Mushrooms
Countless varieties of mushrooms are grown and foraged worldwide, whether large or small; white, black, yellow, tan, red, or many other colors. Some are bland, some are mind-blowingly delicious. Unless you hunt your own — not advisable without expert knowledge — some of the best are also mind-blowingly expensive. Fortunately, mushrooms are highly interchangeable, and mixing cultivated mushrooms with wild is a smart way to add flavor to a dish and stretch your dollar.
Here is a brief primer of the mushrooms I like to cook with, in order, loosely, of most to least commonly available:
- Button or white The most common and bland cultivated variety; white to tan in color; thick caps and stems with gray to dark brown gills; tender and brown when cooked.
- Cremini (Baby Bella) Immature cultivated portobello mushrooms. Tan, with dark brown gills; they’re shaped like white mushrooms and a bit more robust in flavor.
- Portobello A supermarket staple, these are mature cremini mushrooms; tan to brown, with giant, flat caps, thick stems, and dense, dark brown gills that darken whatever dish they’re cooked with unless they’re scraped out. The flavor is earthy, and they’re excellent grilled.
- Shiitake The most flavorful cultivated mushroom, and easily the best. Available fresh and dried; the latter is excellent for stock, with a rubbery but pleasant texture when reconstituted and cooked. Tan, flat caps with off-white gills and tough stems when fresh; brown with fatter-looking caps when dried (usually whole); texture is meaty with a hearty, earthy flavor.
- Oyster Available wild and cultivated in some supermarkets. They range in color from gray or white to pink, blue, or yellow, and grow in clusters with thick stems and a round or oval leaflike “cap.” They have a mild mushroom flavor and slightly chewy texture.
- Enoki A delicate Asian mushroom often used as garnish; white with toothpick-thin stems and tiny round caps; very mild in flavor. Best used raw or barely cooked. Not really in the same class, flavor-wise, as many others.
- Chanterelle This (usually expensive) wild mushroom is light to golden yellow and shaped like a fat trumpet with a ruffle-edged bell. The flavor is earthy, nutty, delicious. Also available dried.
- Morel This wild (and wildly expensive) mushroom is available fresh in the spring and fall and dried year-round. White or brown, it is cone-shaped with a honeycomb-textured cap and hollow center. It has a wonderful earthy flavor. Be sure to clean thoroughly, as they’re usually sandy.
- Porcini Available dried (quite common and should be in your pantry) and fresh (not so common, and always expensive). It has the most robust, earthy flavor and the meatiest texture of all mushrooms. Very plump, tan to dark-brown caps and fat, off-white stems when fresh. Buy dried from a reputable dealer in quantities of at least 1 ounce at a time (the ⅛-ounce packages often sold are rip-offs). Once you get into using them, you’ll buy 4-ounce quantities or more.
- King Also known as king oyster mushroom (it’s related to the oyster mushroom) or king trumpet mushroom, it has a freeform trumpet like shape with a thick stem that needs only a little trim at the bottom. A wild mushroom that is now being cultivated in this country and elsewhere, its availability is limited, but if you find it, buy it. It has a firm texture and deep umami flavor. Wonderful sautéed and in stir-fries.
Buying and storing Fresh mushrooms should be unbroken, plump, spongy yet firm, and fresh smelling; avoid any that are slimy, bruised, or foul smelling (especially if wrapped in plastic). Fresh wild mushrooms are in season mostly in fall and spring, but may pop up in shoulder seasons and even in summer. White mushrooms should have closed caps that cover the gills. Store wrapped loosely in wax paper or in a brown paper bag with a moist paper towel in the refrigerator; use wild mushrooms almost immediately, certainly within 24 hours.
Preparing Rinse fresh mushrooms as lightly as you can (they absorb water like a sponge if they sit in it) or brush them clean; be sure to get dirt out of hidden crevices. It’s easier to trim some mushrooms, like portobellos, first. Cut off any hard or dried-out spots — usually just the end of the stem. The stems of most mushrooms are perfectly edible, but those of shiitake should be cut off and discarded or reserved for stock. Clean the stems well, cut them in half if they’re large (as are those of portobellos), and cook them with the caps.
To reconstitute dried mushrooms Soak the mushrooms in hot water until they are soft, 5 to 30 minutes, depending on the size. Lift the mushrooms out of the soaking liquid with your hands or a slotted spoon and reserve the soaking liquid; it has great mushroom flavor. If called for in the recipe, very carefully pour it out of the soaking container, leaving the grit behind, or pour into a storage container and freeze to add later to soups, stews, or sauces. Trim away any hard spots on the mushrooms and use as directed. Chinese dried shiitakes must be soaked in boiling-hot water (you might even have to change the water once to get them soft), and they need to be trimmed assiduously.
Best cooking methods Sautéing, stir-frying, roasting, grilling
When are they done? When tender, though you can cook them until they’re crisp too
Other vegetables you can use Mushrooms are largely interchangeable, including reconstituted dried mushrooms. Otherwise there is no substitute.