- It looks like a finger.
- Is that squash or something?
- Is that cheese?
- Oh, my God, is this a banana?
- Oh, my, my, woo!
- Maybe the most convincing thing you've ever made.
(upbeat music)
- Hello, everybody, my name is Merle,
and today, we're going to be doing something really fun.
We're going to make baby back ribs with mushrooms.
I love mushrooms.
Are they a plant?
Are they an animal?
They've been around for somewhere
between 760 million and one billion years.
Today, we're gonna be dealing with the king oyster mushroom.
The method of this was developed by my boys over at BOSH!
Shout out to you guys, you guys are awesome.
The seasoning will be different,
but the method will be the same.
What I'm gonna be doing is more
of a traditional kinda like baby back barbecue rib.
You know, I'm vegan.
You're like, "Yeah, no kidding, we know."
I loved meat.
Ribs were a real soft spot for me,
that taste of biting into flesh.
Your teeth sinking into meat.
But anyway, I'm gonna go ahead and get this party started,
make these ribs, and then I'm gonna bring in some friends,
and I'm gonna have them all taste test it,
and see what they think.
This is a king oyster mushroom.
What we're gonna do is we're gonna slice the tops off.
(lively music)
I'm not gonna throw the caps away.
I'm not a monster.
I'm gonna probably chop those up
and saute them into something else.
Don't be wasteful.
The sizes vary immensely between these mushrooms,
so some ribs are gonna be meatier than others.
It is what it is.
Maybe go for larger ones in the future but whatever.
Don't take life so seriously.
They look like bones.
It's Halloween today also,
maybe I'm just in a spooky mood, I dunno.
We're going to season these babies up.
Let's start with toasted sesame oil.
We've got some soy sauce, ever heard of it?
Liquid smoke.
If you're new to the plant-based world
or you just started being vegan,
liquid smoke can give you an incredible,
powerful, meaty flavor and complexity
in a lot of vegan dishes that you just can't get.
A little bit goes a very long way.
I'm gonna move, why are these so far away?
Come to me.
Mix, mix, mix.
We got some garlic powder.
We got some onion powder, put you in there.
Smoked paprika and cumin.
We got some brown sugar.
A pinch of cinnamon goes a long way.
Classically, some salt and some pepper.
All right.
You'll notice, we have two cast iron pans here.
You don't have to use another cast iron pan
if you don't have two.
Basically, we're gonna be putting the ribs in here
and then using this other one on top
to apply a little bit of pressure.
We just wanna sear the ribs before we bake them.
(playful music)
Lovely, goodbye little friends.
Oh, whoa! (mushroooms squeaking)
Oh, my God, it's screaming.
Do you hear that?
I'm sorry, awe.
Look at the char on that.
Good God, man, look at that.
Wow, these look amazing.
These are good to go, these are ready.
It is your time.
Time to go in the oven.
We're gonna pop these in the oven
for about 50 to 60 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
That's 180 degrees Celsius.
I'm gonna cover them first
with a little bit of barbecue sauce.
I will see you beautiful people in 50 to 60 minutes.
Wow, look at this!
They look so good.
I mean, they look just like ribs.
They smell just like ribs.
I'm hoping they'll taste something like ribs.
(meat crunches)
Did you hear that?
This is pretty freaking meaty.
The only thing this is missing is the bone.
This is really good.
I don't really wanna share this.
Wow, you know what I'm gonna call this?
I'm gonna call this a success.
Do I have barbecue sauce all over my mouth?
Yeah.
Woops.
Yay, I'm very happy with these!
I'm gonna bring in my friends,
and I'm gonna have them try this.
I think they're gonna like these a lot.
Woo!
(energetic music)
All right Jasmine, come on in.
- Hello.
- "Goofy Movie," right?
- Yep, Roxanne.
- I wanted to be her so much when I was a kid.
- I wanted to kiss her.
- Oh.
- What's this?
- I love the plant.
- It looks like just cuts of beef.
- I definitely see bone.
- You do?
- The texture is weird.
(laughs) I almost lost it.
- It looks like a finger.
- A squash or something?
- Is this a carrot?
- Oh, my God, is this a banana?
- Is that cheese?
- Is it a potato?
- Is this teriyaki micken?
Mock chicken?
(Merle and Jasmine laugh)
- I don't like it.
I have not
had that sensation in a very long time.
- Oh my.
- It tastes good.
- The flavor's very good,
and I was trying to decide if I hated or loved the texture.
But I want more of it.
- This is like fat, pork fat.
- It's hard and soft at the same time, right?
- Yeah.
- I like it a lot.
- You never like the things I make.
- I liked those pancakes you made me.
That wasn't in a video.
- I (beep) with it.
Wow, Merle.
- You're not messing with me either.
- I'm not. - I'm looking deep
into your eyes.
- I know, she loves to do that.
- I was gonna say mushroom at first,
but I don't think you can get a mushroom to look like that.
Is it a mushroom?
(woman squeals)
- Give it back, what the (beep).
- Gennaro Contaldo, the dreamiest old Italian man friend,
if he was eating this, he would go,
"Hey, can you take a little bite of this?
"Here you go.
"Oh, my, my."
- Oh, my, my!
- Woo!
- (groans) Yes!
- Something like that.
- Can I finish this?
- Yes.
- This is actually really delicious.
- I'm taking another bite.
- Give me a zero to 10, what would you rate it?
- 10.
- 7.8.
- I'd definitely give it an eight.
- 10.
- Oh.
- All the things you give me I think 10.
- That can't be true.
- Yeah, the watermelon not 10.
Why is it jiggly like that?
(Merle laughs)
- Watermelon, definitely the bottom.
That's not what watermelon's supposed to be.
- You don't like watermelon!
- I know, I don't like this either.
Vegan egg ranked pretty high up there.
Vegan egg was the beginning of her falling in love.
7.5 out of 10.
- It's up and down.
I thought you hated it.
- I know. - He told me to quit my job
and go be attractive. - I did not say quit.
Whoa, I did not say that in so many words.
That has sentimental value
for all of us I think.
- Oh, my. (laughs)
- Thank you.
- You can cut. (laughs)
You're all done.
- Okay, buh-bye.
- Bye, good job.
- She wants to give me a goodbye kiss.
I can't, we can't, not on camera.
- No, I do not.
- [Aria] Please stop, please.
- Please, please cut, please. - Take my mic, please.
You're out of good.
(lively music)