Do you peel mushrooms?

Since that case here where three people died of mushroom poisoning ( probably a murder) I’ve been a bit more wary. They have arrested the woman concerned but I still take a bit more care and would never pick my own now .

Commercial Mushrooms are grown in sterile peat/compost, so there should be no nasties hanging around. Field/foraged mushrooms are a different matter - especially if found growing on cowpats.
I neither wash nor peel mushrooms. The heat of cooking should kill any lurking germs/maggots. But then I don’t eat raw mushrooms.
My DH would always peel them, on the extremely rare occasions he’d cook.

Wipe them gently with a soft, damp brush or damp kitchen roll. That's the instruction I have given in all the cookbooks I have written.

Yes, it's quick and easy

a farmer friend told me the stalks are full of maggots.

That would be field mushrooms, lemsip. Cultivated mushrooms are grown under sterile conditions.

I must have handled thousands of cultivated mushrooms over a life time (we use them a lot). I've never found a maggoty one.

Don't wash or peel them, just wipe them with kitchen roll.

I wash them and that's it. I don't peel them

If something is 'obviously' peelable I peel it so I peel mushrooms., hate doing it though.
a farmer friend told me the stalks are full of maggots.

No I've never heard of anyone peeling a mushroom.

No. But I de-stalk them and use the stalks in casseroles.

Only the large flat ones.

Not peel, just rinse very carefully.

We've received mushrooms, that needed a bit more than my usual damp cloth - may depend to certain harvest of local fungi farmer.

Peel mushrooms? I don’t even wash them!

I never considered peeling a mushroom, so I have never done it. Then 1 day my husband set about making a full cooked breakfast and besides the norm for a full English, the mushrooms emerged on the working top, he began peeling them, I asked what on earth was he doing, take into account I have never heard of this before, all explanations were aired ........ so the bottom line is I still don't peel them hahaha... i consider it unnecessary.

Wash = Yes.
Peel = No

😃

Mine were full of maggots right up to the edge where the skin overlaps, hence the removal of skin always.

Commercial mushrooms are grown in sterile compost so no need to peel.

But if you are picking mushrooms in a field - too early yet - then I think a wash is in order and perhaps a peel.

No not at all , I just check for any soil . I don’t wash them either, can go slimy in water . I cook mine in olive oil , butter and little chopped garlic. Lovely .

No

No I certainly don't! I worked for a holiday company once & someone complained the self catering property they rented hadn't got a mushroom brush! Oh, get a life. !!

Wipe with a damp cloth / tissue and enjoy. They are a good source of VitD (like eggs they need to come from exposure to sunlight to synthesise it); much better than supplements whose manufacture contributes to global warming.

Only peel when on the turn. Eat the stalks when fresh.
Used to love eating raw, until l heard that two people very sick after doing that.
Remember when potatoes were covered in soil and had to be scrubbed clean ?

Do I heck, life is too short for peeling mushrooms!

I think people used to do it because they grew in cowpats.

I’ve always just wiped mushrooms but after reading this I’ll definitely be washing them -

amp.theguardian.com/food/2023/jun/28/10-food-rules-you-should-ignore-felicity-cloake

I do because I thought they are griwn in manure