My old chef told me to stop washing mushrooms, I thought he was nuts

Worked at a place in Portland 2 years ago, head chef was this 60 year old guy who yelled at me for running mushrooms under water. Said to just brush them with a dry towel or a soft brush. Took me a while to try it, but he was right. They don't soak up water and go slimy, plus they actually brown in the pan now. Anyone else pick up weird kitchen habits from an old timer that you doubted at first?

3 comments

3 Comments

mason.brian17d ago

Water doesn't really ruin mushrooms that fast unless you let them sit in a bowl full of it. A quick rinse and pat dry works fine for me, never noticed a difference in browning. Different strokes for different folks I guess.

alex3078d ago

Oh come on, I HAVE to push back here. A quick rinse definitely leaves enough water trapped in the gills to mess with the sear, I've tested it side by side and the rinsed ones always end up steaming. Brushing them off takes like ten extra seconds and actually lets you get that restaurant quality browning at home, so to me it's just worth the tiny bit of effort.

jordan90317d ago

Yeah man, old school chefs know their shit. Once I stopped washing mushrooms and just brushed em off, they actually got that nice golden brown instead of steaming in the pan. Same thing with salting eggplant - my grandma told me to do it, but I thought she was crazy until I actually tried it and the texture came out way better.