# Mushrooms: Delicious or "No thank you"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 6, 2011, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025 "2011-05-06T23:17:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/21 "2011-05-07T01:26:03Z")
I voted “close to the grossest thing ever”, but will make an exception for the kind of mushrooms that have been simmered in enough butter that, like a petrified log, the mushroom has essentially been replaced with buttery goodness. Otherwise, screw that noise. Raw they’re okay, cooked they’re revolting. The texture is vile. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/22 "2011-05-07T01:33:09Z")
> [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](#): > > More gorgonzola for the rest of us! Is this a whoosh? Gorgonzola is cheese. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/23 "2011-05-07T01:35:27Z")
> [@apollonia](#): > > Mushrooms are fungus and an abomination in the eyes of all right-thinking people. Not to save the souls of the innocent would I willingly eat a mushroom. Well spoken. Wanna get married? ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/24 "2011-05-07T01:36:15Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Is this a whoosh? Gorgonzola is cheese. Mold is a fungus. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/25 "2011-05-07T01:40:21Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > Mold is a fungus. So is yeast. But I know plenty of people who won’t eat mushrooms but are willing to consume bread and beer. So I figured a distaste for mushrooms isn’t necessarily an opposition to all fungus-based foodstuffs. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/26 "2011-05-07T01:43:07Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > So is yeast. But I know plenty of people who won’t eat mushrooms but are willing to consume bread and beer. So I figured a distaste for mushrooms isn’t necessarily an opposition to all fungus-based foodstuffs. The person he was responding to condemned fungus entirely. ---
**Author:** ![A.Gwilliam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@A.Gwilliam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.Gwilliam)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/27 "2011-05-07T01:54:38Z")
> [@apollonia](#): > > Mushrooms are fungus and an abomination in the eyes of all right-thinking people. Not to save the souls of the innocent would I willingly eat a mushroom. I couldn’t have put it better myself. Speaking as an atheist, mushrooms are an affront to God. They’re just wrong, wrong, wrongity wrong. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/28 "2011-05-07T02:11:18Z")
I like portabello burgers, B&Bs\* broiled on top of my steak, and I like shrooms in my salads as well. \*the old style ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/29 "2011-05-07T02:19:06Z")
Seriously–if you object to fungus, you’re getting rid of all (I think, maybe just most, but I think all) alcoholic beverages, all yeasted breads, and most cheeses. Objecting to fungus food is not quite as severe as objecting to plant food, but it’s still pretty broad. Objecting to mushrooms is a bit like objecting to fruit–and for most folks it’s like saying “Fruit is nasty” when the only fruit you’ve ever eaten is a red delicious apple. Button mushrooms pack well, grow reliably, and have a very mild, relatively innocuous flavor. But they’re nowhere near as tasty as a horn of plenty, or a chanterelle, or even a portobello that’s been salted and peppered and oiled and grilled (which IMO is the only veggie-burger that rivals a meat-burger for deliciousness). Obviously I’m a fan. ---
**Author:** ![NiceGuyJack](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/niceguyjack/32/3069_2.png) [@NiceGuyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NiceGuyJack)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/30 "2011-05-07T02:24:35Z")
I voted “all forms”. Just curious though, when you say mushroom, do you mean just the common button aka Portobello? Because there are some really radical mushrooms out there. In Asia, there is a huge variety. The Japanese alone have at least five that I know which they eat from the huge palm sized shiitake to the thin stalked enokitake which tend to come in bunches. Out of China the elephant ears are fantastic! Someone mentioned mushrooms have no flavor and I suppose if you are describing Portobellos, the flavor isn’t strong. But some of the ones I described above do. Even stronger flavors, morels. Or the heavenly flavor of truffles, more expensive than gold! My absolute favorite chanterelles, lightly sauteed. Damned it! Now I have a craving. You know how difficult it is to find chantarelles in Asia? Out of season too! ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/31 "2011-05-07T02:25:15Z")
I just made a mushroom cream cheese omelet for breakfast today. Yum. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/32 "2011-05-07T02:29:43Z")
> [@NiceGuyJack](#): > > I voted “all forms”. > Just curious though, when you say mushroom, do you mean just the common button aka Portobello? Wow–I knew cremini mushrooms were immature portobellos, but I had no idea they were both the same species as button mushrooms! Color me embarrassed. Still, it sounds like they’re different strains, and it definitely seems to me that creminis and portobellos have more flavor than button mushrooms–is this true (in the same way that a pink lady tastes better than a red delicious) or am I imagining things based on the 'shroom’s appearance? ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/33 "2011-05-07T02:32:31Z")
No. I don’t get mushrooms. Can’t stand them, no matter the variety, no matter how they’re cooked (or not), or how they’re masked. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/34 "2011-05-07T02:40:44Z")
The only reason there’s no Levitical prohibition against eating mushrooms is the same reason there’s no law against eating rocks, wagon wheels or old shoes. Nobody ever looked at mushrooms and thought anyone would ever be crazy enough to eat one. Vile weed. ---
**Author:** ![apollonia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2bfe46/32.png) [@apollonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apollonia)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/35 "2011-05-07T02:41:31Z")
I am well aware that other types of food are based on fungus. I greatly enjoy some foods from highly questionable sources, after all! But I do not care even in the slightest. Every single thing about mushrooms grosses me out. In addition to hating the flavour, the texture makes me cringe and shudder, the weird gross underside of the mushroom top creeps me out, the sight and smell and FEEL of mushrooms is just WRONG to me. You are all free to eat my fair share. Divide it amongst yourselves evenly, please. ---
**Author:** ![Invisible\_Chimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f05b48/32.png) [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/36 "2011-05-07T02:56:49Z")
It’s not the taste, but the texture that make mushrooms evil. Once upon a time, I tried to choke down some stuffed mushrooms. The filling was delicious and covered up the taste of shroom well, but the texture was still vile. ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/37 "2011-05-07T03:16:40Z")
All of them From the run-of-the-mill mushroom to morels, from shiitake to porcini, from portobello to Perú’s own Porcón mushrooms. ---
**Author:** ![Oslo\_Ostragoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a9a28c/32.png) [@Oslo\_Ostragoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oslo_Ostragoth)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/38 "2011-05-07T03:26:11Z")
> [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](#): > > Mushrooms are delicious fresh; raw or cooked, dried and cooked, but canned/jarred mushrooms are an abomination. A wet, tasteless abomination. My opinion too. ---
**Author:** ![Fred\_Garvin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c67d28/32.png) [@Fred\_Garvin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fred_Garvin)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/39 "2011-05-07T03:26:15Z")
I LOVE mushrooms. Why? Because I’m such a fungi !!😃 ---
**Author:** ![Molotok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecd19e/32.png) [@Molotok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Molotok)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025/40 "2011-05-07T03:36:10Z")
I’ve tried different varieties, prepared in different ways, and still can’t understand what redeeming qualities they have as food. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushrooms-delicious-or-no-thank-you/581025.md?page=3)