All of the king oyster mushrooms available in Germany come from conventional or organic mushroom cultures. In contrast to the porcini mushroom, which Pleurotus eryngii is very similar to in terms of appearance and taste, the king oyster mushroom can be cultivated on simple straw. The fungus, which is mainly native to southern and southwestern Europe, thrives in nature primarily on the dead roots of umbelliferae. Like all mushrooms, fresh king oyster mushrooms should be processed as quickly as possible.
White coating on the king oyster mushrooms is usually not mold
Mold or mycelium?
Basically, mold and mycelium - the fungal network that usually grows underground - are quite easy to distinguish from one another. Mycelium is always white and has a fine, cobweb-like structure. It sometimes appears within a few hours on mushrooms that are still fresh and still make a good impression both visually and olfactorily. Mushrooms colonized by mycelium have a pleasant smell and no rotten spots. Mold, on the other hand, usually has a completely different coloration and is often black. In addition, moldy mushrooms smell unpleasant and no longer look appetizingly fresh. Please dispose of these specimens immediately and do not prepare them again: otherwise there is a risk of unpleasant mushroom poisoning.
Are the king oyster mushrooms still fresh?
You can tell whether the infested king oyster mushrooms are still fresh or not by the following characteristics:
- The mushrooms still smell pleasantly mushroomy, they don't "stink".
- The mushrooms still look fresh on the outside and have no rotten or greasy spots.
- The flesh of the cap and stem is elastic.
- Cap and stalk still have the same, healthy colour.
- The flesh is uniformly colored.
If the criteria are right, you can use the mushrooms without hesitation.
Store king oyster mushrooms correctly
So that the king oyster mushrooms do not actually go moldy or go bad, you must either process them immediately or store them properly. Although these mushrooms can be stored in the vegetable drawer of the refrigerator for eight to ten days, you should choose more durable methods such as freezing for such an expected length. If, on the other hand, you only want to store the mushrooms for a day or two, wrap them loosely in a damp cotton or linen cloth - cleaned but not cut. The individual mushrooms should be airy in the refrigerator and should not be crushed.
tips
You can either eat the mushroom mycelium on the king oyster mushrooms or cut it off and use it for your own mushroom cultivation.