Simple sauteed Spanish mushrooms scented with garlic and olive oil, finished with parsley a dash of lemon and pimenton. Champinones al ajillo, or garlic mushrooms are very similar to many similar preparations for mushrooms around the world, but using traditional Spanish mushrooms is a great way make a truly unique mushroom tapa appetizer.

A small pan filled with Spanish garlic mushrooms or champinones al ajillo garnished with parsley. — Spanish garlic mushrooms, made with *Amanita ponderosa*.

There's tons of recipes for garlic mushrooms online, and most of them are basically the same in that they neglect to actually brown the mushrooms which kinda drives me crazy. With that in mind, I'm going to describe how to make this recipe in painstaking detail so that anyone can make it.

Chef's Tips

Besides the basic technique details, know that this recipe, and just about any mushroom recipe is going to be better with wild mushrooms. If you want to make a special appetizer, go out of your way to get a wild species used in Spain. chanterelles, porcini and saffron milk caps are great, as is the gurumelo I'm using in this post, which is a very special mushroom not well known outside of Spain.

Gurumelo or Amanita ponderosa mushrooms laid out on a black background with one small button cut in half. — *A. ponderosa* mature mushrooms and buttons.

I also need to mention that instead of cutting the mushrooms into pieces as I've done here, many recipes cook whole caps with the stems removed on a plancha or cast iron griddle. This works fine, but for very firm mushrooms like the ones I'm using here bite sized pieces are easier to work with and not burn.

The key to this recipe is that the mushrooms are cooked and browned before the garlic is added to the pan. If you cook the garlic first, the mushrooms won't be able to brown correctly before the garlic burns.

How to Make Garlic Mushrooms

First the mushrooms are cut into bite sized pieces and put into a hot pan with oil and pinch of salt. It's ok to completely fill the pan as they'll lose volume as they cook.

Adding olive oil to a pan. — Adding mild olive oil to the pan.

Adding cut up mushrooms to a carbon steel pan. — Adding cut up mushrooms to the pan.

Seasoning a pan of Spanish mushrooms with salt. — Seasoning the mushrooms with salt.

As the mushrooms cook they'll absorb some oil. Add another drizzle (roughly 1 tablespoon) and continue cooking slowly until the turn golden brown. When the mushrooms are nicely browned, push them to the side of the pan.

Adding additional oil to a pan of mushrooms while they cook. — Adding additional oil when the pan gets dry.

A perfectly browned pan of gurumelo Spanish mushrooms. — Cook until golden brown.

Pushing mushrooms to the side of the pan.

Add another drizzle of oil, around a teaspoon or two, and add the garlic, cooking for a moment until it just starts to color around the edges. Mix the mushrooms with the garlic, turn off the heat, add the parsley, stir, double check the seasoning for salt, and serve.

Adding oil and garlic to a pan of cooking mushrooms. — Adding garlic to the pan.

A pan of garlic mushrooms with chopped Italian parsley added. — Mixing the mushrooms with chopped Italian parsley.

Spooning finished Spanish garlic mushrooms into a pan to serve. — Spoon the mushrooms into a dish and serve as an appetizer or side.

I like to add a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes and a drizzle of lemon at the table.

Spanish garlic mushrooms or champinones al ajillo in a dish surrounded by parsley, lemon, garlic and pimenton smoked paprika. — Champinones al ajillo, or Spanish garlic mushrooms with pimenton.

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Champinones al Ajillo: A Spanish Garlic Mushroom Tapa

A simple recipe for Spanish-style garlic mushrooms served with a pinch of pimenton, parsley and lemon.

Prep Time5

Cook Time20

Total Time25

Course: Appetizer, Side Dish

Cuisine: Spanish

Keyword: champinones al ajillo receta

Servings: servings

Calories: 90kcal

Author: Alan Bergo

Cost: 10

Equipment

1 10 inch saute pan or cast iron skillet

Ingredients

8 oz Fresh mushrooms ideally milk caps or gurumelos
1 tsp Garlic, minced (1 medium clove)
Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 Tbsp Thinly sliced Italian parsley to taste
1 tiny pinch Pimenton / smoked paprika optional
1 wedge Fresh lemon for serving, optional
2.5 tablespoon Mild olive oil

Instructions

Clean the mushrooms of any dirt and grit. I typically washwild mushrooms whole by swishing them in cold water and draining on a towel inthe fridge until I need them.
Cut the mushrooms into roughly 2 inch pieces, they should beslightly larger than bite-sized as they will shrink while cooking.
Add a tablespoon of the oil and the mushrooms to the pan,season with a pinch of salt and heat on medium-high heat until the mushroomsare hot and starting to color. When the mushrooms have absorbed the oil, reducethe heat to medium, another tablespoon of oil and continue cooking until themushrooms are well browned.
Push the mushrooms to the side of the pan, add the last 2teaspoons of oil to the open side of the pan, then add the garlic to it. Breakup the garlic with a spoon so it’s touching the oil and sizzling.
When the garlic starts to color around the edges, mix themushrooms and garlic together, add the parsley, double check the seasoning forsalt, adjust as needed, add a tiny pinch of pimenton, then spoon into a warmbowl and serve.

Video

Notes

I'm using wild mushrooms here, but you use just about any mushroom you like. If you use cultivated mushrooms like portobello, crimini / baby bellas, or oyster mushrooms, make sure to cook them down and brown them first so they develop flavor.

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