Scrumptious 'shrooms: So many varieties, so many uses

photo Chicken of the woods, left, and shiitake mushrooms are best cooked slow over low heat.

Mushroom types• Agaricus: The familiar button mushroom. Flavor intensifies when cooked. Versatile, excellent both raw and cooked.• Chanterelle: Vase-shaped; ranging in color from bright yellow to orange; nutty flavor, delicate texture; expensive when fresh, but also available dried and canned. Add late in the cooking process to avoid toughening. Use in salads, sauces and risottos.• Crimini: Naturally dark cap ranges in color from light tan to rich brown; rich, earthy flavor; substitute for button mushrooms for full-bodied flavor.• Shiitake: From tan to dark brown; rich, full-bodied flavor, almost steak-like, with a meaty texture when cooked; particularly good for sautéing, broiling and baking. Remove stems before cooking but reserve for soup stocks.• Oyster: Fluted cap resembles a fan; ranging in color from a soft beige brown to gray; can be eaten raw in salads but has delicate flavor, velvety texture when cooked; some say it has a faint oyster-like or seafood flavor.• Enoki: Long stems and tiny, snow-white caps; resemble bean sprouts; light and mild, almost fruity flavor with crisp texture. Also available canned. Use in sandwiches, salads and as garnishes. In a cooked dish, add at the last possible moment to avoid toughening.• Portobello: Largest of the commercially available mushrooms with a tan/brown cap, it's the mature version of the crimini; deep, meat-like flavor, and substantial texture. They are good whole, sliced, grilled, baked, stir-fried and deep-fried.• Porcini: Resembles the traditional fairytale toadstool; pale brown color; smooth, meaty texture; pungent in flavor; very expensive; many general cooking uses. Also available dried.• Morel: Relative of the highly-prized truffle; tan to dark-brown, cone-shaped, spongy; smoky, earthy, nutty flavor; expensive and available canned and dried. The darker the color, the more pronounced the flavor.Source: about.com

photo Angel Miller holds a chicken of the woods mushroom.

Mushroom vitamins and minerals• Potassium: Good for the heart, reduces the risk of high blood pressure and strokes.• Copper: Aids iron (also found in mushrooms) in making red blood cells and delivers oxygen to the body.• Selenium: Together with Vitamin E it produces antioxidants that neutralize "free radicals" which can cause cell damage.• Riboflavin: Promotes healthy skin and vision.• Niacin: Aids the digestive and nervous systems.• Pantothenic acid: Helps with the nervous system and hormone production.• Amino acid: The count in mushrooms is higher per serving than corn, peanuts and kidney and soy beans.• Vitamins: The vitamin content of mushrooms is similar to the vitamin content in meat.Source: mushroomfactory.co.za

photo Angel Miller of 2 Angels Mushroom Farm cooks chicken of the woods mushrooms during a class.

Fast Facts• A mushroom is a fungus (from the Greek word sphongos, meaning "sponge").• A mushroom is classified as a fungus because it has no chlorophyll, produces spore and not seeds.• A mycologist is an expert in mushrooms and other fungi; it comes from the Greek word mykes, meaning "fungus."• One portobello mushroom generally has more potassium than a banana.• Mushrooms are composed of 90 percent water.• Mushrooms, particularly the portobello, are often used in place of meat in many dishes, making them great for vegetarians and earning them the name of "beefsteak for the poor."• Drying mushrooms is the oldest and most commonly used way to preserve mushrooms, but they can also be canned, pickled or frozen.• Picking wild mushrooms can be a dangerous hobby. Many mushrooms found in the wild look very similar to the edible variety but are highly poisonousSource: mushroomfactory.co.za

photo A Shiitake mushroom grown by the Millers.

For years, the humble mushroom, which has been around for eons, was used primarily as a salad bar filler or in a creamy soup that you could mix with just about anything.

Until a few years ago, cooks mostly bought the ubiquitous and flavorless button variety found in most groceries, knowing it would take on the flavors of the other ingredients when cooked.

Today, however, more exotic 'shrooms are finding a loftier place on the menus and tables of discerning chefs who appreciate the chicken-like texture of a chicken of the woods 'shroom or the bacon-ham flavor of a pink oyster. Cooks not only like the flavors but also the nutritional values that fresh mushrooms have.

And vegetarians and vegans especially like them.

"All mushrooms are a great meat substitute," says Angel Miller of 2 Angels Mushroom Farm in the Ooltewah-Collegedale area.

Mike Mayo, owner of the Farmer's Daughter restaurant in Riverview, is philosophically opposed to the idea of meat substitutes, but wholeheartedly believes "that mushrooms are a great source of protein and do provide a meaty substance."

"They give a dish more depth, and they are pretty versatile. You can go in a lot of directions with them," says Mayo, who drops 'shrooms in everything from quiches to Asian dishes.

"They are also a key ingredient in our vegetable stock, which makes everything wonderful."

Mayo says he uses a good deal of locally grown mushrooms, and that fits neatly within the goal of the restaurant.

"We can get excited about that," he says.

Miller and her husband, Mike, grow 14 varieties of mushrooms at their farm. Recently at Ooltewah Nursery, she gave a cooking demonstration on ways to cook and preserve mushrooms.

Mushrooms are seasonal, and different varieties have their own growing seasons. On this day, she was demonstrating how to cook shiitake and elm oyster mushrooms, which she said should be cooked on low heat.

"This is the key," she says. "You don't want to overcook them. When someone tells me their mushrooms were a little rubbery, I know that they've overcooked them."

Outside, her husband mans a booth selling the pink flamingo and shiitake mushrooms they'd recently harvested from their farm.

"None of my mushrooms have pesticides or chemicals, and they are filled with vitamins and protein," he says.

Mushrooms are not just popping up on local menus. Carla de Freistal stumbled onto a business opportunity about three years making mushroom-growing kits in Johannesburg, South Africa. Like here, the more popular varieties in her country are shiitake, portobello, button and pink and white oysters. It's currently summer in South Africa, and her four-person Mushroom Factory is busy packing and shipping batches of 'shrooms.

"Mushrooms are really growing in popularity, especially the exotics," she says. "It started about three years ago here. It's because of cooking shows like 'MasterChef' and the exposure they get in the media. They have healthy benefits and are very good diet food with zero fat."

Some mushrooms even have medicinal benefits. Mushroom Matrix recently launched a line of medicinal mushroom powders designed to promote health, wellness and longevity. The powder can be added to almost anything, including brownies, smoothies and homemade granola bars. The powders are available in more than 10 vegan, non-GMO, gluten-free, single or blended varieties.

Angel Miller says that, because her mushrooms are grown as they would naturally instead of on sawdust beds as some high-production facilities do, "they have much more flavor."

"Our shiitakes are grown on logs, not sawdust. Our log-grown mushrooms are insanely flavorful."

Those new to the 'shroom might be surprised at the variety and the flavor profiles of exotic mushrooms, Miller says.

"Pink oysters have a distinct bacon-and-ham flavor," she says, while chicken of the woods are so named because they not only have a similar flavor to chicken but a similar texture.

"It's fun to try them, and people are surprised at the different flavors."

Contact Barry Courter at bcourter@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6354.

Chicken of the woods pot pie

1/2-1 pound of fresh chicken of the woods mushrooms

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 Tablespoon Colgin Liquid Hickory Smoke (brand does matter)

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 stick of butter, divided

8 ounces sour cream

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 bags (12 ounces each) frozen mixed soup veggies, fully thawed and drained

1 can of Pillsbury refrigerated crescent roll dough

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

If necessary, wash and trim the mushrooms, then cube. Melt 1/4 stick of butter in a skillet over medium heat (or med-low) and add the mushrooms. Cook slowly for about 15 minutes until fully cooked. This mushroom readily absorbs liquids and will quickly soak up your butter or oil. Don't be too quick to add more.

About halfway through, add the other 1/4 stick of butter or oil. When done, the mushroom will be a much darker color, still be firm, and just browned around the edges. Taste to confirm doneness. Remove skillet from heat and set aside.

While the mushrooms are cooking, in a mixing bowl, add the soup, sour cream, Colgin, black pepper and garlic powder; mix well. Add the veggies and the mushrooms and mix together coating well. Turn the mixture into an 8-by-11-inch casserole dish and spread evenly.

Remove the crescent roll dough from its tube carefully and unroll it. You are trying to keep it together as one whole piece without it separating at the perforations. Gently place the dough in the pan on top of the pie mixture, stretching it as needed to form a crust over the top of the entire pie. Cover with aluminum foil, taking care that the foil doesn't rest on top of your crust.

Bake the dish in the oven until the center is bubbly and crust is a light golden brown. Begin checking it after 30 minutes. The length of cooking time can vary greatly. Once the center is hot, remove the foil and let the crust brown (if needed).

Notes

• A vegetarian option is to substitute cream of mushroom for the cream of chicken soup.

• Brand really does matter for the liquid smoke. Other brands will not work. Only Colgin has the correct flavor that pulls the entire dish together.

• The 8-by-11-inch dish may be odd sized, but the dough perfectly fits. If you don't have this size, try a 9-by-9-inch pan, stoneware or glass if possible. If you choose to use the standard 9-by-13-inch pan, you will need to double all of the ingredients.

- Angel Miller, 2 Angels Mushroom Farm

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