Cooking Issues Mushrooms

Food: Mushrooms Medicine

Food: Mushrooms Medicine

Mushrooms have long been avoided in the Indian diet. Indian consumers have not been very adventurous with their choices when it comes to mushrooms. The button mushroom species account for 85% of total mushroom production in India which has led to its acceptability. Internationally mushrooms are much in demand and in fact are a delicacy.

While fresh mushrooms will spoil in a week, dried mushrooms can be used safely for as long as two years.

India is also home to the very expensive and rare black morels (guchchis) that grow in the higher reaches of the Himalayas and are prized by gourmet cooks, particularly for French cuisine. Predictably, they are priced at ten thousand rupees for a kilogram.

The black mushroom

While mushrooms are usually considered to be white in colour, it is the black mushroom, Shiitake, that is regarded not just as a delicacy but also as an important component of oriental medicine. The Directorate of Mushroom Research recommends shiitake as a food that is beneficial for soothing bronchial inflammation and regulating urine incontinence as well as for reducing chronic high cholesterol.

Guchchi: the wild and rare mushroom

If you are a food connoisseur, you would know that one of the prize recipes in any gourmet food affair, is that of the ‘shahi guchchi’, a wild mushroom found in the mountains. Guchchi (morels) is also known to make news in the crime scene of Himachal Pradesh, as the local papers report police arresting petty criminals caught with their cache of the wild mushroom, illegally exporting them out of the market. The guchchi sells at about ten thousand to twenty thousand rupees per kilogram in the market. Such is the demand for this delicacy that this dry wild black mushroom has to be collected with permission from the Gram Panchaayats. There are laid down procedures to collect the guchchi where royalty has to be given to the village panchaayats, the stock has to be verified by the forest guards who issue challaans for transportation, there is market fee, road tax etc.

How to store mushrooms

The best way to store mushrooms is cold storage at 4 degree Centigrade (in refrigerators) in perforated packages. Common button mushroom stored in this manner stays fresh for 2-3 days. Most of the cultivated mushrooms stay fresh for 12-24 hours at room temperature of 25 degree centigrade. However, some of the mushrooms like oyster, shiitake, black ear etc. could be dried and stored for longer duration. Mushrooms like button and paddy-straw mushroom should be eaten fresh within 12 hours of harvesting. Milky mushroom, an important tropical variety, can stay fresh up to 2-3 days at room temperature of 25 degree centigrade.

According to the Directorate of Mushroom Research, cultivated mushrooms, when fresh or preserved (unspoiled) are always safe to consume. However, some species of mushrooms may cause mild allergy to a sensitive group of people. Some wild mushrooms have been reported to be poisonous, few of which are lethal (e.g. Amanita phalloides). There is no foolproof method to test the poisonous nature of mushrooms and hence it is advised to avoid collection and consumption of wild mushrooms.

How safe is it to consume mushrooms?

Cultivated mushrooms, when fresh or preserved (unspoiled) are always safe to consume. However, some species of mushrooms may cause mild allergy (as also associated with some other food items like eggs, pulses etc.) to a sensitive group of people. Some wild mushrooms have been reported to be poisonous, few of which are lethal (e.g. Amanita phalloides). There is no foolproof method to test the poisonous nature of mushrooms. Therefore it is advised to avoid collection and consumption of wild mushrooms.

To know the complete information, read our February-09 Issue of Consumer VOICE magazine on

www.consumer-voice.org

About the Author

Consumer VOICE only online magazine in India www.consumer-voice.org.

I need a new quick dinner idea to serve to a 3 year old, 18 year old and three adults!!?

I am tired of the old standby’s, (cream of mushroom soup with chicken and rice, hamburgers, spaghetti, sandwiches) I don’t have a lot of cooking or prep time and two of the adults have cholesterol issues. (p.s we had chicken with pasta and marinara last night) HELP!!!

Go to www.allrecipes.com

They have a whole section of quick meals. I would give you a few but I don’t know what kind of meat you have!

Good luck!!!

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