substituting fresh mushrooms for dried porcini?

A lot of recipes I'd like to try call for dried porcini. I often have access to reasonably priced fresh porcini, whereas it's actually a longer trip to a different store to get more expensive dried porcini. Should I assume that fresh porcini is better (and the recipes call for dried because they assume most people can't get fresh) or is there something special about the flavor or texture of dried that means the dish won't turn out quite right? Skipping the soaking time alone would be a great boon. If I do use fresh instead of dried, should I do anything special to replicate the dried porcini flavor? Thanks for your advice.

Here's an idea: have some porcini powder on hand (or mixed wild mushroom powder, which is less expensive) and add it to your recipe if you use the fresh mushrooms (I've often done this; it punches up the mushroom flavor). I disagree that fresh porcini do not have a distinctive flavor, but in general, dried will have a more intense flavor. Using the fresh + powder gives you more or less the same effect without the soaking step.

Agreed, the American "porcini"are pretty blah and IMO a complete waste of money given their price, but the now quite scarce and even more expensive Italian 'shrooms are not at all "just like" button mushrooms (or cremini or other regular mushrooms.) I think China has also started exporting their version of the same species, but they aren't as good, either, and still quite expensive.

If you really object to the price, you can dry button mushrooms, too. They won't taste like porcini, but they will give an analogous earthy, strong flavor very unlike fresh 'shrooms.

Hm, never heard of dried wild mushroom powder, I'll look around for that. Okay... just found it on my old stand-by Adriana's Caravan, in case I can't find it around here. They're charging $6.50/oz dried porcini, or $5.00/oz ground porcini -- is that reasonable or rip-off?

I agree with you -- the fresh porcini I get definitely have a distinctive taste, and the price is not that much higher than standard button mushrooms. Maybe they're grown locally (CA).

Link: http://www.adrianascaravan.com

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but fresh porcini and dried porcini taste completely different. You cannot substitute one for the other. fresh taste pretty much like any other mild mushroom. However, once you've tasted dried porcini you would never mistake them for anything else you have ever put into your mouth. They have a very strong distinct smoky, garlicky tang. So strong that I usually use less than the recipe calls for and freeze the water in which I've soaked them for some other use.

Actually, that isn't quite it. Porcini ain't Porcini. Fresh usually come from the California/Oregon border area (or occasionally from South Africa) while dried are generally from Italy. Why? Well unless you want to exploit an underserved market, for no good reasson. OK, the market is small and customs can be a hassle, and distributing a few pounds into many markets.... And dried porcini are pretty good. Not as good as dried morel, but second best in the mushroom world. And they keep.

So, if you buy fresh porcini, stick with the stems, leaving the caps, if possible. Check carefully for worms. Check again for worms. Check again, you missed them. Then order the dried Italian ones from any on-line place.

And next time you are in Italy, both try the fresh on a pizza, or in a pasta, or, or, and buy some dried.

I agree. When in Italy, I like the San Lorenzo Market in Florence, buy large bagfuls and store in the freezer. I use them in lots of recipes and adore their strong, mushroomy taste.

I've been told by a mushroom expert that dried porcini mostly originates in Poland (or Hungary?).

Now that you describe it, I do remember the earthy intensity of the dried porcini. Dang, you're right, fresh would make a horrible substitute.

So it seems it's the "dried" part more than the mushroom itself making the difference. What if I substitute dried shiitake or even dried wood ear? Those I can get readily.

>>> What if I substitute dried shiitake or even dried wood ear? <<<

Nope.

Pretty tasteless, IMO. If you are near an Eastern European store, preferably Polish, get Polish dried cepes which, IMO, are far superior to dried porcini anyway.

If you have a really good Polish market they will have them in bins or hanging on strings. The cellophane bagged ones will do. However, be careful on the price. There are lower price ones and some that are over $100 a pound ... however you only need a little.

Hi rw! But, aren't cepes just another name for porcini?

Yes, you are right. The morel/worm digression in another post had me thinking morels. But the other point was that Eastern European markets are another source to find the mushroom or other suitable dried mushrooms substitutes.

Although I would argue that climate/growing medium/handling have a lot to do with flavor and just like the California porcini are not as tasty as thier Italian cousins, Polish ceps are superior to those grown anyplace else.

Also, Polish stores like Seakor will grade the ceps so, depending on quality, as stated, the price can be anywhere from $ to $$$ per pound.

Anyway, also called borowik, but in Polish stores I find cep more common.

To the morel poster, (I was huffing a little about it being considered superior by that delusioned person), the following link which has more Polish mushroom info says:

"Although the smardz (morel) is also picked in Poland, it is ranked as a mediocre find, since there are many species that equal or surpass it in taste. In the U.S., by contrast, morels are among the most highly prized wild species. "

http://www.polartcenter.com/cgi-bin/shop.pl/page=food.htm#mushrooms

That is not to argue the point of which mushroom is better, just to point out origin is important. For morels, the growing conditions are better in the US than in Poland, so better taste ... then again, perhaps Americans don't know any better.

I SHOULD put a smiley face here to avoid a mushroom flame, but m-a-y-b-e I really do feel that way. Anyway, Martha Steward says Polish dried mushrooms are the best in the world, so it must be so.

Sorry I don't have recs about other good dried Polish mushrooms that would be a good substitute. When I buy them, I just go with the bin that has the most divine, intense aroma and, even if I could, I never ask what variety ... Seakor isn't exactly question-friendly. If buying from a Polish store, I would just let aroma guide you. If it doesn't smell intense, it won't taste intense.

Funny, but if it wasn't for Chowhound I wouldn't know anything about Polish mushrooms. In one of my first posts a few years ago that raphsodized about the selection of dried mushrooms at Seakor, someone asked me what type of mushroom they were and all I could say was ... Polish. Never had a clue before that there were different varieties.

A mushroom, is not a mushroom, is not a mushroom.

Link: http://www.grzyby.pl/fjadalne.htm

Just to clarify my morel comments, I meant to say that dried morel are closer to fresh morel than any other dried mushroom reflects its own fresh version. And cepes do very well too. Like herbs, most dried mushrooms do not do justice to their fresh version.

I would never want to make a blanket statement about which mushroom is best.

"And cepes do very well too. Like herbs, most dried mushrooms do not do justice to their fresh version."
 
A blanket statement doesn't work for any of this - it all depends on what you need them for. If you're making a rich mushroom broth, dried mushrooms are essential. There are a few herbs that work better in dried form too - oregano for instance.
Sometimes the dried product is just a different beast entirely - texture, flavor, concentration - not a preservation issue.

No other dried mushroom tastes anything like the smokiness of the porcini. You'd probably get closer to the flavor with crumbled bacon than with dried shitake or wood ears.

Thanks! This is exactly the kind of advice I was looking for -- how to more or less approximate the flavor "on the fly" with what I'm likely to have (which is not, I'm afraid, dried Polish cepes - although I'll definitely keep my eye out for those now).