Shrooms in the Spotlight: Why Mushrooms Are Taking Center Stage

Mushrooms have been a trending food for several years now, their popularity having mushroomed (excuse the pun) during the pandemic in 2020, and it doesn’t seem like their fame as a superfood will fade away anytime soon.

Mushrooms like Oyster, Shiitake and Button have been fairly common for a while now, but lately their popularity has greatly increased as a superfood, rich in fibre, protein, vitamins and minerals.

Mushrooms also provide you with amino acids, which make them essential for plant-based or vegetarian diets. Mushrooms like Oyster and Shiitake contain several of the essential amino acids that can’t be synthesized by the body.

Shiitake mushrooms have also been shown to reduce blood cholesterol levels. Apart from their approval ratings going up due to their health benefits, mushrooms have gained value with the growing popularity of plant-based diets, as they make a good alternative for meat in a number of dishes.

By boiling mushrooms, oyster mushrooms particularly, before frying them one gets a much meatier texture than if you fry them directly, and after frying you can add any seasoning or sauce that you like, for instance some garlic, pepper and barbeque sauce and then use them in things like sandwiches and rolls.

A few other mushrooms have gained a lot of popularity lately not so much as a food, but for health purposes, one such mushroom taking the internet by storm is Lion’s Mane, which according to a 2015 abstract from the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, may protect nerves from disease and decline.

The same study also showed that Lion’s Mane helps protect kidney, heart and liver health, reduces fatigue, reduces blood pressure and regulates blood sugar. Lion’s mane can be bought in the form of capsules or loose power. I would suggest doing some research on it before getting yourself a bottle and to also ensure you’re buying a reliable company.

Although mushrooms do host a variety of nutrients, they, like all “superfoods”, can at times be overhyped regarding their nutritional value. So I would recommend that you don’t depend too much on them for nutrients, especially as they aren’t exactly the most affordable or easily sourced food to eat on a daily basis.

And as always, do your own research on the details of their nutritional value. However, regardless of how much of a superfood people say mushrooms are or aren’t, they definitely taste wonderful. If I had to suggest one dish to you in which you could use mushrooms as an alternative to meat I’d suggest Mushroom Stroganoff. I have attached a few recipe links below for you.

Mushroom stroganoff recipe | BBC Good Food https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/mushroom-stroganoff

Mushroom Stroganoff – Gimme Some Oven https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/mushroom-stroganoff/

Elizabeth is a culinary student and proprietor of Lisa’s Bäkerie. She can be found on Instagram @elizabethsmetacek.