Get Your Vitamin D from Maitake Steak with Yogurt Sauce

This week's episode of Food -- Delicious Science covers how food literally builds our bodies. It's a topic that brings new meaning to Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin's famous quote "Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are."

One takeaway for me was the relationship vitamin D has with your body's ability to absorb calcium. Vitamin D is naturally produced by our bodies when our skin is exposed to sunlight, but in our modern office dwelling world, many of us don't get enough vitamin D, which in turn can inhibit our body's ability to absorb calcium. The good news, is that there are some foods, that do the work of converting sunlight into vitamin D for us, and there is perhaps no food source more rich in vitamin D than Maitake mushrooms.

I've writen before about the wonders of Maitake mushrooms (a.k.a. Hen of the Woods), but by pairing them with a lemon yogurt sauce, I've created something that hits both nutritional needs with one tasty dish.

Unfortunately most of the Maitake mushrooms available in stores have been grown indoors and unless they've been exposed to UV light during processing, they don't contain as much Vitamin D as they have the potential to. Luckily it's easy to fix this, by giving the mushrooms some time in the sun. One USDA study found that UV light exposure of as little as 15-20 seconds can have a significant impact on the amount of Vitamin D contained in the mushrooms. The other benefit of leaving the mushrooms out in the sun for a bit is it dries them out a bit, which makes it easier for them to crisp in the pan.

The resulting steak is crisp on the outside and meaty and flavorful on the inside. Served with a thick lemon yogurt sauce, it's a satisfyingly flavorful combo that will make you want to lick your plate clean.

Food - Delicious Science is the scientific story of the food on your plate. Michael Mosley and James Wong present a celebration of the physics, chemistry and biology that lies hidden inside every bite. The third episode airs Wednesday, May 31 at 10:00pm | Check local listings