Oyster Mushroom

Also known asPleurotus ostreatus · 平菇 · 蚝菇

Name: Oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus and related species) — a fan- or oyster-shaped mushroom with soft, smooth caps and gills running down the stem, in white, grey, yellow, pink and blue. It grows naturally on dead and dying hardwood trees.

Description

Oyster mushrooms grow wild across Europe, Asia and North America and were first cultivated in Germany during the First World War as a food source. They are now one of the most widely grown mushrooms in the world, particularly in China, and are easy to grow on straw and sawdust, even at home.

They have a delicate, velvety texture, and a mild, savoury, slightly sweet flavour, with a faint seafood-like hint, which is the source of the name. The caps cook quickly, and the stems are tougher and need longer cooking.

Main nutrition value

Oyster mushrooms provide B vitamins (niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid), potassium, iron and fibre, and contain beta-glucans, for few calories.

How best to be consumed

Oyster mushrooms are tender, and cook quickly.

1. Tear into strips by hand, and sauté in a hot pan until golden and crisp at the edges.
2. Add to stir-fries, soups, noodle dishes, risotto and omelettes.
3. Coat in batter and fry for “oyster mushroom fried chicken” or tempura.
4. Grill or roast with olive oil and herbs.
5. Wipe clean rather than washing, and store in a paper bag in the fridge.

Overconsumption could cause…

Oyster mushrooms are safe when cooked.

1. Allergic reactions or digestive upset in some people, and stomach discomfort from the fibre (chitin) and sugars in mushrooms in large servings.
2. Digestive upset from eating mushrooms raw, since cooking breaks down their tough cell walls and destroys natural irritants.
3. Mushroom poisoning from mistaken identification of wild fungi, some of which are deadly and look very similar to edible kinds, so never eat wild mushrooms unless an expert has identified them.
4. Spore allergy in people who grow them at home, called mushroom worker's lung, so ventilate growing areas.

GroupsMushroomsFungi (mushrooms)Low fatLow sodiumFresh

Related foodsChanterelle MushroomShiitake MushroomWhite Button MushroomMaitake MushroomMorel MushroomEnoki Mushroom

Wikipedia — Oyster mushroom, used for origin, naming and history: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oyster_mushroom