THE CHEF’S CORNER
Lou Caputo, co-owner of Kennett Square Specialties, is a fourth-generation exotic mushroom farmer.
LOU CAPUTO, KENNETT SQUARE SPECIALTIES Straight outta the Mushroom Capital of the World, a ’shroom guru shares his secrets and best practices for preparing every pizza maker’s favorite fungi. BY BRIAN HERNANDEZ When you hear pepperoni, you think pizza. But what pops into your head when you think of Pennsylvania? The Liberty Bell, Rocky, maybe cheesesteaks? Well, how about mushrooms? Tucked away in the southeastern corner of the state, just a stone’s throw from Pittsburgh and Baltimore, lies Kennett Square, the official Mushroom Capital of the World. How did a quaint hamlet in Chester County earn such a lofty moniker? There were no bloody battles fought nor lands dominated—the folks there just found something they were good at and learned to do it very well. Lou Caputo, co-owner of Kennett Square Specialties (KSS), has been around the mushroom biz since the 1950s, beginning as a young mudslinger on a relative’s farm. He grew to learn, appreciate and understand all aspects of the mushroom, from growth to taste and preparation. Now Kennett Square provides 500 million pounds of mushrooms to the entire world, accounting for half of the United States’ mushroom crop. Caputo planted himself in the Chef ’s Corner to divulge some of his secrets and best practices for our favorite fungi.
PMQ: How did you get started in mushrooms? Caputo: I’m a fourth-generation exotic mushroom farmer. I started on my uncle’s mushroom farm in the ’50s. He needed someone to water the horse manure and straw coming in from the racetracks and fields, and, at 10½ years old, I was the man! That was my first job, and it’s been mushrooms ever since. PMQ: How did Kennett Square become the Mushroom Capital of the World? Caputo: The story goes that J.B. Swain was the first one to try to grow and sustain a mushroom here. We had access to all of the raw materials needed for growing, such as hay and straw from the fields in the area and the horse manure from the tracks and stables nearby. We used to get cocoa shells from the Hershey Company. We also had things like cottonseed hulls, corn flour and cottonseed meal coming up on rail from the South. Basically, it started in Kennett Square and remained in Kennett Square.
20 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA
