I love the flavor that develops from lacto fermenting mushrooms. I’m a little bit suspicious of white button mushrooms (Agaricus species) since they contain agaritine. Agaritine is broken down by heat, making it safe. If you eat raw Agaricus, the agaritine is made into phenylhydrazines in the gut, which causes liver damage and can eventually make you anemic. Under no circumstances should you eat raw Agaricus.

So what about lacto-fermenting them? We know agaritine is heat sensitive. Is it also sensitive to microbial activity, so that it breaks down?

  • malte@slrpnk.netOPdansk
    1·
    1 month ago

    I follow mycological authorities on this issue instead of judging on my own from the scientific articles. The consensus in the fungi community where I come from is that agaritine and the phenylhydrazines it creates in the gut are at the least suspect and potentially damaging to the liver. The official advice is to keep intake low until we know better and to not eat Agaricus raw (you shouldn’t eat mushrooms raw anyway).