I’ve reviewed one of Paesana products before–their pickled Cauliflower mix. Paesana’s Grilled Mushroom Mix is fundamentally different from that so I was not sure what to expect. Looking at the jar, I was thinking this would be some sort of oily mushroom mix with some, I don’t know, strong grilled flavor with some other notes.

That was not the case. This mushroom mix really isn’t oily at all. It’s more watery than oily. Which is a pleasant surprise since I generally dislike oily things. The mushrooms themselves came in a variety of shapes and sizes.

Now for the flavor: well, they taste of mushrooms. No issue there and not shocking! They don’t carry a special flavor that I could tell. The jar says marinated with garlic or herbs…but I didn’t get either of that in my tasting.

Where things begin to get…not so pleasant. The texture. The texture is sort of chewy and spongey. The first time I tried them I was ok with it, but the second time I had them I was very turned off texturally by the slimy/spongey aspect of it. Not a fan.

So….unfortunately, I cannot recommend this Paesana Mushroom Mix. Eaten as they are, the texture was a turn-off for me and there was not a strong enough flavor to save it. I recognize that texture is very personal-taste dependent, so I know that some people might like this type of spongey texture, but I personally don’t. If you know you do, then go try these, if you know you don’t, then definitely don’t.