Pro tip: Stop washing your mushrooms until right before you cook them

I used to rinse all my mushrooms as soon as I got them from the store, put them in the fridge, and wonder why they got slimy in 2 days. Last month I left a batch unwashed in the paper bag and they stayed fresh for over a week. Anyone else been doing this wrong the whole time?

3 comments

3 Comments

xena_rivera631mo ago

My daughter is a chef and she told me this years ago. Mushrooms are like little sponges, they soak up water and that is what makes them turn. The grit on them is actually just dirt from the growing medium, not something that will hurt you. If you are really worried, just take a dry paper towel and brush them off before you put them in the fridge. That five second wipe does the same job as rinsing without ruining the texture.

maxb461mo agoTop Commenter

Funny you mention that, I actually just read something similar from a food science blog. They did a test where they weighed mushrooms before and after rinsing, and the rinsed ones absorbed like 10% of their weight in water. No wonder they get slimy so fast. I always thought the dirt was going to make me sick but your daughter is right, it's just harmless growing medium. I've been doing the dry paper towel trick for a few months now and honestly the texture is way better when you cook them. They actually brown instead of steaming in the pan. Why do we all assume we need to wash everything with water when a dry brush does the job?

blair_green861mo ago

Same here! Dry brushing is the only way I do mushrooms now. Game changer.