From Spawn to Sauté: The Story of Oyster Mushrooms
Oyster mushrooms are one of the most rewarding mushrooms to grow.
They're fast, productive, and come in a variety of colors and shapes. They're also one of our favorite mushrooms to cook because they can be crispy, tender, savory, and incredibly versatile depending on how you prepare them.
At Shroom-Mates, we grow multiple varieties of Oyster mushrooms alongside our Lion's Mane, Reishi, Shiitake, Chestnut, and Pioppino mushrooms.
From the first bit of grain spawn to a finished mushroom on your dinner plate, here's what the process looks like at Shroom-Mates.
What Are Oyster Mushrooms?
Oyster mushrooms belong to the Pleurotus genus and get their name from the shape of their caps, which can resemble an oyster shell.
They're available in several different varieties, and they don't all look exactly the same.
Depending on the variety, Oyster mushrooms can range from light colors to darker shades, with different shapes, sizes, and growing characteristics.
One thing they have in common is that they can be excellent culinary mushrooms.
What Do Oyster Mushrooms Taste Like?
Fresh Oyster mushrooms have a mild, savory flavor with an earthy character.
Their texture is one of the reasons they're so popular in cooking.
When cooked at high heat, the edges can become crispy and caramelized while the inside stays tender.
They're also excellent at absorbing the flavors of whatever you cook them with.
That's why Oyster mushrooms work well with:
Garlic
Butter
Olive oil
Herbs
Soy sauce
Umami seasoning
Pasta
Rice
Vegetables
Meat
How We Grow Oyster Mushrooms at Shroom-Mates
This is where the story starts.
Our Oyster mushrooms begin with grain spawn made using locally sourced milo.
We then introduce that spawn into a growing substrate made from hardwood fuel pellets and soy hull pellets.
The substrate gives the mushrooms the material they need to colonize and eventually produce fruiting bodies.
We use 10-pound Unicorn Bags for our growing blocks.
Once everything is inoculated, the waiting begins.
From Inoculation to Harvest
One of the things we love about Oyster mushrooms is how quickly they can grow.
Under our growing conditions, our Oyster mushrooms can go from inoculation to harvest in about 14 days.
That's a remarkably short turnaround compared with some of the other mushrooms we grow.
For comparison:
Oyster: about 14 days
Lion's Mane: about 20 days
Shiitake: about 3 months
That fast growth makes Oyster mushrooms an exciting crop to watch.
You can see the bags change as the mycelium colonizes the substrate, and then suddenly the mushrooms begin developing.
Our Oyster Mushroom Grow Room
Once the mushrooms are ready for fruiting, environmental conditions become extremely important.
We generally keep our grow room around 60–70°F with approximately 92% humidity.
Oyster mushrooms need plenty of moisture, but humidity isn't the only thing we have to manage.
Fresh air is also important.
We use a 6-inch exhaust fan along with multiple regular fans throughout the grow room to help exchange and circulate air.
Balancing humidity, fresh air, and air movement is an ongoing part of mushroom growing.
Watching Oyster Mushrooms Grow
One of the coolest things about Oyster mushrooms is how quickly they change.
A developing cluster can start small and then expand dramatically in a short amount of time.
The individual mushrooms grow together in clusters, with caps developing as they mature.
Because they grow quickly, timing your harvest is important.
Wait too long and the mushrooms can become more mature than you want. Harvest too early and you're leaving potential growth behind.
That's part of the hands-on side of growing mushrooms.
Harvesting Oyster Mushrooms
When the mushrooms reach the stage we're looking for, we harvest them by removing the cluster from the growing block.
Fresh Oyster mushrooms have a relatively short shelf life compared with dried mushrooms, so getting them from the grow room to the customer is important.
At Shroom-Mates, we sell our fresh Oyster mushrooms to wholesale customers and at farmers markets.
Some of our harvest is also dried and used in our other mushroom products.
How to Clean Oyster Mushrooms
Oyster mushrooms are fairly easy to prepare.
Start by trimming away any tough material at the base of the cluster.
Separate the individual mushrooms or tear them into smaller pieces depending on your recipe.
If they need cleaning, gently brush away debris or give them a quick rinse and dry them thoroughly before cooking.
You generally don't want to leave mushrooms sitting in water because they can absorb moisture and become harder to brown.
How to Cook Oyster Mushrooms
This is where Oyster mushrooms really shine.
There are a lot of ways to prepare them, but here are some of our favorites.
1. Garlic Butter Oyster Mushrooms
This is one of the simplest ways to cook fresh Oyster mushrooms.
Ingredients
Fresh Oyster mushrooms
Butter
Garlic
Salt
Black pepper
Optional fresh herbs
Directions
Clean and separate the mushrooms.
Heat a skillet over medium-high heat.
Add butter and the Oyster mushrooms.
Cook until they begin to brown.
Add minced garlic and continue cooking until the mushrooms are tender and the edges are nicely browned.
Season with salt and pepper.
Serve immediately as a side dish or add them to your favorite meal.
2. Crispy Pan-Seared Oyster Mushrooms
If you like crispy mushrooms, turn up the heat.
Heat a skillet with a small amount of oil.
Place the Oyster mushrooms in a single layer and let them cook without moving them too much.
Once they develop a golden-brown crust, turn them over and continue cooking.
Season with salt, pepper, garlic, or Shroom-Mates Umami Mushroom Seasoning.
The result is crispy around the edges with a tender center.
Shop Shroom-Mates Umami Mushroom Seasoning
3. Fried Oyster Mushrooms
Oyster mushrooms can also be breaded and fried.
Ingredients
Fresh Oyster mushrooms
Flour
Eggs
Breadcrumbs
Salt and pepper
Your favorite seasonings
Cooking oil
Directions
Separate the mushrooms into manageable pieces.
Set up a breading station with flour, beaten eggs, and seasoned breadcrumbs.
Coat each mushroom in flour, dip it into the egg, and then cover it with breadcrumbs.
Fry until golden brown and thoroughly cooked.
Drain on a rack or paper towel and serve with your favorite dipping sauce.
Try them with:
Ranch
Honey mustard
BBQ sauce
Buffalo sauce
Garlic aioli
4. Oyster Mushroom Tacos
Oyster mushrooms make an excellent taco filling.
Tear the mushrooms into smaller pieces and cook them in a hot skillet until browned.
Season with your favorite taco spices.
Serve them in tortillas with:
Lettuce
Tomatoes
Onion
Avocado
Cheese
Salsa
Sour cream
You can also add hot sauce for some extra heat.
5. Oyster Mushroom Pasta
Sauté Oyster mushrooms with butter, garlic, and onions.
Add them to your favorite pasta and sauce.
They work particularly well with:
Cream sauces
Parmesan
Garlic
Pesto
Tomato sauce
Fresh herbs
A simple mushroom pasta can make a great weeknight meal.
6. Grilled Oyster Mushrooms
Oyster mushrooms can also go on the grill.
Keep larger clusters intact, brush them lightly with oil, and season them.
Place them on a hot grill and cook until they're browned and tender.
You can serve grilled Oyster mushrooms as a side dish or use them in sandwiches, tacos, or burgers.
7. Oyster Mushrooms With Umami Seasoning
Because Oyster mushrooms already have a savory flavor, they pair particularly well with an umami-focused seasoning.
Try sautéing or roasting them with Shroom-Mates Umami Mushroom Seasoning.
Our seasoning combines dried mushrooms with sea salt, black pepper, thyme, garlic, onion, and paprika.
It's an easy way to add another layer of savory flavor to fresh mushrooms.
Shop Shroom-Mates Umami Mushroom Seasoning
Fresh vs. Dried Oyster Mushrooms
Fresh and dried Oyster mushrooms have different uses.
Fresh Oyster Mushrooms
Fresh mushrooms are ideal for sautéing, frying, grilling, roasting, pasta, tacos, stir-fries, and other recipes.
They have a tender texture and fresh mushroom flavor.
Dried Oyster Mushrooms
Drying gives the mushrooms a much longer shelf life and creates another way to use the harvest.
Dried mushrooms can be rehydrated and added to soups, sauces, stocks, and other recipes.
They can also be ground into powder for use in other products.
Oyster Mushrooms vs. Other Mushrooms
Oyster mushrooms are just one part of what we grow at Shroom-Mates.
We also grow:
Lion's Mane
Reishi
Shiitake
Chestnut
Pioppino
Each variety grows differently.
Oysters are among our fastest-growing mushrooms, taking around 14 days from inoculation to harvest.
Lion's Mane takes around 20 days.
Shiitake takes around three months.
Reishi, Chestnut, and Pioppino have their own growth characteristics as well.
That's one of the things we enjoy most about growing multiple mushroom varieties: there's always something different happening in the grow room.
What Happens to Our Oyster Mushrooms After Harvest?
Not every mushroom follows the same path after harvest.
Some of our Oyster mushrooms are sold fresh to our wholesale customers and at farmers markets.
Others are dried and used in Shroom-Mates products.
That means the mushrooms we grow can eventually become part of something very different from a fresh mushroom on a customer's dinner plate.
It's one of the reasons we enjoy growing our own mushrooms.
Why We Love Growing Oyster Mushrooms
Oyster mushrooms are fast-growing, productive, and incredibly versatile in the kitchen.
They're also a great mushroom to watch develop.
Going from a bag of colonized substrate to a full cluster of mushrooms in roughly two weeks never gets old.
And once they're harvested, there are so many ways to cook them.
Sauté them.
Fry them.
Grill them.
Put them in tacos.
Add them to pasta.
Or simply cook them with butter and garlic.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to grow Oyster mushrooms?
At Shroom-Mates, our Oyster mushrooms take approximately 14 days from inoculation to harvest under our growing conditions.
What do Oyster mushrooms taste like?
Oyster mushrooms have a mild, savory, earthy flavor and a tender texture when properly cooked.
How do you cook Oyster mushrooms?
Oyster mushrooms can be sautéed, pan-seared, fried, grilled, roasted, or added to pasta, tacos, soups, stir-fries, and other dishes.
Should you wash Oyster mushrooms?
Clean them as needed by brushing away debris or giving them a quick rinse. If you rinse them, dry them thoroughly before cooking.
Can you eat Oyster mushroom stems?
The stems are edible, although the base of a large cluster can sometimes be tougher. Trim away any particularly tough material before cooking.
Where does Shroom-Mates grow Oyster mushrooms?
We grow our Oyster mushrooms in our mushroom operation in Kansas.
Does Shroom-Mates grow different types of Oyster mushrooms?
Yes. We grow multiple varieties of Oyster mushrooms along with Lion's Mane, Reishi, Shiitake, Chestnut, and Pioppino.
From Spawn to Sauté
Every Oyster mushroom we grow starts with a process.
Locally sourced milo becomes grain spawn.
That spawn is introduced into our hardwood and soy hull substrate.
The mycelium colonizes the 10-pound growing bag.
The bag moves into our grow room.
The mushrooms fruit.
And roughly two weeks after inoculation, we're harvesting.
From there, the mushrooms might end up at a farmers market, with one of our wholesale customers, or dried and used in another Shroom-Mates product.
And eventually, the ones that make it to your kitchen become something completely different.
A skillet full of crispy, golden-brown Oyster mushrooms.
From spawn to sauté — that's the story of Oyster mushrooms at Shroom-Mates.
