MATTY'S GARLIC MUSHIES

 

I always try and eat a balanced diet but I will treat myself to delicious homemade fried foods every now and then. I've said many a time that a little bit of what you fancy won't hurt you! Today I indulged by recreating a classic pub grub starter from the comfort of my kitchen. Juicy mushrooms covered in a crispy, herby batter all ready to be dunked in a luscious garlic mayo. Go on! Make some tonight, you deserve it.

Battered Mushrooms

120g Plain Flour

1/2 Tsp Salt

1 Egg

200ml Semi Skimmed Milk

150g Breadcrumbs

1/2 Tsp Garlic Powder

1/2 Tsp Onion Powder

1/2 Tsp Oregano

1/2 Cayenne Pepper

Black Pepper To Season

200g Button Mushrooms

1. In one bowl, mix together the salt and flour, in a second bowl whisk together the egg and milk until well combined and in a third bowl mix together the breadcrumbs, garlic and onion powder, oregano, Cayenne pepper and a pinch of black pepper and mix together.
2. Take your mushrooms and wash them thoroughly to remove any dirt. Roll all the mushrooms through the flour then transfer the mushrooms to a plate and set to one side.
3. Pour the egg and milk mix into the remaining flour andwhiskuntil a smooth batter is formed.
4. Make sure your hands are dry and make a few mushrooms and dip them in the batter. Coat all of the mushrooms then dip them into the breadcrumb mix and then transfer them to a clean plate. Wash and dry your hands thoroughly and then repeat until all the mushrooms are coated in breadcrumbs. Place your coated mushrooms in the fridge whilst you heat your oil up.
5. Take a deep pan and fill with just enough sunflower oil to  make the mushrooms float (not too much though or it's just a waste). Heat the oil on a high heat (remember to be careful with hot oil kids) and then after a few minutes drop in one mushroom as a test. The oil is hot enough if the mushroom instantly starts to sizzle and takes around 1 minute to go golden brown. 
6. Once you have got the oil temperature down then fry your mushrooms in batches. Once golden brown remove them from the pan onto some kitchen paper to remove the excess oil.

Onto the dip! This is a gorgeously authentic chip shop garlic mayo that will instantly give you flashbacks to 2am visits to the takeaway after a night out on the tiles. Sounds dirty but it works so well with battered mushrooms that there really is no other option when it comes to what to dip them in:

Chip Shop Garlic Mayo

6 Tbsp Mayonnaise

2 Tbsp Plain Yogurt

2 Tsp Oil

1/2 Tsp Garlic Powder

1 Tsp Dried Parsley

Salt To Season

Simply mix all of those ingredients together and you have the best chip shop style mayo ever. Perfect for dipping your mushrooms in. Fry up a batch, whip up your sauce, whack it all on a plate and you have a great appetiser or snack for tucking into around the table or in front of a movie.

It's the perfect weekend treat!