Growing fungi becomes a pandemic past time
There are a number of fads, new hobbies, and a plethora of unpredictable interests that the world has taken to throughout the pandemic. Some of these new quarantine fads have included everything from a renewed love of baking homemade bread to fostering or adopting puppies to cultivating an at-home garden. These trends caused mass yeast shortages in the spring of 2020. Humane societies and animal shelters either adopting or fostering out all of their animals when the pandemic hit. And unprecedented increased demand for vegetable seeds for the new at-home gardeners.
The latest quarantine fad? Mushroom growing.
I recently found myself on the mushroom growing bandwagon after receiving a growing kit for Christmas. Over the past couple of years, I have become a bit mushroom obsessed after a mushroom hunting expedition while living in Northern California and diving into some mushroom foraging books. While I am the opposite of a mushroom expert and wouldn’t even trust myself to eat foraged mushrooms without consulting an expert, I like to pretend I know at least a little bit about the grand world of fungi. For all of these reasons and more, I was pumped to receive an oyster growing kit for Christmas.
Who knew that mushrooms could prove to be such a distracting tool to the monotony of quarantine life!? These little creatures grew so fast that I could see the difference in size and shape between the time I woke up to when I went to sleep. Getting to watch them grow with just a spritz of water every morning was the highlight of my work from home, rarely leave the house daily routine.
Some fun facts about oyster mushrooms:
They are saprotrophs, which means that they feed on dead and decaying matter, mainly wood.
Oysters are available year-round with peak season in the fall
They are good sources of vitamin D, protein, fiber, potassium, vitamin B6, and folate.
Oysters come in a variety of colors and sizes but the caps usually range between 5 to 25 cm (2 to 10 inches) and are shaped like a fan or an oyster
Where can you get your own mushroom growing kit?
You can get your very own mushroom growing kit from everywhere from Etsy to Amazon to your local hardware store! I even have a co-worker that bought one at a souvenir shop (mystery mushrooms anyone?).
Finally, this story wouldn’t be complete without sharing how I actually prepared these mushrooms for eating…
How do you cook them?
There are a plethora of ways to enjoy oyster mushrooms. My cooking methodology?
Heat up oil in a cast-iron skillet on medium to high heat
Spread mushrooms in the pan and let cook without stirring for 3-5 minutes.
Stir the mushrooms and let cook for another 3-5 minutes until browned all over.
Add butter, garlic, salt, and pepper to taste and reduce heat to low. Cook for another 5-6 minutes until they are brown and slightly crispy
Enjoy!
See original recipe here