As for gathering your own mushrooms—don’t!!! It takes years of experience and training to select safe, nonpoisonous mushrooms. We suggest you do your mushroom-hunting at your local farmers market.
Fresh mushrooms need to be well scrubbed and trimmed before they are ready for use. Dried mushrooms need to be soaked in water until they reach the texture you desire. Save the soaking liquid (called mushroom broth) and use it in soups and sauces, or when steaming entrees or side dishes. Once reconstituted, treat dried mushrooms just like fresh mushrooms (refrigerate and use promptly).
Mushrooms can be a good addition to entrees or can be the entrée themselves. Want a fast, elegant meal, for yourself or for company? Marinate a portobello mushroom cap in garlic-infused oil or Italian dressing. Grill on the barbecue or sauté on the stove. Sauté whole button mushrooms with minced shallots or onions and serve with your favorite entrée. Toss button mushrooms with cumin, cinnamon and black pepper, sauté in olive oil. For a Mediterranean twist, slice portobellos into thin pieces, and roast with garlic, basil and sun dried tomatoes. Like Thai? Toss mushroom pieces with lemongrass, ginger, coriander and chilies; sauté or roast.
Mushrooms on the Menu
Here are some suggestions for incorporating mushrooms into your meals:
Sautéed mushrooms and onion complement most meat, fish, vegetarian and poultry entrees
Finely chopped mushrooms add flavor to sauces and salad dressings
Stuff mushroom caps with your favorite soft cheese and broil
Serve mushroom omelet as a brunch or light dinner entree
Slice onions, top each onion slice with chopped mushrooms tossed in Italian dressing; top with crumbled cheese. Broil or microwave.
Puree fresh mushrooms with cream, milk or half-and-half, season with white pepper, heat and use as a fast sauce.
Prepare a mushroom duxelle by finely chopping mushrooms with shallots or sweet onions. Here are some duxelle tips:
the key to a good duxelle is finely chopped mushrooms. Chop them by hand or use a food processor. Use button mushrooms, morels, oyster mushrooms or chanterelle or a combination of them.