THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, September 21, 1995 TAG: 9509200026
SECTION: FLAVOR PAGE: F1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARY FLACHSENHAAR, SPECIAL TO FLAVOR
LENGTH: Long : 190 lines
SOME LOOK as if they'd be more at home in a supermarket on Mars, but they've found a home in supermarkets across America. Tucked in among mainstream neighbors like lettuce and tomatoes, the new mushrooms could easily be mistaken for the cast of a science-fiction movie.
The shiitake could be an understudy for E.T. The enoki, with its crown of tiny antennae, could find work as an extra in ``Star Wars.'' And the awesome portobello, which can have a diameter up to 10 inches, could take the part of a UFO.
Upon sighting her first portobello one teenager, who has never been afraid of anything, whispered: ``That's scary.''
Lots of people are afraid of mushrooms. My great aunt Bettie attributed her long life to the fact that she never ate a mushroom in her 99 years.
Up until recently, the entire West has been generally mycophobic, or fearful of fungi, according to Jack Czarnecki, author of two mushroom cookbooks. He is also the owner of a Reading, Pa., restaurant that specializes in mushrooms. Pennsylvania produces almost half the mushrooms consumed by Americans.
Like others who are passionate about 'shrooms, Czarnecki can't comprehend mushroom rejection. In the introduction to his second book, ``A Cook's Book of Mushrooms'' (Artisan, 1995), he says:
``Mushrooms sparkle in dishes heavy with meat or yawning from mundane vegetables. They transform a vegetarian diet so that you will forget you are not eating meat. Their flavor surprises and their texture intrigues, again and again.''
The czar of mushrooms is happy indeed that a new respect for this elegant edible has taken root across the country. The reason is that many exotics once available only in the wild are now commercially cultivated.
Now many supermarkets are as mushroom flush as the Farmer Jack on Newtown Road in Virginia Beach, which regularly stocks at least six varieties of fresh 'shrooms. The store receives a daily shipment of shiitake, portobello, enoki, crimini, oyster and white mushrooms. This may seem like a drop in the bucket compared to the thousands of types grown worldwide, but it is a virtual population explosion considering that just a few years ago white buttons were the only fresh mushrooms available in most area markets.
``A lot of people come in looking for fancy mushrooms,'' said Jim Corleto, produce manager at Farmer Jack. ``Mushrooms started getting popular when people started eating better and trying different foods.''
To educate newcomers, Farmer Jack, like many other markets, offers free cards of buying, storing and cooking tips supplied by the Mushroom Council, an industry-funded group established in Roseville, Calif., two years ago to increase mushroom consumption nationwide.
``Our research shows that the total average consumption per person per year is only about two pounds,'' said Wade Whitfield, president of the council. A lot of the credit for the 4-percent increase in consumption over the last year goes to the current culinary celebrity, the portobello, Whitfield said.
And some of the credit surely goes to restaurant chefs who are enchanted with the exotics.
At the Lucky Star in Virginia Beach, chef Amy Brandt slices crimini and halves shiitake mushrooms for the wine sauce that accompanies the restaurant's rainbow trout and fettuccine. She adds delicate oyster mushrooms during the last few minutes of cooking, leaving them whole for dramatic effect.
At The Dumbwaiter in Norfolk, chef Sydney Meers says he uses mushrooms in 50 percent of his menu items. A popular appetizer is a whole portobello, smoked and grilled then served over rough-mashed garlic, basil and chickpeas.
Like cookbook author Czarnecki, local experts applaud this mushrooming of interest, both in home and restaurant kitchens.
And like Czarnecki, Lytton Musselman of Norfolk, who taught a course on mushrooms at Old Dominion University last summer, prefers to shop the fields and woods rather than the supermarket for his supply. The Hampton Roads area is rich in edible fungi, but, according to Musselman, mushroom-hunting is not as common in the South as it is in northern parts of the country, which have a more recent European influence.
``Mushrooms are wonderful creatures, but they take a lot of unreported abuse,'' said Musselman, a professor of biological sciences at ODU and a self-proclaimed shroomoholic. ``People pluck them, toss them, run over them.''
Not Musselman. Last year he joyfully collected 20 fields of oyster mushrooms locally. Some he marinated in red wine, olive oil and seasonings before cooking them in a smoker. Some he stirred into the curry-laced soup that is a family favorite. And some he dehydrated then froze for later use in soups and casseroles.
Although he'd much rather have oyster mushrooms from the Dismal Swamp than from the supermarket, Musselman cautions that this is not a pastime for the untutored. It is unsafe to eat mushrooms from the wild unless you have made a thorough study of which are safe and which aren't, he said.
``Not even if your great grandmother from Poland used to do it all the time,'' he added emphatically.
``Across from my home there is a field where edible and poisonous grow side by side,'' he said. Some are indistinguishable until the spores have been looked at under a microscope and subjected to chemical tests. And some of the poisonous mushrooms are as good-looking as the shiny apple the wicked witch gave Snow White.
That said, Musselman is quick to resume the litany of praise that flows easily from all in the mushroom underground.
``Mushrooms are so unbelievable, you don't even have to eat them to appreciate them.''
Andy Hankins appreciates them, even before he's taken a bite.
There is nothing like the thrill of coming upon a field of wild mushrooms after a long hunt, said Hankins, an extension specialist in alternative agriculture at Virginia State University in Petersburg. Every spring he hunts morels in Madison County.
Hankins also gets a thrill when he presents a friend with one of the 20 oak logs on which he grows shiitake mushrooms at his home in New Kent County.
``I get so enthusiastic when I can turn someone else on to mushrooms,'' he said. ``Soak the log on Saturday and by the following Friday, you might have 50 mushrooms. The whole thing has a wispy, magical occurrence to it - not here one day, here the next.''
The 60 Virginia growers who cultivate shiitakes for sale hope the current fascination with fungi is less fragile than the mushroom.
``Shiitakes were first grown commercially in Virginia in 1983,'' said Hankins. ``At one time there were 300 growers in the state. That was before we realized that the mushroom market was limited. The four- and five-star restaurants in the cities want them, but there's not much demand in Farmville.''
Demand might increase, say the mushroom watchers, as consumers become aware of the health benefits of the veggie that is cultivated in sterilized peat moss in dark, climate-controlled buildings.
Mushrooms have no fat, cholesterol or sodium and few calories. (Five medium-sized white buttons have 20 calories.) They are high in fiber, potassium, riboflavin and niacin.
With their deep, earthy flavor, some mushrooms work well as meat substitutes. Slipped onto a sandwich bun, a whole portobello becomes a vegetarian hamburger. Cooked whole on a grill and smothered with onions, it can almost pass for steak.
In some Asian countries, the mushroom has been revered for thousands of years for its great healing powers. Shiitakes have been shown to lower blood cholesterol. Other species are thought to have anti-viral and anti-tumor properties.
Maybe if Aunt Bettie had eaten mushrooms, she would have lived to be 100. MEMO: OUR FAVORITE FUNGI
The Department of Agriculture has decreed September National Mushroom
Month, so here's a quick study of the most popular mushrooms, with
descriptions from the Mushroom Council:
Agaricus, or white mushroom. The most widely available mushroom has a
smooth round cap and ranges in color from white to beige, in size from
button to jumbo. Agaricus is mild and woodsy when eaten raw; its flavor
intensifies when cooked. Use raw with dips or in salads, cooked in
soups, sauces, stir-fries and pasta dishes.
Crimini: Long favored by European cooks, the crimini, also known as
Italian brown, is closely related and similar in appearance to the white
mushroom. It has a naturally dark cap, ranging from light tan to rich
brown. Its flavor is deeper, denser and earthier than the white but it
can be substituted in recipes calling for whites or used in combination
with them for variety.
Shiitake: Also known as oak, Chinese and black forest, the shiitake
has been popularized by its use in Asian cuisines. It ranges in color
from tan to dark brown and is characterized by a broad, umbrella-shaped
cap. The tough, woody stem should be discarded. Use this mushroom in
stir-fries, pasta dishes, soups, entrees and side dishes.
Oyster: Fluted and graceful, oysters are named for their soft brown
or gray color and oyster-shell shape. They impart a delicate, mild
mushroom flavor when cooked. They can be eaten raw, substituted for or
used in combination with whites in sautes and stir-fries. Be careful -
they cook quickly.
Enoki: Fragile, flower-like enoki grow in small clusters. They have
long, slender stems, tiny caps and a creamy white color. Enoki have a
mild flavor and a slightly crunchy texture. Use them raw in salads and
sandwiches or as a garnish for Oriental dishes.
Portobello: Big in size and flavor, the portobello is a larger and
heartier relative of the white and crimini mushrooms. It has a meat-like
flavor. Marinated and grilled, it is steak for a vegetarian. Use it
whole as an appetizer, side dish or entree.
Note: White, crimini, shiitake, oyster and portobello mushrooms
generally are interchangeable in recipes.
MUSHROOM TIPS
Selecting: Look for mushrooms with a fresh, smooth appearance, free
from major blemishes with a surface that is dry but not dried.
Storing: Keep mushrooms refrigerated and use within a few days of
purchase. Do not rinse mushrooms until ready to use.
Cleaning: Gently wipe mushrooms with a damp cloth or soft brush to
remove dirt. Or, rinse quickly in cold water; immediately pat dry with
paper towels. Never soak mushrooms. Their flavoring agents are
water-soluble.
Cooking: Short cooking time yields a more delicately textured
mushroom. Longer cooking time makes them denser and chewier because the
longer they cook, the more water they lose. According to Jack Czarnecki,
author of two mushroom cookbooks and owner of a mushroom restaurant,
sauteeing mushrooms in onion and butter remains one of the best ways of
preparing them. He seasons mushrooms with what he calls the ``fungal
holy trinity'' -- a combination of salt, soy sauce and sugar in modest
amounts. ILLUSTRATION: Color photos by Richard L. Dunston, staff
by CNB