Fresh Bamboo shoots have a totally different taste and texture than the canned ones found at most supermarkets. Bamboo shoots have some sort of toxin in them that can actually turn to cyanide in your gutty works. They also taste bitter. If prepared correctly they become safe to eat and delicious. The good news is it’s easy as pie to do. The trick is to cook them in water that you have rinsed rice in, or by adding rice bran to water. I’m not sure of the exact science behind it but that’s how it’s done.
Directions:
1) Slit your bamboo in half and cut the top off
2) Boil your bamboo shoots in water you have rinsed rice in. Alternatively you can add a handful of rice bran to your boiling water. (I was serving rice the last time I made these so I rinsed 2 cups of Texas long grain white rice, and saved the rinsing water to use for boiling my bamboo shoots. I haven’t tried the method yet where you just add rice bran to water.)
3) I boiled my bamboo shoots in the water for about 25 minutes. When they are finished they should be tender.
4) Peel the rough outside leaves off until you reach the beautiful off white center.You can then cut the bamboo shoot as desired for your recipe.I usually go for slices lengthwise.
I taught myself how to prepare the bamboo shoots using a very helpful video off of youtube. I posted the link below.
