Food Mushroom medleys Porcini, crimini, shiitake - each variety its own musky mystery to winter suppers. An ordinary little button mushroom, known as a common cultivated mushroom, packs enough flavor to give an alluring musky taste to a dish.
Mushrooms are deceptive that way.
You add a few to the pot, and you get loads of flavor in return. That and a texture that can be downright meaty make mushrooms one of the most interesting ingredients in the larder. Foragers who know this comb our woodlands in the fall to collect and dry mushrooms for the winter months. In World War II, regions of Europe relied on foraging fungi during food shortages. That doesn't mean that cultivation removes their good flavor.