Mushrooms positioned as energy-boosting ‘super food’

The Mushroom Bureau has launched a new campaign to market the vegetable as this summer’s energy-boosting ‘super food’.

New research released by the trade body reveals that 39 per cent of UK adults have felt the effects of the cost-of-living crisis on their diet. And that figure rises to 48 per cent among 18-24-year-olds.

Some 38 per cent of UK adults say they sometimes lack energy in the summer months, however 76 per cent are unaware that mushrooms contain energy-boosting B vitamins that can help combat sluggishness by converting food into energy.

In addition, the vegetable is low in calories and high in fibre.

According to the survey, the cost-of-living crisis has forced 58 per cent of Brits to re-evaluate their weekly shopping habits, while 30 per cent say they no longer buy vitamin supplements for the same reason.

Surprisingly, only 16 per cent of Brits have tried new foods to help boost their energy levels, but The Mushroom Bureau hopes to change that. The move follows other recent campaigns, conducted by promotional body UK & Ireland Mushroom Producers, to raise awareness of the product’s vitamin D content.

“The mighty mushroom provides a healthy and low-cost way to make meals go further and get a much-needed health boost during longer daylight hours,” the bureau said.

As part of the campaign, TV cook Juliet Sear has created a Mushroom Menu of four easy recipes that are ideal for summer BBQs and family get-togethers.

The TV personality uses a variety of everyday mushrooms, including chestnut, closed cup, portobello and white – all of which are readily accessible from supermarkets nationwide. And she employs techniques such as ‘The Blend’, a rising trend for replacing beef mince with finely diced mushrooms.

The four recipes are as follows:

• A colourful summer mushroom salad, made with raw button mushrooms
• A mushroom flatbread, made from portobello mushrooms
• Blended mushroom burgers, made using The Blend technique to replace half of the beef mince with finely chopped mushrooms
• Mushroom kebabs, made with a mix of button, chestnut and portobello mushrooms

Sear said: “You can bring a lot of life and energy to your meals this summer with mushrooms, and my brand-new recipes aim to surprise and delight the nation into mixing up their usual summer repertoire with a healthy, delicious, and easy-to-achieve variety of dishes.”