Mushroom growing kit, day 35, 36: dinner is served

We've gotten two more meals out of the mushroom growing kit! The one below was very simple...we fixed them plain, just to do a tasting of the oyster mushrooms by themselves. Without any seasoning, the flavor is mild, very faintly sweet. The texture of the thicker pieces actually is somewhat like shellfish or abalone as mentioned in the MSSF cookbook - chewy and slimy in a good way (?!?).





The following night, I prepared another recipe from the MSSF cookbook:

Stir-Fried Oyster Mushrooms

Serves 3 to 4 as a side dish

* 2 tablespoons peanut oil
* 1/2 tablespoon Asian sesame oil
* One 1/8-inch-thick slice fresh ginger, peeled and minced
* 3 garlic cloves, minced
* 1/2 pound oyster mushrooms, sliced or torn in even pieces
* 1 cup fresh or thawed frozen peas
* 2 tablespoons chicken broth
* Pinch of sugar
* 2 Chinese-style (firm) tofu cakes, cut into cubes
* 2 tablespoons soy sauce or more

Using a wok or skillet, heat the peanut and sesame oils together until bubbling. Add the ginger, garlic, mushrooms, peas, and sugar and quickly stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the broth. Cover and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes. Add the tofu and soy sauce. Cook uncovered for 3 minutes. Serve immediately over rice. --Louise Freedman

Prepping the ingredients:


Into the pan:


Almost done:



This dish with its ginger, garlic, peas, and broth actually reminds me of a dish that R.'s mom makes that I enjoy, with shrimp, quail eggs, ginger, peas, and cashews.

This may be the last mushroom kit update for a while, if not indefinitely. The weather's getting warm, and the kit has been dormant for the last week!

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Mushroom growing kit, day 34: new crop started!

The moment we take our eyes off the mushroom growing kit, it starts sprouting new mushrooms! Some babies made their appearance a few days ago, and look how much they've grown already!


Here's a closer look at a cluster of babies. Not sure if this particular cluster will make it to maturity. According to the kit's instructions, not all of them do.

Mushroom growing kit, day 27: another feast, and back to square one

We harvested the rest of the mushrooms from the kit and prepared another recipe from the MSSF cookbook:

Scrambled Eggs with Oyster Mushrooms

Serves 4 as a main course

Most mushrooms may be used with scrambled eggs, but oyster mushrooms converts them into an elegant main dish.

• 1 pound oyster mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup peanut oil
• 1/2 cup slivered shallots or green onions
• 8 eggs, beaten slightly
• 1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil

Dredge the mushrooms in the flour. Heat the oil in a large sauté pan or skillet. Add the mushrooms and cook until brown. Add the shallots and continue to cook for a few more minutes. Stir in the eggs, Tabasco sauce, parsley, salt, and pepper. Scramble the eggs and sprinkle the sesame oil quickly over the eggs while they are still soft. Serve immediately. --Edward Lodigiani

I recommend it! It's one of those recipes where the ingredients and preparation methods are very simple, but the combination of flavors and textures is ingenious and delicious.

Now we are back to square one. Sniff, sniff...the mushroom block is bare. We will keep watering it per the instructions and see if we can get another flush of mushrooms.


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Mushroom growing kit, day 19: harvest and feast

We picked several of the clumps of mushrooms today. Here's the first:


And here are a couple more clumps:


The mushrooms await their culinary destiny...


Which is to be prepared with the following recipe from the MSSF cookbook:

Mock Abalone

Serves 4 as a side dish

Sautéed oyster mushrooms are similar to abalone in taste. Serve them hot.

• 1/2 cup flour
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/8 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 small garlic clove, minced
• 1/8 teaspoon paprika
• 1 pound oyster mushrooms (cut large ones in half)
• 5 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons mild vegetable oil
• Lemon wedges and/or soy sauce

Put the flour, salt, pepper, marjoram, thyme, garlic, and paprika in a small paper bag. Add the mushrooms and shake well.

Heat the butter and oil in a sauté pan or skillet and sauté the mushrooms on each side for 2 minutes or until golden brown. Serve immediately with lemon wedges and/or soy sauce. (by Lois Der)

Here the mushrooms are getting coated with the seasoned flour:


And now into the pan!


They're cooking up nice and golden:


Getting the fixin's out. For mock abalone, gotta have our salt, lemon wedges, and tabasco:


Bon appetit!


A closer look. The spouse pointed out that they look like pork chops.



And so we ate them. Delicious! The texture and appearance does bear a resemblance to abalone or some other mild shellfish. I do think that this dish attests to the fact that ANYTHING breaded and fried in enough butter tastes good. The spouse commented that "it tastes like something as unhealthy as you would get at the county fair," which is not necessarily a good thing in his book, but is fine by me :-)

More recipes and pics to come, I'm sure - those mushrooms are ready to eat!

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Mushroom growing kit, day 16-18

Day 16, front:

Day 16, back:

Day 17, front:

Day 17, back:

I see stir fry in my future.

Day 18, front:

Day 18, back:

Notice how the edges have gotten quite frilly and turned up.

We are going to be eating a lot of oyster mushrooms very soon. Fortunately, the Mycological Society of San Francisco has an excellent online mushroom cookbook with a whole section devoted to fabulous oyster mushroom recipes.

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Mushroom growing kit, day 15

The silly spouse insists that I photograph the mushrooms every day. He is pretty enthusiastic about the mushrooms himself, and waters them obsessively. Sometimes I have to remind him that it's my birthday present :)


Yes, this is the same clump of mushrooms next to which I held the quarter in earlier posts.


This is the back side of the kit. The Big Momma mushroom is actually hiding on this side - way at the bottom.


An underside view.

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Mushroom growing kit, day 14

Just look how they've grown in the space of two days!

Mushroom growing kit, day 12

My darling mother-in-law decided to indulge my fungal pastime by sending me an early birthday present - a mushroom growing kit from Mushroom Adventures. It grows Blue Oyster mushrooms (same kind of oyster mushrooms you get at the grocery store). Basically, it is a block of substrate inside a black plastic bag with holes punched in it. The substrate is already inoculated with mushroom spores, and the mushrooms grow out of the holes in the bag. There's also a loose plastic sleeve that goes around the block to keep the humidity level high. The kit is pretty easy to use - all you have to do is water it a couple times a day.

The mushrooms started sprouting this past weekend and they grow at an unbelievable rate, so I am going to post updates with pictures as things progress.