OFF THE SHELF
Something new in mushrooms, grown in Hawai'i

By Wanda A. Adams
Advertiser Food Editor

Janice Stanga, a partner in the farm with her husband, Bob, and daughter and son-in-law Cori and Joshua Martinez, explained that they are in the early stages of becoming familiar with state-of-the-art equipment that, at full capacity, will be able to produce 6,000 to 7,000 pounds of mushrooms a week.

It's a tidy and highly mechanized system that seeds the mushrooms in a base of wood chips inside of mayonnaise-size jars. The mushrooms grow out of the top like a bunch of flowers out of a vase. They can grow eight varieties of mushrooms in this system, Stanga said. Gray cluster mushrooms (small caps the color of pussy willows), maitake (aka hen of the woods, a feathery-looking, leafy mushroom) and nameko (a bright orange mushroom with a glossy texture) are being added to their repertoire. The growers are testing the market now to see what sells best.

Hon-shimeji is just one of about 20 varieties of shimeji mushrooms (various forms of the Hypsizygus family). It is considered the true shimeji and grows in the wild on beech and other trees. That's why the Stangas can grow it in koa sawdust and other wood byproducts.

The key thing to know about the hon-shimeji is that it has a long shelf life (10 days to two weeks, refrigerated, or longer) and retains its texture and shape in cooking. It doesn't shrink.

"Hon-shimeji is distinguished by a kind of mild shellfish flavor ... It retains a crunchy texture even if you're sauteeing it. Some people recommend a hot sauté to coax the most out of the flavor. People enhance the flavor with olive oil, garlic, onions and salt," Stanga said.