Market Fresh Finds: Make room for amazingly versatile mushrooms

The pharaohs cherished mushrooms as a delicacy, and the Greeks believed that they provided strength for warriors. The Romans thought mushrooms were a gift from God and served them only on festive occasions, while the Chinese treasured them as a health food.

Often grouped with vegetables, mushrooms provide many of the nutritional attributes of produce, as well as those more commonly found in meat, beans or grains. Mushrooms are low in calories, fat-free, cholesterol-free, potassium-rich and very low in sodium.

The most common mushrooms found in our local markets are the white button mushroom, crimini (brown mushrooms) which have an earthier flavor and firmer texture, and portabella caps with a robust taste. Shiitake mushrooms have an earthy, almost smoky flavor, and are firmer in texture, giving them a slightly chewy effect.

Choose well-shaped mushrooms with firm texture; not dried out, tough or withered. Avoid spots and slime. Refrigerate mushrooms in original container or paper bag up to one week.

Don’t wash mushrooms until you are ready to cook or eat them and never soak mushrooms; they’re porous and absorb water. There is no need to peel mushrooms.

Looking to add pizzazz to your routine dishes? Cooking with mushrooms is an easy way to add extra flavor to your favorite meals. Use them as a side dish, stuffed, used in salads, soups, casseroles, pasta dishes and as a pizza topping. In most cooked recipes, different varieties of mushrooms may be used interchangeably.

Mushrooms need to be cooked before freezing. Allow the mushrooms to cool completely. Then, pack them in freezer-safe containers, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace for expansion and freeze. Frozen mushrooms should be used within a year.

Most mushrooms dry beautifully, not only retaining but even boosting flavor in the process. When rehydrated in hot water, their texture is almost identical to fresh mushrooms. Dried mushrooms can be stored for at least a year.

Safely can fresh mushrooms using tested recipes such as those found at the National Center for Home Food Preservation, http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_04/mushrooms.html. For canning marinated mushrooms, check out http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_06/marinated_mushrooms.html

Judi Seifert is a WSU Clark County Extension Master Food Preserver. For more information, contact the Master Food Preserver (MFP) Hotline at 360-397-6060 ext. 5366 or website at clark.wsu.edu.