The Phoenix Oyster Mushroom, scientifically known as Pleurotus pulmonarius, is popular around the world, not only for its delicious flavour, versatility in cooking, and great nutritional profile, but also for its ease of cultivation in a wide range of substrates and growing conditions. It truly is a 'mushroom of the people'!
If you have never grown mushrooms before, this species is a fantastic beginners option, as its vigorous growth and adaptability to different environments make it a species which is more forgiving to small errors in technique, compared to some of the more 'fussy' types of mushrooms. The easiest way to grow and experience cooking with native oyster mushrooms is with a ready made grow kit (pictured above).
This adaptability and vigour has also seen Phoenix Oyster Mushrooms be very successful in the wild - they are found growing in forests in many parts of the world, and here in Aotearoa we have our own unique native strains of this species growing in bush throughout the country, which you may be lucky enough to come across during a nature jaunt!
In this species spotlight, we will explore key facts about the Phoenix Oyster Mushroom, its preferred habitat and ecology, cultivation techniques, nutritional value and culinary applications.
Common name(s): Phoenix Oyster Mushroom. Sometimes, imported Asian cultivars are called 'Grey' or 'Italian' Oyster Mushrooms.
Scientific name: Pleurotus pulmonarius
Bio-geographical status: The species is widespread and naturally occurs in many locations around the world. In New Zealand they are naturalised in the native bush and our native strains have unique morphology compared to imported cultivars.
Taxonomical Notes: This species is just one of many in the 'Oyster Mushroom' genus, a group of mushrooms which get their name from their unique, oyster-like appearance. In New Zealand mushrooms belonging to the species 'Pleurotus pulmonarius' can be either local native strains or imported commercial cultivars from Asia. The native strains tend to have a denser and more robust form, and deeper flavour. Commercial strains tend to be smaller, less robust, and prone to going frilly or cracked at the edges of the cap as they mature. Here at MycoLogic we prefer and supply native NZ strains of Pleurotus pulmonarius. Other species of oyster mushrooms grown in New Zealand include the native species Velvet Oyster (Pleurotus parsonsiae), Brown Oyster (Pleurotus australis), Olive oyster (Pleurotus purpureo-olivaceus, not well suited to cultivation) as well as the introduced Pink Oyster (Pleurotus djamor)
Habitat and Distribution: Phoenix Oysters are a 'wood loving' mushroom and are found growing on logs, branches and trunks of both dead and living trees. Their preferred native host trees include tī kōuka (cabbage tree), mahoe, lacebark, ribbonwood, whauwhaupaku (five finger), as well as exotic trees like poplar and willow. They can fruit at any height in a tree so when hunting for oyster mushrooms it pays to remember to look up as well as down! They can be found throughout the country.
Season: Phoenix Oysters are a very adaptable mushroom with a wide range of conditions that they will fruit under. They can fruit when daytime temperatures are anywhere between 10 to 30°C which is pretty much year-round. They're most abundant in the late spring and early autumn, and also throughout the summer when conditions have been mild and humid or rainy for several days in a row.
Identification Features: The mushrooms grow in attractive clusters of multiple fruitbodies emerging from the same base point. Individual mushrooms feature a distinct fan or oyster-shaped cap that ranges in colour from off-white to light brown, often with a slightly wavy margin. The gills are white and decurrent, running down the stem in a funnel-like shape. When young, the caps are convex (rounded) but flatten out as they mature. Over-mature caps will become upturned and ruffled at the edges and begin releasing large amounts of white spores.
Their aroma often uniquely features a hint of anise, and is otherwise mild, fresh, and fungal.
Uses: Phoenix Oysters are a culinary mushroom which are popular around the world, due to their delicious flavour which is also versatile and able to be used in a wide range of cuisine styles. They're widely cultivated at both the hobby and commercial scales and are a very easy mushroom to grow, thanks to their vigorous growth and adaptability to a range of different substrates and growing methods.
The flavour of phoenix oysters is a pleasant, lightly savoury mushroom flavour with slight nutty undertones. They are well suited to being pre-cooked on their own in a medium-hot skillet until they are brown and crispy at the edges, and then added into other dishes. They can be sauteed with herbs and garlic, stir fried, grilled, used in pasta, pizza, risotto, and many other dishes.
Nutrition: Phoenix oysters have been valued as a nutritious food for centuries. They are low in fat, high in protein and fibre, and are rich in vitamins and trace minerals including potassium, magnesium, zinc, iron, niacin, B5, ergothioneine, and various phytosterols. They contain a range of unique compounds which posses anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Research has suggested that incorporating oyster mushrooms into a balanced healthy diet may improve heart health, support healthy blood sugar levels, assist in immune system function, and decrease risk of cancer.
Cultivating Phoenix Oyster Mushrooms: Oyster mushrooms can be cultivated by a wide range of methods, some of which are very easy and 'low-tech'. Thier main requirement is plenty of fresh air! They are much more sensitive to the accumulation of CO2 in enclosed spaces than most other species of mushroom. This can show as stretched or elongated mushrooms or produce small bumps on the caps of the mushrooms.
Oyster mushrooms are most commonly grown indoors on pasteurised straw in bags or buckets, or on sterilised sawdust substrates in more 'commercial' scale operations. In both of these cases the prepared substrates are inoculated with grain spawn, and then incubated for a week or two before being put into fruiting conditions. They can also be grown in outdoor beds of straw or woodchips, or grown as mushroom logs which have been inoculated with culture dowels.
Our grow guides have plenty of detailed information about all of these methods. If you prefer printed material, copies of 'Growing Gourmet Mushrooms at Home: An Introductory Guide' by MycoLogic founder Bart Acres are available right here on our website.
Cooking with Phoenix Oyster Mushrooms:
The delicate but pleasant savoury flavour of Oyster mushrooms makes them wonderfully versatile in the kitchen and they can be used in a huge range of cuisine styles. In many instances, the mushrooms will be sautéd in a skillet on their own to enable them to be cooked in a way that brings the flavours out (slightly browned at the edges) and from there they can be enjoyed as is or added into other dishes.
When sautéing oyster mushrooms either to have on their own or use as an ingredient, a few simple tips can help them turn out great! First is to use a fairly high heat in a good quality skillet (cast iron is ideal!). Do not add too many mushrooms into the pan at once so as to avoid overcrowding. Overcrowding the pan can result in the mushrooms steaming rather than pan frying, and they won't brown up. Use a small amount of olive oil or butter to cook the mushrooms with, and a sprinkling of salt onto the mushrooms at the start of cooking can help them to release some of their trapped moisture. This improves both the flavour and texture of the mushrooms once they're cooked. Oyster mushrooms also pair beautifully with most kinds of garden herbs like rosemary, thyme, oregano, parsley or sage.
Oyster mushrooms are commonly used in a wide variety of dishes including things like stir fry, noodle soup, mushroom soup, tacos, pizza, pasta, grilled whole on BBQ, and omelettes. But really their possible uses are only limited by your culinary imagination! They are a great mushroom to experiment with and try new things. People have been known to batter and deep fry them as a 'Vegan KFC' or mince them up to use as dumpling fillers... or of course you can simply enjoy the old classic, pan fried mushrooms with a little butter, salt and herbs on toast... simple and delicious!
This blog post was written by Bart Acres, founder of MycoLogic and long time mushroom cultivator. Bart enjoys continuously learning about fungi, and is often busy with projects to identify new cultivars or species, trial novel cultivation methods, do side-by-side experiments to develop better growing methods, or just generally tinkering around with anything to do with mushrooms! And of course, enjoying experimenting with a wide range of fungi in the kitchen and trying out different ways of cooking them to compliment their unique flavours and textures. Check out the other articles in this blog for more first-hand knowledge!
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