Mushrooms are becoming increasingly popular in USA. According to the Federal Statistical Office, per capita consumption has almost doubled over the past decade to 3.03 kilograms per year. Mushrooms account for the largest share, accounting for over 60 percent at 1.9 kilograms per year.
But although mushrooms and especially button mushrooms are becoming more and more popular, there are always unanswered questions when it comes to preparation. In this article I would like to show you how to fry mushrooms correctly , what you should pay attention to and where the biggest mistakes are.
Mushrooms – these differences exist
Mushrooms are available fresh in the produce section of your supermarket, but also in jars and cans. In this article I am referring to the preparation of the fresh mushrooms.
I would recommend that you favor fresh mushrooms when cooking whenever possible. They contain more nutrients and the taste of the glass and canned versions suffers from the brew in which they are preserved.
But there are also differences with fresh mushrooms. The most obvious is that there are both brown and white button mushrooms. The button mushroom is originally brown , only a good 100 years ago, at the beginning of the 20th century, the white button mushroom was created by a mutation.
While they hardly differ in nutritional value, the flesh of the brown mushroom is firmer. You will also notice a difference in price. Since the brown mushroom grows more slowly and the yield is not as high as that of the white mushroom, it is also more expensive.
Frying mushrooms – the right preparation
Already during the preparation you can make the first mistake when preparing the mushrooms. Because the remains of soil on mushrooms are often roughly rubbed off under running water . This is not wrong in itself, but important aromas and vitamins are lost as a result.
I recommend a mushroom brush because you can use it to clean the mushrooms more gently. These brushes can be found in every supermarket.
Alternatively, you can also carefully rub the remains of soil off the mushrooms with kitchen paper .
Fry mushrooms in butter or oil?
One question you inevitably ask yourself when frying mushrooms is whether to fry the mushrooms with butter or oil. And the simple answer, which may surprise you now, is: neither . Because if you want to fry your mushrooms perfectly, then you should neither use oil nor butter, but put the mushrooms pure in the pan.
That’s why you should fry your mushrooms without fat
Fry mushrooms without fat? It sounds strange at first, but TV chef Alexander Herrmann – awarded two Michelin stars – reveals the reason:
Water will come out of the mushrooms as they fry. If there is fat in the pan, the fat and water will create a mixture in which the mushrooms are cooked more than they are fried. The result: the mushrooms get a rubbery consistency.
For this reason, you should always fry mushrooms pure in the pan. This way the escaping water can evaporate and your mushrooms get a wonderful consistency.
How Long Should You Roast Your Mushrooms?
That’s a question I can’t give you a general answer to. Because there are many factors that influence your time in the pan. The size of your mushrooms and the size of the pieces you cut your mushrooms into.
What can you pay attention to? It is important that the mushrooms have developed their characteristic roasted aromas, but at the same time still have a nice bite.
The wrong onions to the mushrooms
When mushrooms, and especially button mushrooms, are fried, onions are often added to the dish. You can do a lot wrong here too.
For example, chef Alexander Herrmann says that you shouldn’t use red onions, as they stain easily and have a more intense taste, but only use shallots, which have a finer taste and don’t overpower the mushrooms.