Sauteed mushrooms are delicious in all sorts of dishes, whether you’re eating them right out of the pan or adding them as an ingredient, but unless you want your mushrooms to become a wet, spongy mess when you cook them, make sure they’re as dry as possible before tossing them in your pan.
Image from mdpettitt.
Bon Appetit explains a little wisdom that may be lost when you experiment with mushrooms in your dishes — drying them completely before cooking will minimise the amount of moisture they give up when they’re heated. Mushrooms are already little sponges, in a way, so making sure they’re completely dry will keep them from swimming in their own juice and getting rubbery and spongy instead of crisp, buttery and savoury.
Avoid salting the mushrooms before they’re completely cooked, since that will also draw moisture out of the mushrooms and into the pan, again steaming them instead of letting them dry saute. The easiest way to avoid all of this is to wash them, then dry them with a towel and lay them out to air dry for a few hours before you cook them.
Leave as Mushrooms as Possible for Success by Avoiding These Mistakes [Bon Appetit]
Comments
3 responses to “Always Dry Your Mushrooms Before Cooking”
Has anyone done research on dried mushrooms. I bet the mycochemistry changes…plants when dried undergo chemical changes, which change their nutritional/pharma profile. I bet mushrooms too…too bad this author has no scientific mind.
i just fry them in a really really hot wok, tends to get rid of the water ok but obviously you need to watch them
Depends on what you’re using the mushrooms for an your method of cookery.
For example, one of the best ways to cook stand alone mushrooms (or mushrooms for a side dish) is to cook them fairly quickly with a little butter or olive oil then give them a little bit of water, salt and pepper, cover them and take them off the heat to rest. They before soft and moist with a strong flavour without becoming rubbery or spongy.