In grocery stores, mushrooms are usually for sale in the vegetable section. While one would generally count them among the vegetables, this classification is botanically and scientifically not entirely correct.

The Order "Fungi"

In contrast to plants, fungi do not carry out photosynthesis and their fruiting bodies usually do not consist of cellulose but of chitin. This, along with their other properties, puts fungi in an unusual intermediate position between animals and plants. From a botanical point of view, mushrooms are not vegetables, but are subsumed with their different species under the separate order "Fungi" of all fungal plants.

The culinary use of mushrooms

Mushrooms are also sometimes compared to fruit, although they actually lack the typically sweet taste. The use of mushrooms in the kitchen allows for a culinary closeness to vegetables. After all, chopped mushrooms and other edible mushrooms are often fried together with vegetables such as leeks or onions and served as an accompaniment to meat dishes.

Mushrooms as a seasoning for vegetables

Mushrooms can also be used as a spice to give mixed vegetables and soups made from pureed vegetables a particularly fine and nutty taste. Fresh mushrooms from the forest or from the mushroom cultivation in the cellar can be used for this. In the cold season you can also use dried mushrooms or the popular porcini flour.

Dry mushrooms for vegetable dishes

After rainy periods in summer and autumn, collectors often find more mushrooms than can be consumed fresh. These can be sliced and dried in the sun or in the oven at 50 degrees Celsius. As a natural and healthy spice, dried mushrooms refine many vegetable dishes with their delicate flavor nuances. Porcini mushroom flour made from dried and ground porcini mushrooms adds a nutty flavor to vegetable soups.

tips and tricks

The classification of mushrooms as vegetables may not be botanically correct, but it makes sense in terms of taste. Mushrooms are often a healthy and low-calorie alternative to meat dishes. Similar to some types of vegetables, some types of mushrooms, such as porcini mushrooms, have a strong taste of their own that can also be used for seasoning purposes.

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Vegetable garden