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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, pickled. Having decided to cook a dish from this ingredient, the hostess may have a question about how to clean the 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 purchased fruits in the store have already been processed, but the oyster mushrooms collected with your own hands should be cleaned before cooking without fail.
How to clean fresh oyster mushrooms
The cleaning process is quite simple to perform and implies the removal of dirt and forest debris, as well as the elimination of spoiled or dried parts of the fungus. This variety is very rarely affected by worms, but still this procedure should not be neglected. Spoiled specimens will not bring any harm, however, they can spoil the appearance of the common dish. To clean oyster mushrooms, you need a sharp knife and a clean dish sponge. There is a whole algorithm of actions that describes the whole process of cleaning oyster mushrooms:
- Clean the mushroom from dirt, dust and forest debris with a soft sponge, lightly.
- Remove dry or damaged areas with a knife, cut off the tip of the leg. Some housewives recommend leaving only the cap, since the lower part of the mushroom is quite tough, especially when it comes to old fruit.
- If the oyster mushrooms were purchased in a supermarket or on the market, it is advisable to thinly trim the dried cut places.
Do I need to wash oyster mushrooms
It is necessary to wash oyster mushrooms before any kind of culinary processing: frying, boiling, salting. In addition, this procedure is recommended to be carried out 2 times: before and after cleaning the gifts of the forest. It should be noted that when drying or freezing mushrooms, the processing algorithm is identical. It is also important to thoroughly dry each specimen 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 amount 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, while simultaneously removing various leaves and twigs, then put in a common bowl. Repeat the above steps with the remaining copies. It is known that many other types 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, being careful not to damage them. Then put the fruits in a colander so that all excess liquid is glass. The final step will be the obligatory drying of the gifts of the forest with a cloth or paper towels. This is what should be given special attention, since excess moisture in the mushrooms increases the cooking time of the dish. If the gifts of the forest are not heavily contaminated, instead of this procedure, it is allowed to wipe the fruit bodies with a damp cloth.
Conclusion
It is necessary to wash and clean oyster mushrooms from dirt and other forest debris. Having found this out, the question may arise whether they need to be boiled before cooking. Here the hostess is given the right to choose, since the preliminary boiling of the mushrooms is not necessary. However, this will not be superfluous if there are doubts about the freshness of the product. In addition, it is extremely forbidden to use raw oyster mushrooms, since it contains chitin, which can negatively affect the human condition. That is why a preliminary heat treatment is required to remove the harmful substance.
