "the zip of real Western cooking." The secret, said a newspaper promotion, was that "Kraft Barbecue Sauce penetrates the meat and gives a richer, more appetizing color because it's made with a special Kraft ingredient." The bottom line for the ad, for the company, and for the cook, was "Make it your brand, partner."
Grill the mushrooms uncovered for 2 to 3 minutes per side, until tender. If grilling covered, cook the mushrooms for 4 to 5 minutes, turning once midway.
Serve the warm mushrooms hot or at room temperature, topped at the end by spoonfuls of the ketchup and a scattering of tomato to add a little color.