Food for the gods

Mushroom has been rediscovered in Hungarian cuisine in recent years and is enjoy increasing popularity. Mushroom was regarded as the food of gods by gourmands in antiquity. Practically limitless quantities can be found in our environment from the end of May till the end of November. HoReCa customers prefer fresh or frozen mushrooms, while dried or canned products are abundant in retail trade. – Flap mushroom has become trendy – says Ferenc Fischer, the chef of El Toro restaurant. – We have reliable suppliers and it is quite irrelevant if mushrooms are fresh or frozen. Fresh mushrooms can be kept in refrigerators at 2-4 degrees Celsius for up to two weeks. Mr. Fischer believes that flap mushroom produces the best flavour in dried form. Some mushrooms are intended for direct consumption, while other serve as spices. – Not only soups or stews can be made from mushrooms, well trained and innovative cooks can use mushroom oil or powdered flap mushroom for salads – says Zsolt Both, former chef of Novotel Congress. The prices of mushrooms in Hungary are determined by international prices. Mushroom can be expensive even when production is high, as there are always foreign markets like Italy as well. The processing of mushroom requires special knowledge, which can only be partially obtained from books. Theoretical knowledge of mushrooms is usually insufficient among cooks trained in the socialist era. Though a lot of information is available from the web sites of distributors, personal consultation with colleagues who already have this special knowledge remains the best option for cooks. Mushrooms are perfectly suitable for modern and healthy diets as their carbohydrate content is low and they are rich in fibre.