How to soak compressed Hericium erinaceus

Hericium erinaceus is not only a very common Chinese medicinal material, but in most cases it is eaten as a food ingredient. Most people choose to buy compressed Hericium erinaceus to eat. In this way, the production process will be simpler and there is no need for a tedious cleaning process. It can be eaten after soaking. However, if you want to prevent the loss of the nutritional value of Hericium erinaceus during soaking, you still need to use rice water, which can make the Hericium erinaceus taste better.

First: It is best to use rice water to soak and wash Hericium erinaceus, which can remove the astringency of Hericium erinaceus, enhance the fragrance of Hericium erinaceus, and make the soaked Hericium erinaceus softer.

Second: Pay attention to the water temperature which must be maintained at around 30 to 40 degrees, which is conducive to the full expansion of Hericium erinaceus.

Third: The soaking of Hericium erinaceus needs to go through five steps of "washing-soaking-washing-steaming-washing". In this way, the soaked Hericium erinaceus not only has no bitter taste, but also the dishes made from it are fragrant, and the soup is also sweet and delicious.

Raw materials and tools for cleaning and soaking Hericium erinaceus: Hericium erinaceus, rice washing water, 1 plate, cornstarch.

[Soaking process of Hericium erinaceus]:

1. Take a deep bowl and add appropriate amount of rice washing water. Soaking it in rice water can remove the astringency of Hericium erinaceus, enhance its aroma, and make the soaked Hericium erinaceus softer.

2. Place the bowl with rice washing water in the microwave and heat it in the microwave for 1 minute until the water temperature reaches about 30 to 40 degrees.

3. Soak the Hericium erinaceus in rice washing water with its bud facing downwards and its root stem facing upwards. The purpose is to ensure that the Hericium erinaceus can be completely immersed in water, which is conducive to its swelling.

4. Take a plate and cover the bowl upside down to prevent the heat of the water from being dissipated and keep the water temperature constant at around 30 to 40 degrees.

5. Set aside and soak for about 2 hours to allow the Hericium erinaceus to fully absorb water and help it expand.

[Washing process of Hericium erinaceus]:

1. Place the soaked Hericium erinaceus root stem upwards, cut off the root stem and the surrounding blackened parts with scissors, and then put it into warm rice washing water at about 30 to 40 degrees.

2. Put your hands into the water, and rub and squeeze the Hericium erinaceus gently and repeatedly like squeezing a sponge. The color of the water will gradually deepen during the rubbing process.

3. Take out the Hericium erinaceus, add rice washing water at about 30 to 40 degrees into the bowl, and put in the Hericium erinaceus.

4. Put your hands into the water, and rub and squeeze the Hericium erinaceus repeatedly and gently like squeezing a sponge. The color of the water will gradually deepen during the rubbing process. After repeating this several times, use your hands to gently squeeze out the water from the Hericium erinaceus. The purpose of repeating steps 1 to 7 and rubbing and squeezing repeatedly is to wash out the colored water inside the Hericium erinaceus and fully remove the astringent taste of the Hericium erinaceus.

[Steaming process of Hericium erinaceus]:

1. Squeeze the Hericium erinaceus dry and place it on the chopping board. Use a knife to cut it into slices or shapes of your choice.

2. Put the chopped Hericium erinaceus in a deep bowl, add 1 slice of ginger and 1 small piece of green onion, add a small amount of salt and 1 spoon of cooking wine.

3. Pour a small bowl of chicken soup into the bowl, enough to cover the surface of the Hericium erinaceus.

4. Pour water into the pot, set up the steaming rack, place the bowl on the steaming rack, cover the pot, and steam over high heat for about 30 to 40 minutes. When there is no hard core inside the Hericium erinaceus, take it out and rinse it again with warm rice water several times. The steamed Hericium erinaceus can then be used to cook various other dishes.