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Oyster mushrooms are popular mushrooms along with champignons. These gifts of the forest are suitable for almost any kind of culinary processing: they are fried, boiled, stewed, frozen, marinated. Having decided to cook a dish from this ingredient, the hostess may have a question about how to clean oyster mushrooms and whether such a procedure is necessary.
Do I need to peel oyster mushrooms
Many experienced chefs say that it is not necessary to peel oyster mushrooms. However, this is a controversial issue, since after harvesting any mushroom crop must be subjected to special processing, and only then used for cooking. In most cases, the fruits purchased in the store have already been processed, but personally collected oyster mushrooms should be cleaned without fail before cooking.
How to clean fresh oyster mushrooms
The cleaning process is quite simple and involves the removal of dirt and forest debris, as well as the removal of spoiled or dried parts of the fungus. This variety is very rarely affected by worms, but still such a procedure should not be neglected. Spoiled specimens will not bring any harm, but they can spoil the appearance of a common dish. To clean oyster mushrooms, you will need a sharp knife and a clean dish sponge. There is a whole algorithm of actions that describes the entire process of cleaning oyster mushrooms:
- Clean the mushroom from dirt, dust and forest debris with a soft sponge, with light movements.
- With a knife, remove dried or damaged areas, cut off the tip of the leg. Some housewives recommend leaving only the hat, since the lower part of the mushroom is quite tough, especially when it comes to old fruit.
- If oyster mushrooms were purchased in a supermarket or on the market, it is advisable to cut the dried cut places thinly.
Do I need to wash oyster mushrooms
It is necessary to wash oyster mushrooms before any kind of cooking: frying, boiling, pickling. In addition, this procedure is recommended to be carried out 2 times: before cleaning the gifts of the forest and after it. It should be noted that when drying or freezing mushrooms, the processing algorithm is identical. It is also important to dry each specimen thoroughly after washing the oyster mushrooms.
How to wash oyster mushrooms
Mushrooms absorb a large amount of moisture, so they need to be washed either under a thin stream of water, or simply wiped with a damp cloth.
Before cleaning the gifts of the forest, they must be washed. With a large number of mushrooms, oyster mushrooms can be processed in portions. Collect a certain part of the fruit in a colander, substitute it under a thin stream of water, simultaneously removing various leaves and twigs, then put it in a common bowl. Repeat the above steps with the remaining copies. It is known that many other varieties of forest gifts can be soaked in water for 30-60 minutes and only then cleaned. This method is not suitable for oyster mushrooms, as they absorb all the moisture and begin to deteriorate faster. Thus, the first method is considered the most convenient.
When the damaged areas are removed, you can proceed to the next step in processing oyster mushrooms: the mushrooms must be carefully washed under a weak stream of water, trying not to damage them. Then put the fruits in a colander so that all the excess liquid is glassed. The final step will be the obligatory drying of the gifts of the forest with a cloth or paper towels. This is what needs to be given special attention, since excess moisture in the mushrooms increases the cooking time. If the gifts of the forest are not heavily contaminated, instead of this procedure, it is allowed to wipe the fruiting bodies with a damp cloth.
Conclusion
It is necessary to wash and clean oyster mushrooms from dirt and other forest debris. Having found out this, the question may arise whether they need to be boiled before cooking. Here the hostess is given the right to choose, since preliminary boiling of mushrooms is not mandatory. However, this will not be superfluous if there is doubt about the freshness of the product. In addition, it is extremely forbidden to eat oyster mushrooms in their raw form, since it contains chitin, which can negatively affect a person’s condition. That is why preliminary heat treatment is necessary to remove the harmful substance.