Why are fir mushrooms so expensive? How can you store fir mushrooms for a long time?

There are many dialect names for fir mushrooms, such as fir tree mushrooms, pine milk mushrooms, pine mushrooms, etc. They are distributed in many places in China, and Yunnan has the largest production. The price of fir mushrooms is rising year by year, especially in the ninth month of the lunar calendar, and can be sold for hundreds of yuan per pound. There are also free ones, provided that you pick wild fir mushrooms yourself, but it requires the right time and place, and you can only find them in the mountains after a heavy rain.

Why are fir mushrooms so expensive?

1. Scarcity makes things valuable

As of now, fir fungi cannot be fully cultivated artificially, but can only be considered semi-cultivated because it is quite special and belongs to the mycorrhizal symbiotic fungus, which means that it needs to depend on other plants, such as Masson pine or pine species, to survive.

Secondly, fir mushrooms are quite delicate! They have high requirements for climate, soil, altitude, etc. They are not suitable for cultivation in greenhouses and cannot form fruiting bodies. They can only be semi-artificially cultivated and managed in the wild.

Plus, there are only two harvest seasons each year, March and September of the lunar calendar, so when the yield is low, it’s naturally expensive.

2. Medicinal and edible fungi

The dried product of fir mushroom is a traditional Chinese medicine with high medicinal value! It has the effects of relieving pain and reducing phlegm, strengthening the body, benefiting the intestines and stomach, etc.

Modern medicine has studied its nutritional components and found that fir mushrooms are rich in plant protein, that is, crude protein (19.3/g), as well as considerable unsaturated fat (6.8/g), multiple amino acids, and multiple vitamins and other trace elements. Therefore, it is called the "Prince of Fungi"!

According to secular thinking, the higher the nutritional value of a food, the higher its relative price.

3. Delicious bonus

The texture of fir mushrooms is delicate and tender, with a special fragrance. The most important thing is that they are very fresh, especially when used to make soup. They are so delicious that they make your teeth fall out! In addition, there are many ways to cook them, and even a novice in the kitchen can easily get started. As long as they are not mushy and have the right saltiness, they will become a delicious delicacy! Therefore, the demand is high, but the output is low, resulting in a shortage of supply, and naturally it is expensive.

How to store fir mushrooms for a long time

1. Refrigerate and preserve: This is the most traditional method. Wrap the fresh Alpinia ternata with cabbage leaves, or cover it, and place it in the refrigerator at a temperature of 8-10 degrees. This method can extend the shelf life by 4-5 days.

2. Preservation with salt: Soak the freshly picked Alpinia chorizoides in 0.6% salt water for about 10 minutes after sorting. After draining, put them into plastic bags for storage. They can be kept fresh for 5 to 8 days.

3. Vacuum low-temperature preservation: Put the chicken mushrooms into an elastic, airtight and watertight bag, and release all the air inside to prevent the chicken mushrooms from coming into contact with the air; then seal the bag and put the bag containing the chicken mushrooms into the freezer of the refrigerator. This way, they can be preserved for more than half a year.

How to make fir mushroom soup

Prepare the ingredients: fir mushrooms, a small piece of pork belly (also great for stewing chicken), onions, garlic, salt, oil and a little white pepper.

Production steps:

1. Remove the root part of the fir mushroom, then rinse it with clean water, remove the sand, and tear it into several pieces by hand;

2. Rinse the pork belly, then cut it into thin slices, chop the green onions into chopped green onions, and slice the garlic for later use;

3. Add a little bit of oil to the pan, stir-fry the pork belly first, until the fat in the meat is forced out and the meat slices are browned;

4. Then pour in the garlic and sauté briefly, then add the fir mushrooms and stir-fry evenly until a little soup comes out, then add hot water to cover the ingredients;

5. Cook for about 10 minutes, open the lid and add salt to season, serve and add a little, very small amount of white pepper powder when eating, which will bring out a good taste.