How to Eat More Mushrooms
You can eat mushrooms for breakfast, lunch, and supper. You can eat mushrooms with your eggs, add them to your avocado toast, make a soup, toss them in a salad, add them to a stir fry, and even drink mushroom coffee and hot cocoa.
In other words – it’s very easy to eat more mushrooms. And we want you to eat more mushrooms. They taste great, they’re good for you, and they have so many health benefits.
Mushrooms really are a true superfood. Because mushrooms are one of the top health-promoting foods available, they are actually classified as a functional food. Functional foods have positive impacts on your health that go beyond the basics of nutrition.
AHCC is a functional food made from a unique compound extracted from a hybridization of several species of mushrooms. At its core, AHCC is derived from healing mushrooms.
Keep reading to learn more about the health benefits of mushrooms, our tips on how to store mushrooms, and our favorite ways to eat mushrooms. By the end of this article, we want you to be as hooked on mushrooms as we are at AHCC.
WHAT ARE MUSHROOMS?
Technically, because mushrooms do not have leaves, roots, or seeds and do not need light to grow – they’re not considered a true vegetable. In science terms, mushrooms are considered to be fungi – not vegetables.
But, the U.S. Department of Agriculture classifies mushrooms as vegetables because the nutrition benefits of mushrooms are very similar to those of vegetables. In fact, mushrooms are so nutrient-rich that they contain nutrients that span the core food groups of produce, meat and grains.
In our opinion – fungi or vegetable – you should eat your mushrooms! Your picky eaters might think eating fungus is cool – so go with this theme. Really, do what you have to get more mushrooms in your day-to-day. Remember, taking AHCC daily is one of the easiest and simplest ways to reap the health benefits of mushrooms
WHAT ARE THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF MUSHROOMS?
The health benefits of mushrooms are so impressive that we wrote an entire blog post about the health benefits of mushrooms
To summarize our recent blog post, the top health benefits of mushrooms include:
- Immune-boosting benefits of mushrooms. study by the University of Florida’s Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition. showed that eating shitake mushrooms on a daily basis strengthens immunity.
- Anti-inflammatory powers of mushrooms. White button mushrooms have been found to have powerful anti-inflammatory boosting abilities.
- Gut bacteria health. There is research that shows how mushrooms can help improve gut bacteria – which has wide-ranging health impacts.
- Longer, healthier life with mushrooms. As we know, antioxidants help you live a longer and healthier life. Mushrooms are packed full of powerful antioxidants. The mushrooms super rich in antioxidants include porcini, golden oyster, lion’s mane, maitake, and shiitake.
- Digestion support. Mushrooms are a prebiotic food and are therefore super important for strengthening and building powerful gut bacteria. Eating mushrooms can help balance the bacteria in your microbiome – improving the health of your entire body – particularly your immune system.
- Cancer and mushrooms. Mushrooms are rich in proteins called lectins. Lectins are recognized for their ability to help the immune system defend against and destroy cancer cells. To sum this up in just four words: mushrooms are good for you. These health benefits combined with taking AHCC are key to building a strong immune system.
TIPS ON STORING MUSHROOMS
Many people are intimidated by mushrooms or have had a bad experience where the mushrooms have gone soggy.
When you come back from the grocery store or farmer’s market with your mushrooms, keep these tips on storing and preparing mushrooms in mind:
- Use the paper bags that are next to the mushrooms in your grocery store. When you go to the farmer’s market, bring your own paper bags to collect your mushrooms. This trusty paper bag does a lot – it absorbs moisture and prevents your mushrooms from drying out.
- Store your mushrooms in the fridge. By keeping your mushrooms cold, they retain their flavor. According to mushrooms. ca: for every hour a mushroom is left in room temperature, the shelf life decreases by 8 hours.
- If you buy packaged mushrooms, keep them in the fridge in the original packaging. However, once you open the package, make sure you store your mushrooms in a paper bag.
- You can keep your mushrooms in the fridge for up to one week.
- To easily clean your mushrooms, use a damp cloth to wipe them, give them a light rinse, and then pat the mushrooms dry. Remember mushrooms absorb moisture so don’t skip this important last step.
- It’s tempting to wash your mushrooms as soon as you get home. But we want you to only wash them right before you cook with them. If you wash them and then place them in the fridge, the mushrooms become discolored and soggy.
- You can remove the stems if they’re dry or hard (remove the stems from Portobello and Shiitake mushrooms). You don’t need to peel mushrooms.
WHAT ARE SOME EASY WAYS TO EAT MUSHROOMS?
At the AHCC Research team office, someone is always eating mushrooms. So, we asked around and collected these top recommended and easy ways to eat mushrooms.
- Balsamic-Marinated Portobello Pizzas: pizza, mushrooms, and 10 ingredients – it doesn’t get much better.
- Potato Breakfast Hash with Eggs and Mushrooms: this recipe is ideal for breakfast, lunch, or supper. It’s easy, versatile and hits all the flavor notes.
- Tacos with Spinach, Mushrooms, Potato, and Onion: shake up taco night with this hearty and flavorful twist on tacos. Even your picky eaters will ask for seconds.
- Kabobs: add mushrooms to your vegetable or meat kabobs. The mushrooms will soak up whatever marinade you use and give a toothsome flavor to this grilling favorite.
- Sautéed Mushrooms: this versatile recipe is ideal when you need a side dish or are just craving mushrooms.
