How to Cook With Black Mushrooms Fresh and dried shiitakes need to be prepared differently before added to a recipe. Fresh mushrooms should be cleaned first, either by wiping the caps with a damp paper towel or quickly rinsing with cool water. The stems of fresh black mushrooms are very tough and chewy, so they need to be removed with a pairing knife. (Save the stems to make mushroom or vegetable stock.) Dried mushrooms need to be reconstituted before use, and there are a few different techniques to choose from. The most common is to soak the dried mushrooms in very hot water for about 20 minutes, but some cooks recommend soaking them for an hour or so. A few cooks, however, insist that the only proper way to soak them is in cold water overnight to produce the best results. No matter which technique you employ, consider using a weight of some sort, like a small plate, to keep the mushrooms submerged. Then strain the mushrooms through a sieve to remove any
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