There are kitchen brushes designed to help clean delicate foods, such as shiitake mushrooms. While these can be helpful, they are not necessary. Often, a quick rub with a dry paper towel is sufficient.
Some chefs prefer not to rinse shiitakes. If you know your mushrooms are free of chemicals, consider foregoing the use of any water at all.
Rinse again if visible dirt remains. It’s important to make sure the mushrooms are completely dry before cooking them.
For instance, if you’re holding the mushroom upside down and the stem is leaning towards you, pry the stem away from you. Discard the stems or save them for use in soups and stocks.
If you’re comfortable doing so, you can stack one shiitake mushroom cap on top of another and slice them simultaneously in order to save time.
Look for the mushrooms with the thickest caps.
The gills on the underside of the mushroom’s cap should be dry and firm too. Dark spots or a wet appearance indicate that a mushroom is past its prime. This evidence will first show itself on a mushroom’s gills.
If you want to preserve shiitakes in the fridge for a bit longer, cut off their gills. This will keep the rest of the mushroom fresh for about a week.
