On Sun, 19 Dec 2010 14:21:52 -0600, Omelet >
wrote:

>In article >,
> Brooklyn1 <Gravesend1> wrote:
>
>> >Canned asparagus tends to have a slightly "off" taste to me for eating
>> >as a side, but I agree it is fine in recipes.
>>
>> I like the Walmart brand because of the low price, the name brands are
>> ridiculously expensive. And I don't mind one bit that the Walmart
>> canned asparagus are cuts, they contain the entire spear, tips too,
>> they are cut into 1" sections. It's nice to have a few cans on hand
>> for those times you feel like asparagus but don't feel like a run to
>> the market... I find the cuts work well in cheese omelets, even a good
>> way to jazz up a bowl of egg drop ramen.
>
>I've honestly not tried the Wal-mart brand.

I never said they are wonderful, I buy them mostly because they are
very handy, and Walmart's cost very little. They are excellent in a
cheese omelet.

>I do like frozen Asparagus
>but it's nearly as pricey as fresh.

Only time I had frozen was in a oriental veggie mix, wasn't impressed.

>Never tried Asparagus in Ramen. <g>

Good in chicken egg drop too.

>I usually dress up Ramen with chives, thinly sliced leftover meats
>(beef, pork or chicken), sliced hard boiled eggs, and lately, thinly
>shredded baby spinach leaves and various herbages such as Cilantro
>leaves and/or thin sliced fresh basil leaves.
>
>A small handful of bean sprouts are good too and I've also been breaking
>the bottoms off of Romaine lettuce leaves and saving them for Pho'/Ramen
>soups by slicing them very thin for a little crunch in the soup to take
>the place of bean sprouts.
>
>Sprouts spoil quickly but Romaine keeps 4-ever and I've been using a LOT
>of Romaine lately.
>>
>> >About the only canned veggie I really don't care for are canned
>> >mushrooms unless they are being used on a pizza.
>>
>> Every pizzaria uses canned 'shrooms, so do all Chinese restaurants...
>
>Yes and no. ;-) Some of the most awesome hot and sour soups I've had
>lately at 2 different chinese places use obviously freshly sliced white
>mushrooms. Many also use reconstituted thinly sliced Shitakes.
>
>I think it likely depends on the dish but yes, I can tell when they use
>those canned Straw mushrooms that are common in many recipes.

There are always a couple exceptions.

>> in most cooked dishes canned works fine, and are actually more
>> strongly flavored than fresh, their flavor potentcy falls between
>> fresh and dried... and there's quite a variety of canned 'shrooms,
>> they're not all buttons.
>
>Don't I just know it! I do shop for some canned mushrooms at asian
>markets. There are quite a variety, but they also offer a few fresh
>exotics for a good price.
>
>The only totally inedible canned mushroom I've found so far is canned
>Enokis.
>
>My slight dislike of canned mushrooms tho' is not their flavor. It's
>their TEXTURE! Tends to be just not quite right. I don't like the Enokis
>because they are not even chewable. Like trying to eat rubber bands. ;-p
>
>> For most cooked dishes I prefer dried. I
>> reserve fresh for salads and grilled, otherwise I use dried/canned.
>> Again, with a supply of dried and canned I always have mushrooms.
>
>Dried mushrooms are awesome and always a very good price if you compare
>the dried weight to wet weight and price. The estimate is about 10 to 1.
>10 lbs. of fresh mushrooms will dry down to 1 lb. of dried mushrooms. I
>use a lot of dried shitakes and also use them as a powder that I make
>myself. :-)
>
>I rehydrate shitakes overnight in a ziplock bag full of water with all
>the air squeezed out, usually for a few hours to overnight in the
>refrigerator. I like them to be soft, not rubbery. The ziplock trick
>keeps them submerged as they tend to float like corks!
>
>I keep the reconstitution liquid as a stock base or use it in the soup.

Dried reconstitute quickly in tepid water.