Some meals can do more than excite your taste buds – they can improve your health in ways you can’t imagine. So, in this post, you’ll find five delicious recipes that will provide you with enormous health benefits.
Their main ingredient is the super healthy mushroom. Not many know that mushrooms are not vegetables but actually fungi. Even though they might not look so appealing, mushrooms are loaded with nutritional benefits.
As a matter of fact, many Asian countries have used mushrooms in alternative medicine for centuries. However, Western medicine started investigating their healing properties not so long ago.
Before getting to the recipes that will help you take advantage of mushrooms’ medicinal properties, we list their main health benefits. You’ll see this natural ingredient is potent enough to fight diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and many more health conditions and diseases.
Health Benefits of Mushrooms
All of these health benefits are scientifically supported. To learn more about them, visit Everyday health.
- Help treat cancer
- Control and prevent diabetes
- Control and prevent cardiovascular diseases
- Strengthen the immune system
- Reduce weight and avoid obesity
- Reduce stress, boost energy, and improve brain function
- Provide antibiotic, antiviral, antibacterial, and antifungal properties
- Help treat gastric and liver injuries
- Help treat vitamin D deficiency
- Promote oral health
- Prevent age-related diseases
- Control and prevent allergies
- Regulate inflammation in the body
- Promote hair and skin health
- Being a good source of copper, they help prevent blood pressure complications, osteoporosis, etc.
Now that you know the main benefits you’ll get by eating mushrooms, here are five excellent ways to include them in your diet.
1. Mushroom Barley Soup
This delicious soup is packed with fiber. It can serve 4 people according to All Recipes.
Ingredients:
- 8 cups of sliced, white mushrooms
- 200 grams of pearl barley
- 2 tbsp. of extra virgin oil
- 1 l of mushroom or chicken stock
- 3 tbsp. of all-purpose flour
- Half a cup of sour cream
- 3 celery stalks, finely chopped
- 4 minced shallots
- 1 tsp. of salt
- 200 ml of white wine
- 1 tsp. of ground pepper
- 2 cups of boiling water
- 2 tbsp. of butter
- 1 tbsp. of fresh, minced sage
Preparation:
Boil about 200 ml of the stock and the barley in a saucepan. Cover and leave to simmer for about 25 minutes and remove from heat.
Next, you need a Dutch oven to heat the butter and olive oil. Add the shallots and once they soften add the sliced mushrooms. Wait until the mushrooms get a brown color, which will take around eight minutes.
Then, add the pepper, sage, celery, and salt. Once the ingredients soften, add the flour and mix for 1 minute. Then, pour in the wine and the rest of the stock. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat. Allow the mixture to simmer for 20 minutes.
Now, add the cooked barley and continue to cook. In the end, just pour in the sour cream.
2. Gourmet Mushroom Risotto
The recipe serves 6 people and it takes 50 minutes to prepare.
Ingredients:
- 1 lb. of white mushrooms
- 1 lb. of Portobello mushrooms, thinly sliced
- Half a cup of white wine (or a substitute for white wine)
- 1/3 to ½ cup of grated parmesan cheese
- 3 tbsp. of olive oil
- 6 cups of chicken broth
- 3 tbsp. of chives, finely chopped
- 4 tbsp. of butter
- 1 cup of Arborio rice
- 2 diced shallots
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Preparation:
Take a large saucepan and heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Put the mushrooms in the heated oil and cook until soft, which will take about 3 minutes. Pour the cooked mushrooms together with the liquid in a separate bowl.
Next, heat the rest of the olive oil in a skillet and add the shallots. Cook for a minute and add the rice. Make sure you mix well until coated with oil. Once the rice gets a golden color, add the wine and stir profusely.
Now, heat your chicken broth under low heat. Pour half of it into the rice mixture and mix until fully absorbed. Then, pour in the rest of the broth gradually. Mix until you get a tender but firm rice.
Put the mixture aside from heat and add the cooked mushrooms together with the liquid. Then, add the chives, parmesan, butter, salt, and pepper to taste.
3. Mushroom Pork Chops
This meal serves 6 people and takes 40 minutes to prepare.
Ingredients:
- 4 to 6 pork chops
- Half a pound of mushrooms (preferably Crimini), sliced
- 1 cup of onions, sliced
- 2 tsp. of olive oil
- 1 can of cream of mushroom soup
- Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:
Season the pork chops with salt and pepper. Sear them in heated oil (use only one teaspoon of olive oil) for 2-3 minutes on each side once they turn brown remove them from the skillet and cover to retain the warmth.
Next, add the rest of the olive oil to the skillet and add the sliced onion and mushrooms. Sauté them until they turn brown.
Then, return the pork chops to the skillet and add the cream of mushroom soup. Cover and cook on lower heat for another 30 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
4. Chicken with Mushrooms
This recipe serves 4 people and takes 40 minutes to prepare. It’s best served over rice or noodles.
Ingredients
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 300 grams of white button mushrooms
- 1 cup of bread crumbs/ two tbsp. of all-purpose flour
- 2 boneless chicken breasts
- 6 ounces of sliced mozzarella cheese
- ¾ cup of chicken broth
- 2 tbsp. of butter or olive oil
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 175 degrees.
Put the chicken breasts in the beaten eggs and roll them in the seasoned breadcrumbs or all-purpose flour. Sear them in heated oil/butter until they color brown on both sides.
Then, take a pan and put half of the mushrooms (150 grams) and the seared chicken breasts on top of them. Place the rest of the mushrooms onto the chicken breasts. Add the mozzarella slices and finally, the chicken broth. Put the pan in a preheated oven to 350 F and bake for 35 minutes.
5. Mixed Mushroom Omelet
This dish serves two to four individuals. The first portion of the ingredients is good for two people, whereas the second is for four. It takes about 35 minutes to prepare according to All Recipes.
Ingredients
- 150g/300g of mushrooms (Swiss, button, Portobello), sliced and mixed
- 20g/80g of butter
- 2 tbsp. of onions and chives
- 4/8 separated eggs
- 2 tbsp. of cold water
- Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
Put half the butter in a frying pan and melt over low to medium heat. Add the mushrooms and cook until they soften, or about 4 minutes. Remove the cooked mushrooms from the pan and cover to retain their warmth.
Whisk the eggs with the water and seasonings until well combined.
Melt the rest of the butter in a frying pan over low to medium heat. Once it starts to sizzle, add the beaten eggs in a way that covers the whole base.
Then, add the cooked mushrooms together with the chives and continue to cook for around 2 minutes.
Divide the omelet into two servings and serve with cherry tomatoes.
