Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (180ºC) and start boiling your pasta water with 1 teaspoon sea salt.

2. Trim the tops and woody bottoms of the oyster mushrooms, leaving the solid part of the stems. Cut the stems into medallions about 1-inch thick. You can cook the tops of the oyster mushrooms too (they just don’t look like scallops) or use them in another recipe. You should have about 14 medallions.

3. In a bowl combine 3 cups of hot water with 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar and submerge the mushroom scallops in the mixture for 30 minutes at room temperature. Place a small bowl or plate bowl that fits within the main bowl on top of the mushrooms to ensure the mushrooms are submerged and not floating.

4. While the mushrooms are marinating toss roughly chopped lacinato kale with 1 Tablespoon olive oil and 1 Tablespoon lemon juice. Bake for 12-14 minutes until crispy, but still green. Once baked turn the oven off and set the kale aside until you’re ready to assemble the whole dish.

5. Cook your pasta until al dente and reserve 1 cup of the water for creating the sauce. Drain the pasta (do not rinse it) and leave it to sit in a colander until the scallops and sauce are done.

6. Heat a large pan to medium with 1 Tablespoon olive oil. Place the mushroom medallions in the pan and brown on one side for 3-4 minutes. Flip the medallions and season with 1/2 teaspoon sea salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper. Brown on the other side for 3-4 minutes. Remove the scallops from the pan and place on an oven safe plate/dish and place them in the oven to stay warm while you complete the sauce.

7. Turn the heat under this pan down to medium-low if it’s become quite hot from cooking the scallops. Immediately add another 1 Tablespoon olive oil, 1/8 cup finely chopped shallot, 1 minced garlic clove, and 1 cup of finely chopped leek. Sauté this for 2-3 minutes until fragrant, stirring frequently being sure not to burn the garlic and shallot.

8. Then mix in oregano, basil, and chilli peppers, cooking for another 1-2 minutes.

9. Add in white wine and pasta water. Bring the heat back up to medium (if you need to) to simmer, stirring frequently for 10-12 minutes as the sauce reduces. Add 1/2 teaspoon sea salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper near the end.

10. Reduce the heat to low and toss the cooked spaghetti noodles in the sauce for 1-2 minutes until evenly coated and most of the sauce is absorbed.

11. Transfer the pasta to serving dishes and top with crispy kale, scallops, and pomegranates. Drizzle with a little more olive oil if desired.