A savory and delicious meal made with chanterelle mushrooms and immature Common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) pods and leaves.
See process photos and details above in article for reference. You'll be cooking the three primary ingredients (orzo, chanterelles, and Common milkweed) separately. You'll then combine and finish cooking the chanterelles and milkweed together before adding them to the orzo. The chanterelles take the longest to cook, so start there.
Chop chanterelles into small 1/4" - 1/2" pieces. Place in pan on medium heat (5.5 on our electric stovetop). Add enough water to pan to just cover the mushrooms + 1/4 cup of white wine + 2 tbsp butter + a pinch of salt. You'll be cooking the water out of the mushrooms, which will take 15-20 minutes depending on the size of your pan.
As chanterelles are cooking, prepare to flash-boil milkweed. Bring water to boil, ideally in pan with strainer insert. Once boiling, add milkweed pieces and boil for about 1 minute, stirring. Strain and set aside. Dump water.
As the water in the chanterelles is getting close to cooking out, you'll want to start another pot of boiling water for your orzo. Add 1 tablespoon of salt to water (ideally rock salt like pink sea salt with no microplastics). Once water is boiling add orzo and stir every 1-2 minutes.
Once the water in the chanterelles has nearly cooked out, turn temperature down to medium low (3 on our stove). Then add pre-boiled milkweed pieces, 2 tablespoons butter, and ~2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (or more if your batch needs it). Stir regularly, especially as the water cooks completely out. Continue cooking until mushrooms are lightly browned. Add garlic at the end. (We scraped mushrooms/milkweed aside and added garlic in an open part of the pan with another tablespoon of olive oil.) Remove cooked ingredients from pan and set aside.
After 7-10 minutes of cooking the orzo (depending on brand instructions and desired texture), quickly strain orzo, but don't completely drain. Put orzo back in pan and return to warm stovetop. If you have an electric stove: use residual heat from turned off burner. Gas stove: turn temperature to low. Once orzo is back on stovetop, add one raw egg and stir vigorously for 30 seconds to coat orzo. Remove from heat. Then add chanterelle/milkweed, and stir to incorporate. Next, add fresh-grated parmesan, olive oil to desired consistency (~2-5 more tablespoons) and cracked pepper. Stir together, taste, and modify as-needed. Want to brighten the dish a bit more beyond what the white wine adds? Add some fresh-squeezed lemon juice (or a bit more wine).
Plate and garnish with lemon zest and more black pepper. Plate and serve! Great as a standalone dish or with a side of fish or chicken.
Orzo with chanterelles and Common milkweed https://www.tyrantfarms.com/recipe-orzo-with-chanterelles-and-common-milkweed/