Winter brings an array of delicious vegetables, meats, and mushrooms. While consuming more meat during the winter can indeed provide nutritional benefits and enhance physical strength, it’s important to pay attention to combining it with vegetables for a balanced diet.

Morel Mushrooms
Morel mushrooms, or “nam bung de” in Vietnamese, may not be well-known to everyone, but they offer high nutritional value despite their unappealing appearance. In the market, a single ounce of dried morel mushrooms can cost up to a million Vietnamese dong.
However, their delicious flavor and nutritional benefits make them worth the price. Regularly consuming this type of mushroom provides a good source of vitamin B, fiber, amino acids, protein, and selenium.
Morel mushrooms offer various health benefits, including improved sleep quality, better digestion, and overall nourishment. It is recommended that individuals over 50 years old consume this mushroom twice a week to stay healthy and resilient during the cold winter months.
Here are some tasty dishes you can make using morel mushrooms:
1. Stir-fried Morel Mushrooms
Ingredients:
– Morel mushrooms
– Green chili peppers
– Scallions
– Salt
– Chicken essence
– Cooking oil

Instructions:
– Soak the morel mushrooms in water for about 2 hours before cooking, then rinse them again.
– Cut each mushroom into halves or quarters, depending on their size. Clean and deseed the green chili peppers, then cut them into small pieces.
– Heat some oil in a pan and sauté the scallions. Add the morel mushrooms and continue stir-frying. Pour in a small amount of water and simmer over low heat.
– Once the soup thickens, add the green chili peppers and continue stir-frying until they soften. Season with salt and chicken essence to taste.

Stir-fried Morel Mushrooms
You can also stir-fry morels with other vegetables like peas and asparagus.
2. Morel Mushroom Soup
Ingredients:
– Morel mushrooms
– Oyster mushrooms
– Shiitake mushrooms
– Seafood mushrooms
– Red dates
– Goji berries
– Chopped scallions
– Salt

Instructions:
– Clean all the mushrooms. If you’re using dried mushrooms, remember to soak them first and then clean them individually.
– Chop the scallions and red dates (remove the seeds). Rinse the goji berries.
– In a pot, combine all the mushrooms and red dates. Add just enough water to start stewing. Once it comes to a boil, simmer over low heat for about 40 minutes until the mushrooms release their aroma.
– Finally, add a few goji berries and season with salt. Stir well, garnish with chopped scallions, and serve. Delicious!
