nav[aria-label="Primary Navigation"] { padding: 0; & ul { list-style: none; width: 100%; display: flex; flex-direction: row; justify-content: start; align-items: start; gap: 30px; padding: 0; & li { margin: 0; } & ul li { list-style: none; } } }

Getting the most out of this forum

michaelnatkin

What could I use to compression-glue mushrooms together? I know their main structure is from chitin, not protein, so I'm guessing none of the transglutaminases will work? In crustaceans, chitin is bonded with calcium carbonate - but of course I don't want the texture of crab shells. The application I have in mind is to roast shiitake caps, then stack and compress them into a cylinder that can then be seared and sliced.

Find more posts tagged with

Comments

michaelnatkin

@Grant - I'd want to keep it vegetarian; do you think LM pectin would work instead of the gelatin? I thought I would preroast to extract most of the liquid before bonding.

michaelnatkin

@Chris most chitosan is from shrimp shells I guess, but it turns out there is a vegetarian one available: http://www.vegetablechitosan.com/vegetable_chitosan.php . It would be fun to try that.

michaelnatkin

Yeah, two separate approaches - either calcium + pectin or protein + activa. I think it will be fun to try both and see which gives better results. I'm curious what a calcium soak will do to the mushroom chitin in the first place. I want to glue the caps into a cylinder, so maybe an aeropress with a woodworking clamp to apply axial force.

Brendan_Lee_56950

Any update on this @michael? I was just thinking about this type of thing the other day as a way to crust a piece of fish with thin slices of mushroom to create a shingle effect and allow me to torch them to give a nice contrast in texture and flavor. I'm not so worried about vegetarian obviously but curious about the approach and what worked.

michaelnatkin

Never did get around to trying it... if you do, by all means let me know!

Jack_Ostrowski_46259

transglutaminase would be the best.

Brendan_Lee_56950

That's what activa is. The problem is that mushrooms aren't going to naturally bond so they need to be infused with gelatin to allow them to bond with the fish.

Jack_Ostrowski_46259

@Brendan thanks for the clarification.