Cooking with fungi

Drawing of A. oryzae conidiophores with conidia. Original art.

The Aspergillus oryzae is one type of kōji mold that serves as a source of enzymes that hydrolyzes complex plant material into simpler compounds, a process critical in the making of miso, soy sauce, sake, and other fermented foods.

Today, researchers, chefs, and brewers alike are using koji grains to create novel spins of miso sauces, make whiskey and enhance meat flavours. Members of the Nordic Food Lab team have experimented with roasting koji-permeated grains to create flavors like chocolate, coffee, caramel, and toast.

How Koji is used in Western cooking to quickly age meat.

How Koji is used in Western cooking to quickly age meat.

Photo taken from Fairprice.com.sg

Mushrooms are often canned to preserve the succulent nature of fresh mushrooms. At local supermarkets, canned straw mushrooms (Volvariella volvacea) are commonly encountered. These mushrooms are grown on rice straw, hence the common name. The egg-shaped form of this mushroom is its immature stage. The cap and stem are encapsulated by a shroud called the volva. This mushroom, has, unfortunately, indirectly resulted in poisonings and death for When fully open, it resembles the highly toxic death cap (Amanita phalloides).

Mushrooms will continue to be a big part of our culinary culture in the future. Today, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) sees the sustainable farming of mushrooms as a scalable means of providing food security and reducing vulnerability to poverty all while providing a source of nutrition. To create this future, the FAO has been working with farmers in Phonxay district of Lao PDR, teaching them to cultivate oyster mushrooms which supports their livelihoods.