How to dry mushrooms properly. Drying mushrooms at home in various ways
Porcini mushrooms, or boletus, are very attractive in appearance. They have a thick fleshy leg and a large cap, and the taste of the pulp is extremely pleasant, and not only fried or salted, but also dried. Drying is considered the most in a simple way preservation of the harvest throughout the winter, especially since this process does not require significant labor costs, and dried mushrooms I can be a great addition to any dishes.
If you plan to dry boletus for the winter, you should familiarize yourself with the details of this process and methods of drying in advance, because the quality of the harvest will depend on this. Useful Tips on how to dry porcini mushrooms at home correctly, you will find in our today's article.
How to dry porcini mushrooms at home
All fresh fruit bodies contain a lot of water in the pulp, so they are not intended to be stored raw for long periods of time. Within a few days they wither, lose their density and taste. Therefore, immediately after collection, you need to take care of the preservation of boletus throughout the winter.
Note: There are many harvesting methods, and boletus mushrooms are generally considered universal, since they do not lose their taste after salting, pickling, freezing or drying. The last method is considered the simplest, since you do not have to spend a lot of time and effort on the preparation.
The main purpose of drying is to naturally remove most of the moisture from the pulp. This will give you a quality blank that can be stored in a dry glass jar with a lid for several months, and in some cases even years. In the process of drying and removing moisture, microorganisms die in the pulp, which simply cannot live and multiply in such a dry environment.
Despite the fact that drying boletus is considered the easiest way to harvest them, you need to properly prepare for this process. Only if certain conditions are met, the workpiece will turn out to be truly tasty, healthy and aromatic.
How to prepare mushrooms for drying
Proper preparation plays a key role in high-quality drying of boletus mushrooms. It is advisable to send them for processing as soon as possible, since during storage the pulp loses its density, taste and aroma (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Preparation of fruiting bodies Since all mushrooms, especially tubular ones, which include boletus, quickly absorb moisture, they cannot be washed before drying. It is enough to simply remove the remnants of soil, leaves and other debris from their surface. Heavily soiled specimens can be lightly wiped with a dry cloth or scrubbed with the back of a knife. It is also advisable to cut off the lower part of the leg, on which particles of earth may remain. This concludes the preparation. It remains only to choose the appropriate method for drying boletus at home.
How to properly cut mushrooms for drying
Usually boletus mushrooms are dried whole, laying them with their caps down or hanging them on a string. But in some cases, in order to save time, especially large specimens are cut into pieces (Figure 2).
Figure 2. Slicing methods Cutting boletus for drying is practiced only if they will be treated with warm air from an oven or oven. It is technologically correct to cut large specimens lengthwise, dividing in half both the leg and the cap. In the future, such prepared boletus can be placed on a baking sheet or strung on long metal or wooden knitting needles. In this case, the fruiting bodies are evenly dried and do not burn. Small ones do not need to be cut, since there is a high risk of overdrying them in a hot oven. But cutting large specimens will help make them more uniform, simplify the drying process and make it better.
How to properly dry porcini mushrooms at home
Not everyone has the opportunity to dry porcini mushrooms in a real oven, although this method is considered the best, since the finished pieces retain their color, taste and aroma. But residents of cities should not be upset: they can be dried qualitatively in other ways, and the finished boletus will turn out to be no worse than those that were treated with warm air in the oven.
In general, drying methods are divided into two types. The first involves the preparation of boletus in the fresh air: for example, in the sun or on a string suspended in the attic. The second type involves the use of various techniques and other benefits of civilization: ovens, microwaves or special electric dryers. To make it easier for you to choose the appropriate method, we will consider each of them in more detail.
Drying mushrooms on a string
Stringing boletus boletus onto a string for drying is considered one of the oldest harvesting methods. The string can be hung near the stove or stove, or in any other place where boletus will be blown with warm air (Figure 3).
Figure 3. Drying on a string First of all, you need to properly prepare the crop. Mushrooms are cleaned of debris and parts of the earth, cut off the lower part of the leg. Small boletuses are strung on a thread entirely, and large specimens are cut along the leg into two parts. The thread or twine is passed through the central part of the leg so that the fungus does not fall from the thread during the drying process. In the future, such a workpiece can be hung in a warm, well-ventilated room. You can speed up the drying process if the mushrooms are located near a warm radiator, stove or stove.
How to dry porcini mushrooms in the sun
In general, it is not customary to dry boletus in the bright sun, since in this case their pulp will lose moisture too quickly, the workpiece will turn out to be dry and begin to crumble during storage.
Note: If you still prefer to dry boletus naturally, you can spread them on a baking sheet or string them on a string, and then move them to a warm room with good ventilation and moderate lighting. It is important that the fruiting bodies do not come into contact with each other, therefore the boletus is laid out in one layer, with the caps down.
If you use a metal baking sheet, it is advisable to cover it with straw or dry leaves and only then lay out the fruit bodies. If you do not do this, the workpiece will have a pronounced metallic taste.
The method of drying in the sun is extremely popular with those who go to the forest for several days and cannot process the harvested crop in any other way (Figure 4). To do this, you will need wooden knitting needles (ramrods) on which boletus mushrooms are strung. It is advisable to use just wooden sticks, since when in contact with metal, the fruiting bodies may darken. Small specimens are strung on the ramrod entirely, and large ones can either be cut in half, or the cap can be separated from the leg. Regardless of the size of the fruit bodies, they need to be strung in such a way that they do not come into contact with each other.
Figure 4. Options for drying in the sun Next, the ramrod is inserted into the stand so that the spokes are positioned vertically. For example, you can use a box or other container with sand or earth for this purpose. Prepared ramrods are transferred to the windward side and left for 2-3 days in the sun. It is better to cover the boletus with a loose cloth or gauze so that flies and other insects do not land on them. It should be borne in mind that when using this method, it will not be possible to completely dry the mushrooms and they will have to be dried in the oven or oven.
In an electric and gas oven
Drying principle in electric oven about the same as in a wood-burning stove. It is advisable to spread the boletus not on a wire rack, but on baking sheets covered with parchment paper. Then they will not absorb an unpleasant metallic smell and taste (Figure 5).
In general, drying mushrooms in the oven looks like this:
- Prepared boletus is laid out on a baking sheet with the caps down. Large specimens are cut to length or the cap is separated from the stem.
- The baking sheet is placed in the oven and the temperature is turned on 50-55 degrees. In such conditions, the fruiting bodies must languish for several hours.
- Next, the boletus is taken out of the oven, allowed to cool slightly and put back in the oven, but the temperature is turned on by +70 degrees.
Figure 5. Drying process in the oven It is important that in the process inside oven there was enough air. If there are no ventilation holes inside, the door should be kept slightly ajar so that warm air evenly blows over all fruit bodies.
Such drying allows you to evenly remove moisture from the fruit bodies, but dry the mushrooms. Otherwise, as with too hot air, the boletus will become too brittle and crumble during storage.
In the microwave
A small amount of mushrooms can also be dried in a regular microwave. To do this, the prepared boletus is laid out on a plate and placed in the oven. The microwave power should be at the level of 100-200 watts. The drying time in this case is only 18 minutes.
Figure 6. Microwave drying Next, you need to get them out, let them cool completely and repeat the procedure two or three times. The number of approaches depends on the size of the fruit bodies: small ones lose moisture much faster than large ones (Figure 6). If you nevertheless notice that the boletus is not completely dry, you can cook them in the sun or in the oven.
In an electric dryer
An excellent example of household appliances is considered an electric dryer, in which you can dry vegetables, fruits, spicy and medicinal herbs as well as mushrooms. However, it should be borne in mind that the duration of cooking whole boletus in such a device will be very long, therefore it is better to immediately cut large specimens into small pieces.
Figure 7. Laying fruit bodies in an electric dryer To make a blank, the fruit bodies are laid out on the grate of the dryer so that they do not come into contact with each other and the temperature is set to +55 degrees. In such conditions, boletus should be treated with warm air for 6-9 hours, however, the duration directly depends on the power of the equipment and its model (Figure 7).
In general, we can say that an electric dryer is the best modern way to harvest boletus mushrooms for the winter. In the chamber of this device, the most suitable conditions are created for treating fruit bodies with warm air, and the constant supply of oxygen leads to uniform evaporation of moisture. As a result, ready-made dried mushrooms retain their unique taste and aroma.
How to store dried porcini mushrooms
It is important not only to properly prepare and dry the mushrooms, but also to preserve them until the new "quiet hunting" season. Despite the fact that pathogens do not multiply in the moisture-free pulp, under certain conditions they can still deteriorate.
First, they should only be stored in clean and dry glass jars with a tight lid (Figure 8). If desired, plastic containers can be used for the same purpose. However, it must be ensured that such a container does not have a characteristic unpleasant odor. The fact is that dried mushrooms absorb odors well, and the aroma of plastic can spoil the workpiece.
Figure 8. Storage options for finished workpieces Secondly, moisture must not be allowed to enter the container. Otherwise, fungi will begin to develop inside the jar or container, and the workpiece will acquire a persistent moldy smell. You cannot eat such a product, so wash and dry in advance the container in which you will put the dried boletus.
In addition, there are often cases when, during the drying process, the fruit bodies lose too much moisture and become fragile and brittle. Naturally, you will not be able to save them entirely, as they will quickly begin to crumble. But this does not mean at all that the workpiece is completely spoiled. You can always cook from it mushroom powder, which can also be a great addition to your favorite dishes. To do this, boletus is placed in a blender or coffee grinder and grinded to a uniform consistency. If large pieces come across in the powder, you can grind it again, and to add spice and piquancy to the workpiece, you can add salt and black peppercorns to it. Store such a powder in the same dry glass jar with a tight lid.
If you have never done drying porcini mushrooms at home, we suggest you watch a video that shows all the details of this process.
How to properly dry mushrooms at home mushroom pickers will tell in our article and share their secrets. It is not enough just to pick mushrooms, you need to know which of them can be eaten fresh, which to salt and which to dry. In today's article, we will focus on the rules for drying mushrooms. Newly minted mushroom pickers will find out practical advice to help you master this craft. Experienced ones will also be able to glean important information.
One of the most successful ways harvesting mushrooms - drying. They persist well with useful properties and even become more aromatic and rich. Moreover, mushrooms in this version are better absorbed than pickled or salted ones. In addition, in soups, they are irresistible. I especially want to note White mushroom.
After collecting a certain amount of mushrooms, you should not dry them immediately. Some species produce bitterness that will intensify as the fruit dries. Therefore, you should understand which mushrooms are more suitable for drying.
Which mushrooms to choose for drying?
Mushrooms are divided into several types:
- tubular;
- lamellar;
- tinder fungus;
- chanterelle;
- summy.
Let's consider each of the categories separately.
Tubular
Representatives of this family can be identified by the spores, which are located under the cap in a layer of small tubes, similar to a sponge.
Edible tubular mushrooms are almost all dryers. But the best ones are:
Lamellar
This family under the cap has radial stripes of dense plates in which spores are located. Most lamellar mushrooms there is a milky juice that will add bitterness if dried.
Here are the varieties of lamellar mushrooms that can be dried:
- winter, summer and autumn mushrooms;
- Champignon;
- colorful umbrella mushroom;
- deer mushrooms;
- pendants;
- fleecy scales.
Important! Only russula, milk mushrooms and volushkas are not dried, as they can taste bitter.
Chanterelle
They may look like lamellar, but instead of lamellae, they have folds of flesh. For a long time, science could not identify them to any species, so it separated them as its own family.
Of this species, only chanterelle ordinary, but there is also a little bitterness in it.
Marsupials
They look wrinkled, bumpy and shapeless. Spores in this species are kept in a separate special bag.
From this family, dried white truffle, which is a rare and expensive delicacy, and morels.
Morels should be eaten with caution. To be edible, they need to be properly processed. Dried for about 2 months, and better even longer. During this period, toxins disappear from them, and they become safe. Dry them only outdoors, not in a residential area.
Now, understanding what can be dried and what is not, we will discuss the next question, how to do it all the same.
Preparatory stage for high-quality drying
The final result depends on the correct preparation. You should try to make the vegetables tasty, healthy and aesthetically attractive. To do this, you need to carefully prepare the product.
The first, and one of the main questions, is how to cleanse the mushroom without resorting to the use of water. If the mushrooms are wet, they absorb water and take longer to dry.
A knife must be used for this process. With its help, the hats are cleaned of the remnants of leaves and grass. There is no need to remove the skin, they are dried with the skin.
Sand can be swept away with a soft dry brush. Any impurities that remain will be washed off immediately before preparing already dry mushrooms, which are soaked in water.
In the next step, the mushrooms are sorted by size. Small, medium and large are placed separately. This is necessary so that they dry evenly over a certain period of time.
It happens that the vegetable looks whole and resilient, but worms live inside. No matter how beautiful and large the mushroom is, if residents are found in it, it should be thrown away.
Aspen mushrooms, boletus, flywheels and butter are cut longitudinally to separate the leg from it at the very base of the cap.
The boletus is divided in half, cutting across.
Advice! When mushrooms are peeled and cut for drying, it is better to do this with a plastic knife. Unlike metal, it does not oxidize. Although it is not very convenient to use and difficult to adapt to, it is preferable.
If the metal knife is in contact with the fruit and the legs or caps are oxidized, then the taste of the finished product will be much lower.
Fundamental rules
There are basic rules that must be taken into account so that dried mushrooms are tasty and aromatic.
Drying methods for mushrooms
Outside
It will take about 7 days to dry the mushrooms outdoors in the sun in hot weather. Mushrooms, sliced or whole, are strung on a dense thread and hung in the sun. You need to string it so that they do not touch each other. You can cover them with gauze to keep flies and dust out.
You can place the chopped mushrooms on cardboard or baking paper. In extreme cases, on clean wooden boards, and dry it already in the oven or Russian stove.
In the oven
Mushrooms are laid out in a thin layer on the wire rack. It is convenient on it and there is no need to adapt something so that the mushrooms do not fall out. You can do this on a baking sheet, but then you should put baking paper on it so that the vegetables do not burn. They need to be laid out so that they do not touch each other.
Initially, you need to set the temperature to +45 degrees. When the mushrooms have dried up, but so that they do not darken, you will need to add the temperature to + 60 + 70 degrees. It is necessary for the air to circulate, for this you need to open the door a palm width. Replace the grates periodically during the process so that the raw material dries evenly.
Watch the video! How to quickly dry porcini mushrooms in the oven
In the microwave
- To use the microwave, you need to cut the mushrooms into slices about 5 mm thick.
- They should be laid out on a plate or wire rack, put on a power of 100 watts for 20 minutes.
- After that, open the door and check for 7 minutes.
- This process must be done 4-5 times.
- You can cook mushrooms in the microwave, but you have to work a little.
In the Russian oven
It would seem what is the difference between an oven and a stove. But the owners of both know for sure. The oven has its own special atmosphere. The air supply and drying quality are somewhat better in the oven.
Grandmothers always dried mushrooms in the oven. Bricks were placed under the grate so that they did not come into contact with the hot surface.
- Mushrooms can be placed on a wire rack, caps down, or strung on knitting needles or skewers. You can also lay them out on straw in the old fashioned way.
- You can put it in the oven when the temperature drops to +60 degrees.
Advice! Drying mushrooms at high temperatures can cause them to burn, turn black and spoil. If the temperature is too low, then they turn sour and disappear.
- It is necessary for air to circulate, for this the damper must be slightly open. Be sure to keep the chimney open.
- Initially, the valve should be 75% open even slightly more. But by the end of drying, it must be completely closed.
- Mushrooms can dry in different ways due to the fact that the caps are of different sizes. If they are overdried, they will not process well, and if they are not dried, they will quickly deteriorate. Therefore, it is gradually necessary to remove the ready-made dried caps, and dry the rest.
In an electric dryer
This option is for the lazy. The main thing here is to cut the mushrooms correctly. The plates should be at least 1 cm, but you can dry them whole, as anyone likes. Everything is simple here: the time and temperature are set and the process has begun.
You can experiment a little and add temperature, but slow down the time. The effect will be the same.
Watch the video! How to dry mushrooms in a dryer
Over the gas stove
Not a convenient way, but if there is no choice, then you can use it. The burners should burn continuously for 2-3 days. And if during the drying process the food is being prepared, the vegetables will absorb the steam and the smell of the food being prepared.
The mushrooms are strung on a rope and hung over the very ceiling, the burners are lit. If the gas is not turned off and the drying is continuous, the product will be ready in 3 days.
How do you know that dried mushrooms are ready?
Correctly dried mushrooms have a solid color, they are light and have no tan or burnt parts. They should be elastic, bend, but not break. The texture will be firm and not wet.
How to store
Half the job is done and the mushrooms are dried. Now it's time to do the second half - save them for the winter. To do this, you need jars and containers that twist well. Mushrooms very easily absorb odors and moisture, so they easily deteriorate and become moldy.
Some housewives put well-dried mushrooms in a sterilized jar, which they immediately close. You can smear the edges of the can with alcohol, set it on fire and close it immediately. then there will be a slight vacuum in it, which contributes to the storage of the mushrooms.
Alternatively, you can use cotton storage bags dried mushrooms... But for this you need to choose the right room in which they will be located. To store dry vegetables, it is necessary that the air circulates well, because the smell of mushrooms is very strong. They should not be stored with other strong-smelling vegetables, such as onions and garlic. If the mushrooms have absorbed moisture, they can be sorted out and dried.
So today we considered how to properly dry mushrooms at home and methods of their preparation. Let the mushroom stocks delight lovers of these fragrant fruits all year round.
Watch the video! How to dry mushrooms at home
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Drying mushrooms is The best way preserving all the best that mushrooms give us. If you want to enjoy this wonderful product all year round, then drying is ideal for this purpose.
Mushrooms are a valuable source of protein, iodine, iron, potassium, phosphorus, zinc and vitamins D, C, PP.
It is important to note that only tubular mushrooms and some lamellar mushrooms can be dried (russula and dung beetles, for example, are not suitable for drying). Mushrooms with milky juice are not dried, as they have a very sharp and bitter taste.
For drying, usually mushrooms, boletus, boletus, autumn mushrooms, aspen mushrooms, mushrooms, boletus and chanterelles are taken.
Mushrooms are harvested for drying in sunny dry weather.
Before drying, you need to clear the mushrooms from debris and earth. It is not recommended to wash them: most of the valuable substances and aroma will go away with water, the mushrooms will darken and may turn sour. You can wash already dried mushrooms.
Large mushrooms should be cut into quarters or halves. Cut large legs into 1 cm strips. For small and medium-sized mushrooms, separate the cap from the legs and dry whole. It is not necessary to cut and separate very small mushrooms - they are dried entirely. You can also cut all the mushrooms into strips (in case there are a lot of mushrooms and you do not want to mess with them for a long time) - in this case, it will proceed much faster. It is better to slice the mushrooms lengthwise.
You can also categorize the mushrooms by type or size for easier drying.
For drying mushrooms in the oven you need to prepare a baking sheet. Spread the peeled and cut mushrooms on a baking sheet, lightly greasing it with oil. Baking paper is also placed on the baking sheet, then oil is not needed. You can put the mushrooms not on a baking sheet, but on a wire rack. In this case, you will need baking paper to place on the wire rack and spread out the mushrooms.
The mushrooms must be laid out so that the caps are facing up, and there is a little space between the mushrooms (1 mm).
Another way to conduct drying mushrooms in the oven- knitting drying. If you decide to use knitting needles to dry mushrooms, you will need wooden knitting needles that are the same length as the width of the oven. The ends of the knitting needles need to be sharpened and mushrooms strung on them. When the knitting needles are completely filled, they must be placed in the oven so that the ends lie on the horizontal ribs of the side walls of the oven.
If the oven does not have special ventilation holes, you must leave the door ajar. If there is a fan, turn it on.
At the beginning of drying, set a low temperature - about 50 ° C. The initial stage of mushroom drying should proceed at a low temperature, because if the temperature is immediately high, white droplets will appear on the mushrooms - protein substances, the mushrooms will darken. As soon as you notice the droplets, the temperature should be lowered and the mushrooms removed from the oven.
After about 1.5-2 hours, the temperature is increased to 70-80 ° C. At this temperature, the mushrooms should be dried for about 2 more hours, after which the temperature in the oven is again lowered to 55 ° C and the mushrooms are dried for another 2 hours.
Remember to stir the mushrooms occasionally during the drying process.
Dry mushrooms must be selected, the rest must be dried.
It's hard to tell how long it takes drying mushrooms in the oven, since the drying time for each mushroom is different.
When dried, about 76% of the water is evaporated from the mushrooms.
If the mushrooms are not completely dry in the oven, they can be dried in the air or indoors.
It is easy to check whether the mushroom is dry - you need to break the cap. If the inside of the mushroom is wet, it has not yet dried and drying must be continued.
Dried mushrooms are convenient and easy to store. They are stored for a long time and do not lose their taste and aroma.
You can store dried mushrooms at any temperature, in a dark place. It is good to store mushrooms in glass jars, clay pots, tin, wooden and plastic boxes intended for storage food products... Closing the container with dried mushrooms should not be hermetically sealed. You can just tighten with foil. Dried mushrooms are also stored in bags, but moths can start there.
In season, you have the opportunity to collect a large amount, but fresh this product very little is stored, so you either need it or. Today we will discuss the second option, as well as talk about the main drying options and how to store dried mushrooms.
Which mushrooms are suitable for drying
Before you understand all the intricacies of drying, you should initially talk about which ones can be dried.
It is worth drying tubular mushrooms, since, unlike lamellar mushrooms, they do not acquire bitterness during the drying process.
The best types for drying:
- birch bark;
If you are not afraid of bitterness or you know how to cope with it, then you can dry the hangings too. The list of eligible species does not include very small ones, such as mouse mushrooms. The thing is that during the drying process, the raw material loses up to 90% of its mass. And if the raw material already weighs less than 20-30 g, then practically nothing will remain of it - it is better to preserve such species.
Mushroom preparation
Before you start drying, you need to prepare the collected ones.
Let's make a small digression and talk about the required quality of raw materials. The fact is that if you have collected old or rotten mushrooms, then it is best to cut them off and immediately use them for cooking, and not try to dry them. Only young mushrooms are suitable for drying, which have good quality and are not damaged in any way. 
Returning to preparation: immediately after collection, the raw materials must be cleaned of debris and earth, but in no case washed. If moisture gets on the product, then it will dry several times longer, and the taste will deteriorate significantly.
Immediately after cleaning, the mushrooms are sorted out, removing the rotten ones and cutting off the damaged ones.
Important! To ensure that the cuts on the product do not darken, the trimming must be carried out using a stainless steel knife.
Drying methods
Outdoors
The easiest drying option that does not require the use of any equipment.
It should be understood that it is worth carrying out in the summer or in late spring - early autumn, so that the products can be dried in a fairly short time. 
- All mushrooms are cut into plates before drying. The leg can be detached for faster drying.
- The plates are strung on the fishing line so that they do not touch each other, otherwise in the places of contact, the raw material will not dry out well and will not be stored. You can also use wooden trays or paper, but in this case you need a large enough area to lay out the raw materials.
- All prepared mushrooms are placed in a place where dust and rain will not get on them. In this case, the place should be well warmed up by the sun and well ventilated so that drying takes place faster.
- After laying out or hanging the product, cover everything with a mesh with fine meshes so that flies do not land.
Did you know? Since the mushroom is considered to be something between animals and plants, we can say that this living organism is the largest creature on earth. This proves that it was found in Oregon. Its area was 900 hectares.
In the oven
Drying mushrooms in the oven differs in that in this case more depends on you than when drying in the fresh air, so you should understand that improvisation in this case can spoil a large amount of raw materials.
An oven is best suited for drying, in which there is an additional blowing function, since without it you will have to open the door so that there is at least some air circulation. In the absence of airflow, the drying process will slow down significantly.
- We need to take the iron grates, which are usually used for grilling, spread the mushrooms on them in one layer and put them in the oven.
- Set the temperature in the region of 60-70 ° С and, if necessary, slightly open the oven door.
- Every 15-20 minutes, the grates must be changed in places so that all the mushrooms dry equally well.
You need to dry until they decrease several times. At the same time, they should not be oily, but dry to the touch.
Important! Do not raise the temperature, otherwise you will bake the mushrooms, not dry them.
In an electric dryer
Perhaps the best quality product you will get if you dry it in. Of course, the technique will not replace all the delights of natural drying, but you certainly cannot spoil the products.
- The raw material is cleaned and cut into thin slices. Choose the thickness yourself, but take into account the fact that if the product is small, then it makes no sense to cut it into too thin slices.
- Everything is laid out in one layer on each tier of the dryer, the temperature is set to 55 ° C.
- We are waiting from 2 to 6 hours until our mushrooms are completely dry.
As a rule, absolutely all mushrooms can be dried in this way - both tubular () and lamellar, especially at home conditions that do not make it possible to dry products in the open air.
In the microwave
Consider also the option of how to dry mushrooms in the microwave.
This is not to say that this is the optimal technique for drying, but in the absence of other options, it can also be used for our purposes.
- We clean and cut the raw materials.
- Take a plate or baking sheet that is suitable for microwave oven... Ideally, of course, you need to use a grate, but in the absence of one, you can take any non-metal utensils.
- We lay out everything in a thin layer, set it to 100-180 W, and "dry" for about 20 minutes.
- After the specified time has passed, the microwave must be opened for 15 minutes so that all the moisture can escape. Then close and repeat again.
- The optimal number of repetitions is 2-3 times, however, if the mushrooms are cut into thick plates, then it can be increased up to 4-5 times.
How to determine readiness
Willingness to determine is very difficult, so in this case, only practice and experience are important.
Boletus - as porcini mushrooms are popularly called - are considered the most delicious. And their appearance is quite presentable: a plump leg, a fleshy hat. Porcini mushrooms are also loved because they do not change color, remaining light even in a dried state.
But you need to be able to dry the porcini mushroom correctly.
Preparing porcini mushrooms for drying
Mushrooms that are harvested for drying can (and preferably) begin to be processed while still in the forest. After all, such mushrooms cannot be washed. Since they instantly absorb water, like a sponge, and they simply cannot be dried later. This is especially true for tubular mushrooms.
Therefore, having cut off the mushroom, they immediately examine it for damage and worms. Then the lower part of the leg is cut off and cleaned of dirt and sand. It is not recommended to pick very large mushrooms, which may contain a lot of toxic substances. And since mushrooms are not washed, these same toxins will remain in them.
Sticking needles and moss are removed from the cap.
The whole mushroom is carefully wiped off with a slightly damp towel.
How to dry porcini mushrooms in the sun
Mushroom pickers, who are in the forest without a break for several days when harvesting mushrooms, begin drying right on the spot.
For this, it is advisable to have special stands. Each of the mushroom pickers comes up with their own design, but the main thing is that the stands have holes for knitting needles or ramrods, which can be positioned both horizontally and vertically.
It is better to use a cleaning rod made of stainless steel or wooden, because the mushroom can darken from contact with iron.
If the mushrooms are large, then they are dried, separating the legs from the caps. They are strung on a ramrod, pierced in the middle, and distributed in such a way that the mushrooms do not come into contact with each other.
Stands with strung porcini mushrooms are exposed to the sun from the windward side. So that the mushrooms do not turn out to be infested flies, they must be covered with gauze or a cloth that allows the sun's rays and air to pass through well.
In this way, the mushrooms are dried for two to three days. But then they will definitely need to be dried in the oven or oven.
How to dry porcini mushrooms in the oven
Some houses, especially in villages, still have stoves. And therefore, mushrooms can be dried in them.
Before drying, the mushrooms are cut. Medium-sized mushrooms are cut lengthwise into two halves, so that each half consists of a stem and a cap.
If the boletus is large, they are divided into a leg and a cap. The legs are cut across into circles, and the hats are cut into slices.
You can also dry porcini mushrooms as mushroom noodles... Boletus is cut along the entire mushroom into thin slices. This method is good because the mushrooms dry faster and are better stored.
Small porcini mushrooms are dried whole.
To do this, cover the baking sheet with straw. This must be done so that the mushrooms on a bare baking sheet do not burn or turn black. Mushrooms are placed on the straw: whole boletus is laid out with the caps down, and the chopped mushrooms - in one layer.
The baking sheet is placed in the oven after preparing dinner, when the oven is well warmed up, but there is no longer a strong heat.
The temperature at the beginning of drying should not be higher than 50 °. When the mushrooms begin to bend easily, the temperature is raised to 70 °. When the mushrooms (by outward signs) will be practically dried, the temperature is lowered again to 50 ° and the mushrooms are dried.
During drying, do not close the damper completely, because fresh air must enter the oven. Otherwise, the mushrooms will rot and will not dry out.
Qualitatively dried mushrooms should be free of ash, coal, and not burnt.
They should not release moisture when pressed. Such mushrooms bend slightly, but do not break or crumble.
How to dry porcini mushrooms in the oven
Baking trays are covered with parchment. Mushrooms are spread on them in one layer. Whole mushrooms are placed with their caps facing down.
The baking sheet is placed in the oven and dried at a temperature of 50-55 ° for several hours. It is best to dry not in one go, but in two steps. That is, when the mushrooms are already a little dry, you need to take them out, let them cool, and then put them back in the oven, increasing the temperature to 70 °. At the end of the drying process, the temperature must again be lowered slightly.
If there are no openings in the walls of the oven for air circulation, then its door is kept ajar.
How to dry porcini mushrooms in an oven
The drying cabinet is installed above the stove. It has no bottom, but holes are made at the top.
The mushrooms are placed in special metal sieves, which are placed one above the other in the dryer. Since the mushrooms in the sieves dry out unevenly, the sieves are periodically changed in places, that is, the lower sieve is placed on top, and the upper sieve is placed down.
Despite this inconvenience, mushrooms dry out much faster in a drying cabinet.
Dry mushrooms very well in an electric dryer. It takes up little space and is easy to use. The mushrooms are cut into slices, laid out on the trays of the dryer and dried at a temperature of 60 ° for several hours. Drying time - from two to six hours - depends on the thickness of the sliced mushrooms.
How to dry porcini mushrooms in the microwave
Prepared porcini mushrooms are laid out on a special plate and placed in the microwave. In this case, the power of the furnace should be within the range of 100-200 watts. Turn on the oven for 18 minutes. Then the plate is taken out, the mushrooms are allowed to cool and ventilated in the fresh air, after which they are again placed in the microwave. This procedure is repeated until the mushrooms are completely dry.
If the mushrooms are not sufficiently dried, they must be dried in the sun, in the oven or stove.
Dry mushrooms are stored in cloth or gauze bags. Or they string dried mushrooms on a fishing line and store them hanging in a dry, well-ventilated room, away from other foods, especially those with a pungent odor.
During storage of dry mushrooms, their condition is monitored. If the mushrooms become wet to the touch, then they need to be laid out again on baking sheets and dried in any convenient way.
How to make mushroom powder from dried porcini mushrooms
Mushroom powder can be prepared from dried boletus.
To do this, the mushrooms are broken into small pieces and then ground in a coffee grinder. After that, the powder is sieved through a sieve. The remaining large pieces are ground again.
Store the mushroom powder in well-closed glass jars in a dry place.
V ideal conditions dry porcini mushrooms can be stored for several years.