mushrooms

[Hiroyuki]

Do you know if they sell them anywhere? Have you tasted them?

Sell them??

Go out into the woods and get them!!

I'll show you a picture of them when I get them in... probably next fall.

[torakris]

unfortunately there aren't too much "woods" where I live

I would also be scared I might pick the wrong mushroom.....

[Hiroyuki]

the wrong mushroom.....

Well, I'd like to talk about it when mushrooms are in season.

[Hiroyuki]

Have you tasted them?

You gave me such a silly question that I forgot to answer the second one.

Not yet. But that's exactly what my son and I intend to do this fall. We also want to gather hon shimeji.

[Hiroyuki]

Nameko (Na-me-ko)

Today, I have found some interesting sites on nameko on the Internet. I'd like to share them with you.

First, this one:

http://www3.omn.ne.jp/~furuyama/nameko%20phot.html

Click on any photo to enlarge. You will see how nameko are cultivated.

The next one:

http://www.world-mushroom.com/nameko/e_nameko.htm

Again, click on any photo to enlarge. This page is from the following website:

http://www.world-mushroom.com/e_newgallery.htm

Enjoy other varieties of mushrooms. (Some links are broken, though.) You can learn how they are cultivated.

The following site tells you how to make 32 different dishes using nameko:

http://www12.wind.ne.jp/misawa7/ryouri/ryouri.html

It's entirely in Japanese, so just enjoy the photos.

I love nameko. Miso soup with nameko and tofu is one of my favorites.

How about you? Do you like nameko?

[torakris]

I really love nameko, unfortunately my husband doesn't care for them -- he isn't a big fan of mushrooms.

My favorite preparations are in miso soup or with some grated daikon a splach of soy and maybe some mitsuba (trefoil) leaves.

[Hiroyuki]

A Japanese wife would say,

好き嫌い言わないで食べなさい！

Suki-kirai iwanaide tabenasai!

Don't be so picky, just eat them!

[torakris]

A Japanese wife would say,

好き嫌い言わないで食べなさい！

Suki-kirai iwanaide tabenasai!

Don't be so picky, just eat them!

actually he will eat them if I prepare them, it is just that I know he doesn't really care for them so I don't make them a whole lot.....

He also doesn't like cucumbers and broccoli.....

[Hiroyuki]

He also doesn't like cucumbers and broccoli.....

I hate melons and oysters, so I shouldn't accuse your husband.

***

Next, yamabushi take

Do you have yamabushi take in the United States?

I have bought yamabushi take a couple of times, but only used in miso soup.

Does anyone know of a good recipe using yamabushi take?

http://aoki2.si.gunma-u.ac.jp/BotanicalGar...mabusitake.html

http://www.rakuten.co.jp/eg-japan/518186/524590/

[torakris]

I would love to hear some recipes for yamabushi, I always walk past it in the supermarket and think what on earth would I do with that?!

no OYSTERS??!!

[Hiroyuki]

I always walk past it in the  supermarket and think what on earth would I do with that?!

You don't say! You do know a lot of recipes for them, don't you? Or, you really mean it?? What if one of your pupils suddenly says "I always walk past it in the supermarket and think what on earth would I do with that?!"?

---

A simple recipe is to boil them for a short time, put them in cold water, and drain them. Eat them like sashimi, with soy sauce and wasabi.

But I want to skip them just like Torakris. I don't think they are worth the price.

---

Next, amandare, a-ma-n-da-re. It's a local name. Commonly known as naratake. I don't know for sure, but amandare may be called bootlace fungi or honey fungi in English.

Amandare are very popular in the Uonuma district in Niigata prefecture. Every supermarket here sells bags of amandare (boiled plain). They come from China, though.

Last fall, my son and I went into the woods several times and gathered a lot of amandare each time. We made kinoko soup, using amandare, enoki, shiitake, buna shimeji, gobo, carrots, daikon, and so on. It was so good I always had three bowls.

Photo of amandare or naratake:

http://www.cx.sakura.ne.jp/~kinoko/00jap/naratake.htm

[Hiroyuki]

Caution: You can freeze maitake and enoki directly while fresh, but other types of mushrooms you must boil first.

Source of this information:

http://www.cfqlcs.go.jp/administrative_inf...d_life/wl12.htm

(in Japanese only)

Get kinokos into your life!!

[Hiroyuki]

About the wording:

As someone for whom English is a foreign language and who is all too familiar with kinoko, I'm always tempted to say "a kinoko" and "kinokos". I know this sounds strange to you. But I could also say, "to kinoko", "kinokoed", and "kinokoing". I could even say "kinokoish", "kinokolike", and so on.

It's not hard to imagine that in one hundred years from now, English-speaking people will start to use the word kinoko the way I do now, just like the word kimono.

(I see disapproval in your eyes.) Sorry, I should'nt have said that. Bye.

[johnnyd]

Dear Friends,

You will probably kill me for this but one has to take risks sometimes.

A friend of mine in the local mountains collects matsutake when the conditions are right. She called me in desparation one autumn day because she had collected far more than usual and thought my connections with japanese buyers for seafood here in Portland Maine might help getting her supply into the right hands.

To make a long story short and simple, the negotiations were, well, difficult and we ended up with a surplus of thirty pounds after shipping. I prepared all the Matsi recipes I could find and gave away some to better local restaurants, then decided to freeze the 10lbs I had left, (worth about $400).

When I removed them from the freezer this winter, they were rubbery and un-usable. Following your thread today, I see that freezing is not very successful with some varieties. Anticipating surplus harvest in future seasons, is there ANY way I can freeze these delicious and valuable fungi that you can recommend?

With many thanks,

John

[Hiroyuki]

Hi johnnyd:

After I read your story, I just didn't know whether to laugh or to cry.

I'm neither a cook nor food specialist, so I searched the Web for an answer. I checked dozens of websites on the subject, and I found, quite surprisingly, that matsutake were "freezable".

Let me show you one of such sites. Scroll down, and you'll see frozen matsutake at the bottom of the page.

http://www2k.biglobe.ne.jp/~hideko/matutake.htm

The caution is: Make sure that you wrap them up to keep their aroma in.

When cooking, use them before they are completely thawed.

I don't know why your attempt failed the first time. Maybe you rinsed them in water and did not wipe them dry before freezing??

I really hope your friend's negotiations will be successful the next time.

If you need any more information, feel free to ask.

[johnnyd]

Thank You Hiroyuki!

I sliced them then wrapped them in paper towel! I waited two days before opening the box! They were awful! $400 !!!! Good thing I didn't pay all that for such a blunder!

Next year I will be sure to use them prior to complete thaw, they are the most delicious mushroom I have ever had!

Thank you for the website!

JohnnyD

[Hiroyuki]

Paper towel..., two days...

I could never ever think of doing such a disservice to matsutake... Just unthinkable...

Slicing them won't do any harm if they are too big to handle, but I would recommend to freeze each matsutake "whole" to keep the aroma in.

In Japan, you are going to hear this phrase over and over again when mushrooms are in season:

香りマツタケ　味シメジ

Kaori matsutake, aji shimeji

This refers to the fact that matsutake are the best in terms of aroma, but in terms of taste, hon shimeji are the best.

What counts most about matsutake is their aroma, at least for many Japanese.

$400 matsutake..., turned into nothing..., just unthinkable!!

Edited April 11, 2004 by Hiroyuki (log)

[johnnyd]

... I TOLD you, you would want to kill me! Thanks to your help, I know better for the next season.

JD

[Hiroyuki]

[SobaAddict70]

You do realize that I'm sitting here in my office, dreaming about matsutake mushrooms right now?

Soba

[johnnyd]

Soba,

You wouldn't believe it: My friend was in a panic when she arrived with CRATES of the things! They had been picked 24hrs earlier and the aroma was indeed strong. We stayed up late packing all the grade ones into their own little pine box and then then the grade twos into five pound flats. I made some dashi, rice, simmered a sliced matsutake and with a few scallion rings, we feasted...

[SobaAddict70]

I'm reminded of a short piece in the Time-Life series, "Foods of the World" in the Japan volume, of a kaiseki chef's conception of a fall festival, in which at least two courses involve matsutake -- one with the whole mushroom, one utilizing just the cap, and one utilizing the stalk.

Sheer bliss.

Soba

[pedro]

While dining at one of the finest Japanese restaurants in Madrid, Kabuki, we were served some dishes where mushrooms played a role, more or less significant. Kabuki's chef, Ricardo Sanz, is known for his personal take on traditional cooking, and how he adds his particular twist to it.

So, I left the restaurant wondering whether mushrooms were commonly used in Japan or not. Is there any particular season to have them, or are edible species available throughout the whole year?

[Hiroyuki]

So, I left the restaurant wondering whether mushrooms were commonly used in Japan or not. Is there any particular season to have them, or are edible species available throughout the whole year?

Yes, they are! I love mushrooms, so do most Japanese.

Matsutake mushrooms, which cannot be cultivated, are a very expensive delicacy in autumn. Other cultivated varieties, such as maitake (hen of the woods), buna-shimeji, nameko, and enoki mushrooms, are produced and sold all year round.

[torakris]

Mushrooms are huge in Japan, on any day they will be a choice of at least 7 to 8 varieties (and often more) in any supermarket near my house and I wouldn't doubt if many Japanese use them a couple times a week. While they have a shun (season), normally in the fall, most are cultivated now and available all year round.