With the first autumn rains, mycology lovers kick off the mushroom collecting season in forests, meadows, ravines and other natural landscapes. Basket in hand, with your eyes very attentive and focused on the traditional search for mushrooms, this activity can be very entertaining and pleasant.
The experienced collector will have fewer problems differentiating the different types of mushrooms, and knowing where to look to find the precious pieces. One of the most characteristic and easy to distinguish is the Pleurotus Eryngii or oyster mushroom, light in color, with a thick and long, very fleshy stem and a cap between three and 10 centimeters that can be whitish or creamy in color, but also dark brown.
We can find them from October to December, during the fall. Although, depending on the climatic conditions of each region, they can also grow in spring.
If you want to take a few home to prepare your favorite mushroom dishes, don’t look in the shade of the trees. The best way to find them is to locate bushes of wild thistle, which we will identify by their thorny branches and violet flower.
The oyster mushroom is born from its roots, which also grows thanks to the excrement of livestock that fertilizes the habitats suitable for this type of fungus. We usually find them in pastures, abandoned crops and roadsides.
Although they do not have a great resemblance to other mushrooms considered toxic, we must always be cautious and discard the mushroom if we have doubts about whether it is edible. In the case of oyster mushrooms, we have to be careful and not confuse it with any variety such as rolled mushrooms – which have a more reddish color – or false miller mushrooms, which are similar in color to oyster mushrooms but smaller.
To collect it we need a small knife, which we will use to cut the mushroom at the base of the foot. A process in which we have to be very careful not to damage all the mycelium that grows in the substrate and thus stop the next flowering.
From the field to the table
Oyster mushrooms, also popularly known as cuckoo oyster mushrooms, cane mushrooms, or cardoncillo mushrooms, are one of the most popular mushrooms in our country, and one of the ones we consume the most.
They contain high doses of fiber and type B vitamins, very important for maintaining a strong and balanced immune system. As they have little magnesium, iron and zinc, they are recommended for low-salt diets. They have a mild and pleasant flavor that is easy to marinate with many other ingredients, adapting to a multitude of recipes.
A very light, simple and exquisite way to consume them is simply by grilling them. To do this, we can cut them into half-centimeter slices and prepare them in a non-stick pan with a little virgin olive oil flavored with the herbs of your choice. They are very delicious with fresh rosemary and thyme, basil, parsley and oregano.
Remember that to clean them we can use a soft damp cloth or a brush intended only for this use, with which we will help ourselves to remove the earth that has remained on the mushroom. It must be done gently so as not to damage it.
A stew, rice and a pâté
Another way to cook oyster mushrooms is in the form of stews. We suggest one with peas and carrots. Exquisite and suitable for vegans. We are going to need three shallots, three carrots, half a kilo of oyster mushrooms, 300 grams of peas, a tablespoon of flour (it can be a gluten-free variety, such as tapioca) and half a liter of vegetable broth.
We are going to fry the shallots after having finely chopped them. Next, we are going to incorporate the flour and add the vegetables and mushrooms – which we can cut into strips -. We stir and let everything integrate to also add the vegetable broth. We will let it boil until the vegetables are cooked well.
Oyster mushrooms combine wonderfully with all types of rice. They are very versatile and look great in risottos, paellas and creamy rice dishes. A winning combination is with chard, wild asparagus or cauliflower. Simple and with flavors of soft nuances. But if you feel like mixing the taste of the land and the sea, you can also make an exquisite oyster mushroom rice with prawns.
If what you fancy is a snack, we suggest a tasty oyster mushroom pâté. We are going to fry an onion and when it is golden brown, we add half a kilo of oyster mushrooms cut into more or less equal pieces. In about 20 minutes, they will be ready and what we will do is transfer them to a strainer so that all the excess oil drains well. All that remains is to put them through the blender. We will add half a tub of cream cheese or something else -depending on the amount of mushrooms cooked-. Another option for people on a vegan diet is to make it with bread crumbs soaked in a vegetable drink to give it consistency.
Grow oyster mushroom at home
Not all the oyster mushrooms that we find at the weekly market in our neighborhood are wild, even if we are in the middle of the season. Much less those that we can buy on the supermarket shelf; many come from crops. For some time now, we can also find some companies that are dedicated to organically growing oyster mushrooms or other varieties, based on the use of waste.
If you love oyster mushrooms and have an area that you can dedicate to their cultivation, you yourself can see how these mushrooms grow in already germinated alpacas and with the prepared substrate that you can purchase in some nurseries and specialized stores. You will have to place them in a cool but not dark place, nor directly exposed to the sun; but they do need some light.
The temperature at which they can develop is around 10ºC and 20ºC. Each alpaca usually produces a couple of blooms and you can collect about 1 kilo. If everything goes well, in less than a month you will be able to collect your oyster mushrooms to prepare your favorite dishes.
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