Nobody is ever half hearted about Mushrooms
Seneca, first century Roman philosopher hated mushrooms. Emperor Claudius was poisoned by them. The Normans praised their aphrodisiac qualities and the ancient Egyptians decreed them to be food for royalty alone.
These days truffles, porcini, morels, crimini, ceps, portabella, black Chinese, yellow chantarelles, cinammon caps, hon-shimeji and their cousins are no longer seen as either the food of gods or of devils.
Mushrooms no longer conjure images of the Spirits with hallucinogenic psilocybe but instead conjure visions of one of the most intriguing and subtle of all gastronomic treats.
A mushroom is a healthy wholesome and altogether delicious treat
Utzi the Ice Man's Mushrooms
They were polypores!
In the winter of 1991, hikers in the Italian Alps found a body. It turned out not to be a crime scene, but the well preserved remains of a man who died more than five thousand years ago.He became known as Utzi, the Iceman, and we have learned a great deal about this man, including what he ate, where he lived, and what he wore.
He was well equipped with a knapsack, flint axe, arrows and a string of dried Birch Polypores (Piptoporus betulinus) and another yet unidentified mushroom. The mushrooms would have been very handy trekking across the Akps and not just for a snack on the southern slopes.
The Peerless Polypores
The polypores can be used as tinder for starting fires and as medicine for treating wounds. It can be boiled into a rich tea with immuno-enhancing properties. You can chew on a dried one as you walk.
Uzi the Iceman was well equipped for traversing the wilderness, aided by the noble polypores.
The Noble Polypores
A necessary part of the ecosystem
The polypores are among the most common, widespread, and easily identifiable groups of wild mushrooms.Almost all polypores grow on wood, such as trees, fallen logs, stumps, or semi-buried wood. Apart from being attractive and interesting mushrooms, common polypores are wood rotters, assisting in the decomposition of dead wood.
So they're important in natural ecosystems, recycling the nutrients and minerals in the wood and releasing them over a long period of time--- sometimes several hundred years from a single large tree--- and making the nutrients available for other forest organisms.
Taxonomically, the polypores are complicated, and we don't completely understand them.
It is easy to despise gold and silver, but exceedingly difficult to refuse a plate of mushrooms.
Epigrams of Martial
Nutrition Value of Mushrooms
There's a lot of food value in a mushroom
Mushrooms also have many of the B vitamins, and the vitamins C, K, and E.
I could go on more .. mushrooms are a rich source of potassium and phosphorous. About 5 raw button mushrooms contain 370 mg. of potassium and 104 mg. phosphorous.
Take the portabellas for example. Portabella Mushrooms are an ideal food for those watching their waistlines. They contain no fat or sodium, are high in fibre, and low in calories (40 calories for a medium size).
Risotto Portabella
Quick and Easy Mushroom Recipe
1 1/2 cups minced onion1 large garlic clove, minced
2 cups Arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine
200-250g, 8 oz Portabella mushrooms
3 tablespoons olive oil
3- 4 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Method
In a medium-sized heavy saucepan, heat some oil. Add onion and garlic; sauté and stir until softened, about 4 minutes. Add rice; continue to cook and stir coating the rice with oil. Add the wine; cook, stirring often, until the liquid is absorbed.
Meanwhile, trim mushrooms and cut into bite-sized pieces. In another pan heat oil. Add mushrooms; cook and stir until tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Pour 3 cups of stock into the rice, over medium-high heat stir until almost al dente. Stir in the cooked mushrooms and add more stock if needed.
The risotto should be creamy, not runny.
Remove saucepan from heat. Stir in a 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese until completely dissolved. Stir in parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with remaining parmesan.
Mushroom Burgers
Substitute Portabello Mushrooms for Meat
* 4 large portabello or large field mushrooms
* 30m l/2 tbsp olive oil
* 1 clove garlic, crushed
* salt and ground black pepper
* 4 crusty ciabatta rolls
* crisp lettuce
* sliced tomatoes
What you do
Place the mushrooms in a shallow dish, add the oil, garlic and seasoning and toss until the mushrooms are evenly coated. Leave to marinate for at least 10 minutes.
Cook the mushrooms on the barbecue, or in a flat frying pan for 8-10 minutes turning once until browned on both sides and tender when tested with a fork. Transfer to a plate, gill side down and leave for a couple of minutes.
Toast the ciabatta rolls on the barbecue, or pop into a toaster. Fill with lettuce, tomato and top with the mushrooms.
Delicious served with houmous!
Crimini
Wild Mushrooms
Always be careful when you harvest wild food
Be careful when picking wild mushrooms, or any wild food. Some species of mushrooms are poisonous.
Remember to always cook wild mushrooms thoroughly, no half measures here, you not only want to release the flavors but to convert the proteins into a more usable form
Is it edible?
100 Edible Mushrooms
Amazon Price: (as of 01/01/2010)
Michael Kuo loves mushrooms too. In this guide he identifies 100 species of mushroom, using full colour illustrations and some tips on where and when to find them. He also includes how to cook them in creative and delicious ways.
Preparing Mushrooms
To Scrub or not to Scrub a Mushroom?
To remove the stems, give them a gentle little push with your thumb and they will loosen easily. Keep the stems for adding to soups, stir fries, and stuffing.
The true aficionada doesn't wash her mushrooms at all, but merely wipes them lovingly with a damp cloth.
Storing Mushrooms
- Keep mushrooms refrigerated
- Remove the plastic from packaged mushrooms
- Keep fresh mushrooms in a porous paper bag
- Avoid air-tight containers which cause moisture condensation and spoilage
- Don't rinse until ready to use
Shiitake Mushrooms
A Feast of Mushrooms
An Old Favourite
MUSHROOM FEAST: A Celebration of all Edible Fungi, Cultivated, Wild and Dried, with Recipes
Amazon Price: $22.76 (as of 01/01/2010)
Besides the traditional use of mushrooms to enhance meat and vegetable dishes, these delightful edible fungi are made into pate, powdered, pureed into mushroom ketchup, baked into a flan (an Alice B. Toklas specialty), baked as a cake and used in many other dishes - from the simple to the highly sophisticated - for soups, sauces, stuffings, main courses, and all too intriguing to resist.
Oyster Mushrooms
Mushrooms Demystified : A Guide
Mushrooms Demystified
Amazon Price: $26.39 (as of 01/01/2010)
The reference book for everything about mushrooms in USA. Covvering "fungophobia" (fear of eating wild mushrooms), mushroom biology, mushrooms and the environment, scientific names and classification, mushroom collecting, mushroom identification, and all about LBMs (little brown mushrooms).
How about you?
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Fanmail and Feedback for Fungus
You can be fresh, or dry.....
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Reply
- Ramkitten Ramkitten Nov 7, 2009 @ 8:30 pm
- I LOVE 'shrooms, especially morels. I don't think I've ever had risotto, but it sounds delish! And even simple enough for me to handle.
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Reply
- James20 James20 Mar 26, 2009 @ 8:04 am
- I love mushrooms on pizza, more the better. I did not know that there are so many you can eat. Here in Minnesota we look for morels. 5*
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- TopStyleTravel TopStyleTravel Mar 14, 2009 @ 12:46 pm
- Wonderful lenses on mushrooms. 5 stars! The photo of the polypore mushroom looks like a work of art. Wow the more I read your lenses, I realize we have a lot of food tastes in common.
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