White oyster mushroom has high economic value because it is often sold as a healthy food, and it is as an alternative to meat. One of the villages where it is considered as the center of mushroom production in Bogor is Bojong Koneng. The processed mushroom product developed there is oyster mushroom chips.
To obtain raw mushroom is through cultivation which is developed through an innovative mycoponics program by focusing on the use of agricultural waste as a growing medium for one type of mushroom, namely white oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus). This year, the community service program focuses on the development of various processed mushroom products.
Oyster mushroom cultivation was introduced by a lecturer at the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Indonesia (FMIPA UI) Dr. Retno Lestari, M.Sc., through the mycoponics program in 2019 in Bojong Koneng Village, Sentul, West Java.
This was carried out as a series of community service programs. She educated and invited the public to actively participate in mushroom cultivation. Through this program, it is expected to build the potential of Bojong Koneng Village.
Dr. Retno, as the lecturer at the Department of Biology of FMIPA UI, introduced mushroom chip product with the name MikoQu to the Bojong Koneng village. The name is taken from the Mikoponik program which received grants from the Higher Education Excellence Community Service Program (PPMUPT) of the Ministry of Research and Technology – the National Research and Innovation Agency.
“The community service program chose processed mushroom chip products because of the crispy texture of the mushroom chips, making this type of healthy food popular with many people. It is also very simple to make, so housewives who live around the Mikoponic oyster mushroom cultivation center in Bojong Koneng village can easily make it,” said Retno.
She explained that oyster mushrooms have a high protein content, so mushroom chips are expected to be an alternative to meeting the protein needs of the community as a substitute for meat. Apart from being rich in protein, these oyster mushroom chips also have high economic value for sale and consumption.
In this case, of course, there is a process in processing processed mushroom products into mushroom chips. The initial step starts from preparing the mushrooms that have been harvested and have been cleaned. Then the mushrooms are washed and put into boiling water containing spices such as salt, flavoring, and others.
The last step is to drain the mushrooms and put the mushrooms into the flour mixture that has been prepared for frying in the fry. However, to increase the crispiness, oyster mushrooms can be stored first in the freezer.
This community service program provides benefits to the community by increasing their productivity, providing additional income, providing affordable yet protein-rich food alternatives, utilizing ‘idle’ land and optimizing wood waste around the village of Bojong Koneng area.
One of the managers of Kumbung Mushrooms in Bojong Koneng Village, Hadi, said that the program becomes an alternative in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic when demand for fresh oyster mushrooms decreases by 43.7% because many restaurants, cafes and hotels are not open or limit their operational hours during the Implementation of Restrictions on Social Activities (PPKM) period.
Yeni, as a person who has great interest and passion in making mushroom chips, also explained that this activity was very beneficial for the village community. She hopes that it will increase the income of the local community. They were not only provided with instructions on how to cook mushroom chips but also given socialization on the introduction of product branding as well as hygienic and attractive packaging.
