"Discover Cooking, Discuss Life."
Discuss Cooking - Cooking Forums
Go Back   Discuss Cooking - Cooking Forums > General Cooking Forums > General Cooking Questions

Reply
Old 04-17-2006, 09:03 PM     #1
 
 
 
 
 
Assistant Cook
 

Profile:

Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Posts: 27
eveenend is on a distinguished road
 
Keeping mushrooms fresh?
How do you keep mushrooms fresh longer than 3 days?

__________________
Eric V.
http://applesaucecafe.com
Real. Good. Living.
  eveenend is offline     Reply With Quote
 
 
 
 
Old 04-17-2006, 09:12 PM     #2
 
 
 
 
 
Sous Chef
 
masteraznchefjr's Avatar
 

Profile:

Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: UCLA
Posts: 773
masteraznchefjr is a name known to allmasteraznchefjr is a name known to allmasteraznchefjr is a name known to allmasteraznchefjr is a name known to allmasteraznchefjr is a name known to allmasteraznchefjr is a name known to all
Send a message via AIM to masteraznchefjr
 
hmm... put them in the fridge and put them in a brown paper bag and let a little air in? and keep them dry
__________________
http://dorkycooking.blogspot.com
Cooking > Civil Engineering Student .... rawr ..
  masteraznchefjr is offline     Reply With Quote
 
 
 
 
Old 04-17-2006, 09:13 PM     #3
 
 
 
 
 
Certified Pretend Chef
 
Andy M.'s Avatar
 

Profile:

Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Massachusetts
Posts: 19,541
Images: 16
Andy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond repute
 
I put the mushrooms into a brown paper bag (I keep a stack of paper lunch bags for things like this) and the bag goes into the vegetable bin in the fridge.

Mushrooms need to breathe a bit as they give off moisture. If they are in an airtight container, the moisture collects on the exterior of the shrooms and they get slimy.
__________________
"If you want to make an apple pie from scratch,
you must first create the universe." -Carl Sagan
  Andy M. is online now     Reply With Quote
 
 
 
 
Old 04-17-2006, 10:59 PM     #4
 
 
 
 
 
Sous Chef
 

Profile:

Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Sydney, Australia
Posts: 751
Haggis has a reputation beyond reputeHaggis has a reputation beyond reputeHaggis has a reputation beyond reputeHaggis has a reputation beyond reputeHaggis has a reputation beyond reputeHaggis has a reputation beyond reputeHaggis has a reputation beyond reputeHaggis has a reputation beyond reputeHaggis has a reputation beyond reputeHaggis has a reputation beyond reputeHaggis has a reputation beyond repute
 
If it isn't obvious already from the above posts, do not wash them, even right before cooking. Just give them a wipe with a clean tea-towel or paper toweling, or a light brush.
  Haggis is offline     Reply With Quote
 
 
 
 
Old 04-18-2006, 07:43 AM     #5
 
 
 
 
 
Master Chef
 
expatgirl's Avatar
 

Profile:

Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Texas girl living in Kazakhstan
Posts: 5,284
expatgirl has a reputation beyond reputeexpatgirl has a reputation beyond reputeexpatgirl has a reputation beyond reputeexpatgirl has a reputation beyond reputeexpatgirl has a reputation beyond reputeexpatgirl has a reputation beyond reputeexpatgirl has a reputation beyond reputeexpatgirl has a reputation beyond reputeexpatgirl has a reputation beyond reputeexpatgirl has a reputation beyond reputeexpatgirl has a reputation beyond repute
 
Eveenend,

Hi! Just read this pointer recently and have been following it ever since-- if you are buying button mushrooms (which tend to be the most common ones in most supermarkets)--buy ones where the heads are not opened up to reveal the brown gills or very little of them underneath--they are the freshest--I also agree with the suggestions of using paper bags, breathing, and not allowing them to get moist--placing a dry paper towel along with the mushrooms in the bag will help as well. Another hint I read and use with great success:--soft baby hair brushes make great mushroom cleaners--found in most dollar stores. Good luck!!!
  expatgirl is offline     Reply With Quote
 
 
 
 
Old 04-18-2006, 10:56 AM     #6
 
 
 
 
 
Assistant Cook
 

Profile:

Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Posts: 27
eveenend is on a distinguished road
 
Thanks everyone!
__________________
Eric V.
http://applesaucecafe.com
Real. Good. Living.
  eveenend is offline     Reply With Quote
 
 
 
 
Old 04-18-2006, 11:14 AM     #7
 
 
 
 
 
Master Chef
 
BreezyCooking's Avatar
 

Profile:

Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Culpeper, VA
Posts: 5,728
BreezyCooking has a reputation beyond reputeBreezyCooking has a reputation beyond reputeBreezyCooking has a reputation beyond reputeBreezyCooking has a reputation beyond reputeBreezyCooking has a reputation beyond reputeBreezyCooking has a reputation beyond reputeBreezyCooking has a reputation beyond reputeBreezyCooking has a reputation beyond reputeBreezyCooking has a reputation beyond reputeBreezyCooking has a reputation beyond reputeBreezyCooking has a reputation beyond repute
 
If you're in a pinch & don't have any paper bags around, just make sure the plastic bag or container they're in is open to admit air. This keeps them good for me for at least a week.

Also - the long-held information that it's bad to wash mushrooms is nothing but an old wive's tale & has no validity whatsoever.

The infamous Alton Brown of Food Network fame did an entire show on debunking food myths, & one of them was all about cleaning mushrooms. He took identical weights of mushrooms & spent an eternity dry-brushing one group, soaking one group in a bowl of water, & washing the 3rd group under running water.

The only mushrooms that had gained any additional weight after cleaning were the ones that had been soaked - & even the the difference there was almost undetectable. He also said that a lot of people don't realize how much natural moisture mushrooms release when cooked - it has nothing to do with how they've been cleaned. This is how this washing myth apparently began.

He said you risk more displeasure by possibly biting down on a gritty piece of dirt from a dry-cleaned mushroom, than you do by cleaning them under running water. I agree with him, & feel much better eating my WASHED mushrooms - especially when I'm serving them raw.

I've ALWAYS (for the past 40 years) washed all mushrooms under cool running water & have NEVER had a problem with excessive moisture in any of my recipes.
  BreezyCooking is offline     Reply With Quote
 
 
 
 
Old 04-18-2006, 12:24 PM     #8
 
 
 
 
 
Master Chef
 
SizzlininIN's Avatar
 

Profile:

Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: USA,Indiana
Posts: 5,021
SizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond repute
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by BreezyCooking
If you're in a pinch & don't have any paper bags around, just make sure the plastic bag or container they're in is open to admit air. This keeps them good for me for at least a week.

Also - the long-held information that it's bad to wash mushrooms is nothing but an old wive's tale & has no validity whatsoever.

The infamous Alton Brown of Food Network fame did an entire show on debunking food myths, & one of them was all about cleaning mushrooms. He took identical weights of mushrooms & spent an eternity dry-brushing one group, soaking one group in a bowl of water, & washing the 3rd group under running water.

The only mushrooms that had gained any additional weight after cleaning were the ones that had been soaked - & even the the difference there was almost undetectable. He also said that a lot of people don't realize how much natural moisture mushrooms release when cooked - it has nothing to do with how they've been cleaned. This is how this washing myth apparently began.

He said you risk more displeasure by possibly biting down on a gritty piece of dirt from a dry-cleaned mushroom, than you do by cleaning them under running water. I agree with him, & feel much better eating my WASHED mushrooms - especially when I'm serving them raw.

I've ALWAYS (for the past 40 years) washed all mushrooms under cool running water & have NEVER had a problem with excessive moisture in any of my recipes.
Thanks for letting us know that. I always wondered if that were true. I used to always run mine under the faucet but after starting to watch foodnetwork (pre Alton Brown) I was adviced not to. So once again I will return to washing them under the faucet.

And regarding the whole brown paper bag thing. Do you close the bag or leave it open?

Anyway, I'm glad you asked this question eveenend...........as I always forget to and it never fails my shrooms never last more than 3 days. But then again I kept them sealed just like I got them from the grocery store.
__________________
Se non supporta il calore, vattene dalla cucina!
  SizzlininIN is offline     Reply With Quote
 
 
 
 
Old 04-18-2006, 12:28 PM     #9
 
 
 
 
 
Certified Pretend Chef
 
Andy M.'s Avatar
 

Profile:

Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Massachusetts
Posts: 19,541
Images: 16
Andy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond reputeAndy M. has a reputation beyond repute
 
I close the top of the paper bag but not tightly.
__________________
"If you want to make an apple pie from scratch,
you must first create the universe." -Carl Sagan
  Andy M. is online now     Reply With Quote
 
 
 
 
Old 04-18-2006, 01:31 PM     #10
 
 
 
 
 
Master Chef
 
SizzlininIN's Avatar
 

Profile:

Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: USA,Indiana
Posts: 5,021
SizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond reputeSizzlininIN has a reputation beyond repute
 
Thanks Andy M.

__________________
Se non supporta il calore, vattene dalla cucina!
  SizzlininIN is offline     Reply With Quote
 
 
 
 
Reply

Tags
None

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


 
 
 

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 10:00 PM.
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.5
Copyright ©2000 - 2010, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.