How to dry mushrooms in an electric and gas oven: features and recommendations. Drying and storage of dried mushrooms

17.10.2019

We all love to indulge in mushrooms, salted or pickled. But sometimes you want fresh mushroom soup in winter. Canned mushrooms will not work here, here you need to know how to dry mushrooms at home, correctly and in different ways.

The mushroom season begins and our whole families go hunting in order to collect more forest trophies. We collect them in baskets, buckets, bags, bathtubs, trunks, and simply, in the bosom.

But what mushrooms can be dried and how to prepare them, few people know, we tear everything in a row, but for home drying you have to choose well, if half of everything.

If for all types of canning, or pickling, you can take almost all edible mushrooms, then not all are suitable for drying, and they even need to be collected in a special way. Now we are with you and will understand this.

How to prepare mushrooms for drying at home

To begin with, let's still decide which mushrooms we will dry in order to pamper ourselves with soup or fried with potatoes. So, what kind of mushrooms are we going to leave to dry?

Chanterelles
White
Birch trees
Aspen boletus
Obabki
Flywheels

In general, only tubular mushrooms are suitable for drying. The lamellas contain a bitter juice, which, after drying, makes them generally unsuitable for eating. and among the lamellar ones there are too many poisonous, which are not so easy to recognize.

How to collect mushrooms for home drying

Before the actual drying process of mushrooms, they cannot be washed, generally wetted. To you. I hope it is known that tubular mushrooms absorb water like a sponge and then retain moisture for a long time. The washed mushrooms are unlikely to dry out, but rather mold.

The mushrooms that we decided to dry, no matter what method, we go to pick in dry, sunny weather. We choose uncontaminated ones so that they can only be cleaned with a knife. We make sure that the mushrooms are young, strong, without wormholes. These are only suitable for us. After the mushrooms are collected, selected and cleaned, we will determine the method of drying them. Everything is very simple here, choose the most convenient way for you and go ahead, take action.

How to dry mushrooms in the oven

Drying mushrooms in the oven is easiest and most convenient if you are a resident of a city apartment. Mushrooms, if too large, are cut into pieces and laid out in one layer on a grate, it must be made of stainless steel. Mushroom drying trays will not work because the air will not circulate.

During drying, the oven heats up to 40-60 degrees, you need to put a towel under the door so that it is ajar. In this form, dry until completely dry.

You can determine the degree of drying, whether the mushroom is ready or not ready for long-term storage, by touch. overdried mushrooms become brittle and break, underdried mushrooms will be too soft, and dried mushrooms are moderately elastic, difficult to bend, but do not crack.

How to dry mushrooms in the microwave

This method is more complicated and in order to properly dry mushrooms at home in the microwave, you need to be patient and it will not hurt to gain experience.

The most important thing for this method is to cut the mushrooms into absolutely equal parts so that they dry for the same length of time. And it is also very important to dry the already prepared, peeled and cut mushrooms a little in the air, so the process will go faster.

We put the prepared mushrooms directly on the bowl, turn on the power of 180 W and the time is twenty minutes. After that, we check if moisture can be released, it needs to be removed, open the door for ventilation. After about ten minutes, repeat the process. So repeat until you see that the mushrooms are dried properly.

If you overexposed the mushrooms and they turned out to be brittle and fragile, do not worry, you can make an excellent mushroom seasoning, just chop the pieces of mushrooms in a blender.

How to dry mushrooms at home on a string

Probably the most ancient way. As far back as I can remember being a little girl, there were mushroom beads hanging around the house, and this wonderful forest smell. Mushrooms, also preferably of the same size, are pierced with a thick needle threaded with a nylon or canvas strong thread. Such "beads" can be hung in the house or in any room where there is good air circulation and there is no humidity. Some put cheesecloth on the mushrooms to keep out flies.

How to dry mushrooms in an electric dryer

The electric dryer was invented for our convenience, the most optimal option for drying forest gifts. To dry mushrooms in an electric dryer, they also need to be prepared in a special way, do not think that if the device is specially designed for drying, it will dry absolutely everything.

The fact is that the mushrooms need to be cut into plastics, and the thickness of the plastic depends on the drying time. The average thickness is taken about 10 cm.

All pieces are evenly distributed over the grid. At a temperature of 55 degrees, you will get well-dried mushrooms in two to three hours.

How to dry porcini mushrooms at home

What can compare to the smell of dried boletus? We specially select them in the forest for drying. They are always clean and beautiful. It is very expensive to dry them.

Porcini mushrooms can also be dried in the oven, cut into plastics and laid out in one layer on a grid or wire rack. The temperature for drying is 60-75 degrees, the time is usually about two to three hours, depending on the thickness of the plastics.

Also, white slices are dried in an electric dryer. You can also dry them in a conventional dryer in the fresh air, just so that there is no direct sunlight.

You can dry porcini mushrooms on a string by separating the caps from the legs. The legs can be fried immediately with potatoes, and the hats can be dried.

How to store dried mushrooms

Everything is very simple, I use fabric or paper bags for storage and store it simply in the kitchen in the upper cabinet, where there is no moisture and strong odors. You can also put a salt shaker next to the bag so that the salt absorbs excess moisture. also, we must not forget about the mushrooms and sometimes visit with a check.

How to dry mushrooms at home, video

Experienced housewives do not throw away food, but save everything for future use. For example, if there is a little left after cooking the dish fresh mushrooms, they can be dried whole or in slices. You can use this product in dried form for making soups, stews or delicious meat.

How to dry mushrooms at home

Aromatic dried mushrooms are an unusual ingredient for numerous first and second courses. They contain a lot of trace elements useful for the body. Modern housewives know many ways to prepare this product for future use. Drying mushrooms at home can be carried out using special equipment or in the sun. To calculate the time for the procedure, it is important to take into account the characteristics of a particular type and method of preparation.

What mushrooms can be dried at home:

Tubular. This type is optimal for drying. Boletus boletus, boletus, boletus, polish mushroom and other edible varieties after such processing remain aromatic and very tasty. Under the caps of this species there is a spongy layer of small tubes.
Marsupials. This variety includes white truffles and morels. They are distinguished by an unexpressed form and spores located in bags. White truffle is an expensive delicacy that is rarely used for drying. Morels are dried outdoors for several months. This time is needed for the evaporation of toxic substances. If the product is consumed earlier, then it can be harmful to health.
Lamellar is another popular type. This variety includes champignons, honey agarics, cherries, oyster mushrooms and others. Under the hat lamellar mushrooms there are characteristic plates located in the radial direction. It is not recommended to choose milk mushrooms, volushki or russula for drying due to the high content of bitterness in the milk juice.
Chanterelles. Many people confuse this species with lamellar. Chanterelles are characterized by folds of pulp, similar to plates. The dried product has a bitter taste.
Polypores. This species is distinguished by its branching, it includes rams and other varieties.

It is important not only to properly dry boletus or mushrooms, but also to select raw materials for harvesting. Some believe that only tubulars are suitable for this. However, lamellar ones are also sometimes used for drying, for example, honey mushrooms are very common in Russia and are suitable for harvesting for the winter. In addition, it is important not to miss the moment when the dried chanterelles or boletus are ready. An overdried product does not lend itself to culinary processing, and an uncooked product quickly deteriorates. During the drying process, mushrooms lose 90% of their weight, so about 100 g of dry mushrooms or mushrooms comes out of 1 kg of raw materials.

Another important step is preparation for the procedure. The more carefully you sort and peel the boletus or oyster mushrooms before drying, the tastier and more aromatic they will be after processing. Choose strong, dense specimens without damage. Be sure to clean the raw material from contamination, wipe it with a sponge, but do not wash it with water, so that the product does not lose its aroma and taste. Also, you need to sort everything by size. In champignons and boletus, the lower part of the leg is cut off. Boletus, boletus are separated from the cap. Cut the mushrooms into 1-1.5 cm plates or slices.

In the oven

Considering how to dry mushrooms, those who do not have special equipment should pay attention to the oven. The raw materials are prepared, cleaned, the legs are separated from the caps, and cut. It is more convenient to dry mushrooms in the oven on the wire rack, which is installed on top of the baking sheet. The oven door is opened to allow moisture to evaporate faster. The temperature is set at 40-60 degrees. Drying time up to 48 hours. The readiness is checked simply: the piece is bent, it should bend a little and break easily.

In the sun

Another option for harvesting is drying in the fresh air. To do this, you need to choose sunny hot days. In case of sudden changes in weather, the decomposed raw materials on a tray must be brought into the room. It is important to cover the product from dust and flies with gauze. This option is suitable for how to dry the mushrooms completely, and how to dry them before processing in the oven. In time, the procedure takes from two to seven days. The mushrooms, cut into slices, dried in the sun, are harvested after 48 hours so that they do not lose their natural color. Dry morels for at least 2 months.

In an electric dryer

Some housewives have in their arsenal such a convenient device as a dryer for mushrooms and vegetables. With its help it is very easy to dry oyster mushrooms, boletus or mushrooms for the winter. How to cook tasty and aromatic dry mushrooms properly so that they dry evenly? It is necessary to clean the raw material, sort it out, cut it and put it on special grids of the device. You need to dry everything at 40-50 degrees, after which the temperature is raised to 80 ° C. In terms of time, drying of mushrooms in an electric dryer takes 4-6 hours, depending on the type of raw material.

In the microwave

If there is no special equipment for drying food, and you cannot decompose the raw materials in the air, you can use a microwave oven. Drying mushrooms in the microwave has its own characteristics. First, the raw materials are cut into thin slices of 5 mm, laid out on a plate, and a timer is turned on for 20 minutes. The door is then opened for 10 minutes to allow excess liquid to evaporate. The session is repeated 4-5 times.

On a thread

One of the most ancient methods of harvesting boletus or boletus for the winter is drying on a fishing line or thread. For this method, you can use whole mushrooms or chopped ones. Prepared raw materials need to be strung on a needle with a canvas thread (or nylon). Drying mushrooms on a string can be done in any room with good air circulation, but protected from rain and dust. You can cover the product with insect repellent gauze.

Mushroom Drying Recipes

There are many methods for preparing dried mushrooms that can be added to soups and hot dishes in winter. When choosing a method and mode of drying, the type of raw material is of great importance. For example, morels should be allowed to dry out in the fresh air for at least 60 days, and boletus should be dried within 4 hours. How to prepare the right blank, taking into account a specific variety, you can learn from the recipes below with a photo.

White mushrooms

The smell of dried boletus will not leave anyone indifferent, therefore this variety is especially popular with housewives for winter preparations... To get a high-quality finished product, you need to properly prepare the raw materials. You can dry porcini mushrooms in any way possible: in the oven, on a string, using a microwave oven. The finished dried boletus should barely bend, have a slightly springy structure. Below is an instruction on how to dry raw materials in the oven with a photo.

Cooking method:

The boletus are sorted out, cleaned of dirt, cut off the lower part of the leg, wipe the caps with a sponge.
Cut everything into thin slices.
Lay out in one layer on a special lattice.
Set the wire rack over the baking sheet, turn on the oven.
Raw materials are dried with an open door at a temperature of no more than 75 degrees for 2-3 hours.

Champignon

Champignons are one of the most popular types of mushrooms. They are sold fresh and frozen all year round, therefore they are rarely dried. However, some housewives harvest some dried mushrooms for the winter, because the product is convenient to store and can be used for cooking at any time. different dishes... There are several ways to dry mushrooms. Below is the step-by-step instruction with a photo of how to prepare raw materials using a thread in the fresh air.

Cooking method:

Peeled mushrooms are sorted by size or cut into pieces.
The raw material is strung on a string so that the pieces do not touch.
The resulting "beads" are hung in a room closed from water, dust, UV rays.
Dried for several days until tender.

Oyster mushrooms

Contains oyster mushrooms flavoring, aromatic substances, potassium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, thiamine, vitamins A, D, valuable folic acid. All substances are preserved after drying, so many harvest this type of mushroom for future use. It is recommended to dry oyster mushrooms at home using a special dryer. However, if it is not there, then an oven will do, but this option is longer. In order for oyster mushrooms to retain their aroma, taste and nutrients, you should adhere to the recipe below.

Cooking method:

After collecting oyster mushrooms, they are sorted out, cleaned of dirt.
Cut the raw material into slices or pieces.
A metal or wooden grid is placed on a baking sheet.
Spread the raw materials on the wire rack.
Dried at a temperature of 45-50 degrees, with the door ajar for about 8 hours.
Spread on a tray in a well-ventilated room for 24 hours.
The aired, dried raw materials are laid out on a grate, which is installed on top of the baking sheet.
Dried at 70-75 degrees for 6 hours (if there is not enough time, increase the processing).

Aspen boletus

If the trip to the forest was successful, and you collected a lot of aspen mushrooms, then the extra mushrooms can be dried. This version of the preparation is not inferior to pickled ones in taste and benefit. However, in order for the finished product to be of high quality and well stored, you should adhere to the instructions. The action plan depends on how the hostess decides to dry the boletus. It is important to sort the mushrooms by size and first clean them of dust and dirt. In addition, for tubulars, the cap is separated from the leg before drying. Below is the step by step recipe for the microwave.

Cooking method:

Fresh, clean boletus boletus is cut into pieces of the same size.
Lay out the raw materials in one layer on a flat plate, put in the microwave.
Choose a power of 100-180 W, dry for 20 minutes.
Take out the plate, drain the liquid from the boletus.
Air the raw material for 5 minutes, re-put it in the microwave for 20 minutes. The cycle is repeated until the dried boletus is ready.

Butterlets

Russian forests are rich in boletus, so many housewives do not know what to do with them during the mushroom picking season. It is worth noting that this species is different good taste, contains a lot of essential oils, complete protein, amino acids, vitamins B and D. Dried butter oil promotes rapid recovery from illness. Before the procedure, it is important to remove the peel from the mushrooms that is not eaten. You can dry butter oil in any way, depending on the equipment available. Below is a recipe for an electric dryer.

Cooking method:

Freshly collected boletus is sorted out, cleaned, be sure to remove the film from the caps.
Cut into slices 5 mm thick.
Lay out on a special lattice in one layer.
Dry for 4-5 hours until the product is ready.

Video

The most pleasant and delicious present from the village is still a bunch of aromatic, tasty dried mushrooms... Many city dwellers have a question - is it possible that the correct process of choosing and drying mushrooms is known only in the village? In fact, any person can have such art, it is only important to follow some simple recommendations. But before you study the main points of drying mushrooms, it is advisable to generally find out what useful qualities and ready-made mushroom food has value.

Dried mushroom is a great guest on any table not only due to its properties, which are completely preserved during drying - such a product is also much healthier than canned mushrooms. When pickling, the mushroom loses the bulk of its valuable quality - more than half of the substances evaporate, and during the drying process, this vegetable loses only water from its composition.

The dried product has a very high calorie content, which can reach 250 kcal and more, but there is hardly any doubt that its energy value is very high. At the same time, for all the seeming simplicity of the process of drying mushrooms, it requires certain skills, experience and following a number of tips. This alone determines how valuable and tasty the prepared food will be.

Packing by type

Any mushroom picker prefers to pick mushrooms so that a real mushroom assortment of aspen mushrooms, porcini mushrooms, boletus, egg capsules and other varieties suitable for consumption that have just come into view is gathered in the basket. With all such a set, something must be done in order to somehow prepare the product in the future. And the simplest method is to dry them, but the problem is that this is not the most beneficial for every mushroom. Among the variety of edible mushrooms, some are good for frying, others for canning, and still others are good for drying.

What mushrooms to pick up for further drying?

The most suitable and versatile option is White mushroom, it is beautiful in any finished form. In addition to it, each tubular mushroom can be dried: boletus, aspen, mushrooms. In addition, the tubular variety is also considered a noble one - it belongs to the "elite" among mushrooms.

Mushrooms that have a plate cap are absolutely not suitable for drying. After drying, they begin to taste more bitter. The list of these mushrooms includes chanterelles, russula, honey mushrooms.

Drying process: preparation

The first problem that a person who wants to dry mushrooms faces is the following: it is necessary to make sure that the forest mushroom, being initially dirty, turns into a clean one. The fact is that it is undesirable to subject mushrooms to wet cleaning, because this will prolong the drying process for some time due to the fact that the product absorbs excess water. Therefore, the main method for cleaning mushrooms is an ordinary knife. Using it, you must carefully remove the needles, fragments of leaves and plants from the cap. It is not recommended to touch the skin, because most often the mushroom is dried along with it.

The sand on the legs and caps can be removed with a soft brush, which must not be moistened. The remnants of the sand are washed off already in winter, because the dried mushroom is always soaked in water before starting to cook it.

It is advisable to use a plastic knife. Despite the inconvenience of handling it, just such a knife does not lead to the fact that the pulp of the mushroom is oxidized. And the oxidation of the legs or caps does a huge damage to the taste properties of the dried mushroom.

In order for the mushrooms to have a pronounced smell and pleasant taste after drying, you must follow the following drying rules:

A large mushroom cap must be cut into several identical fragments.
It is recommended to cut large legs of some mushrooms in the form of washers, the thickness of which does not exceed 2 cm.
You need to start drying in natural conditions - under the sun's rays, and the final stage should be carried out in any device that is in the house: oven, oven, microwave.
Regardless of the chosen drying method, it is necessary to interrupt drying about 2-3 times to ventilate the mushrooms.

After the end of the drying process, it is necessary to decide on the container for storing the product. These can be jars made of glass that can be tightly closed, bags made of paper or woven fabric, but in no case should you use cellophane.

Store, according to the mushroom pickers, dried mushrooms as long as you want, but it is recommended to use the mushrooms for food within a year after drying. Store in a well ventilated area.

In the open area
The most commonly used drying method is natural drying. But this is feasible under certain conditions, if such a possibility exists, and weather conditions allow it. Drying mushrooms in a small village or on the balcony of an apartment in a large city are completely different things.

When drying mushrooms in air, they must be pierced with a strong thread, keeping a small distance between individual fragments. Then such a bundle is placed in the most illuminated area. By using gauze or a thin cloth, you can protect the bundle from dust particles and insects.

In the oven
This option is most convenient to use in the city. The oven must be heated to about 45 degrees. Mushrooms are arranged on a wire rack in even rows. Then the raw material is placed in the oven. Do not close the oven door tightly, otherwise moisture will settle on the walls of the container and mushrooms may even boil.

After the mushrooms become slightly dried, which will happen in about an hour, you can increase the temperature to 70 degrees and dry the mushrooms again for 4-5 hours. Turn them regularly to dry evenly.

In the microwave
For such drying, the oven temperature should be set to about 100 degrees, and the mushrooms should be placed inside for no more than 20 minutes. After that, you need to open the oven door so that the moisture evaporates, and after 5-10 minutes, dry it again for twenty minutes. A batch of mushrooms can be dried this way in about an hour.

Over the gas stove
This is not the most suitable method, but it will work in the absence of other options. Also, it is only suitable if you do not plan to use the stove for cooking in the next few days, otherwise the mushrooms will be able to absorb the flavor of the food.

The mushrooms must be hung almost under the very ceiling, then the burners of the stove are ignited. If you dry them without turning off gas stove completely throughout the day, then the batch of mushrooms will dry in about 2-3 days.

In the Russian oven
Many people sometimes ask if there is a difference between drying mushrooms in the oven or in the Russian oven. The oven as a separate method of cooking food is fundamentally different from the oven not only in the method of air supply, but also in the quality of the final result.

After preparation, the mushrooms can be strung on refined skewers or knitting needles, it is also good if the mushrooms are placed with the cap down on the wire rack. According to an old tradition, they can also be laid out on straw. Raw materials should be decomposed in the oven when the degree drops to 60. If you place the mushrooms in the oven at a higher temperature, then this is fraught with the fact that they will deteriorate.

In order to be able to drain moisture protruding from the mushrooms, the flap must be slightly opened, otherwise the air in the oven will not circulate. Also, a specific feature of drying mushrooms in a Russian oven is that it is necessary to open the pipe. In the first stages of drying, the pipe should be opened a little by about three quarters, and then it should be closed in stages.

Given that mushrooms can have caps of different sizes, they may dry out unevenly, which leads to the need to remove mushrooms that have already dried from the oven, and continue drying the rest of the batch. In the opposite case, raw materials that have been overdried are poorly processed, and underdried ones can soon deteriorate.

Electric dryer for drying mushrooms
This method is considered as "lazy" as possible. The most important thing here is not to overdo it when slicing mushrooms. The thickness of the strips or washers should not exceed 1 cm, but some mushroom pickers prefer to dry the whole mushrooms. After the time and temperature are set, it remains only to wait until the mushrooms are finally dried and ready.

One of the options for how you can dry boletus. If you have collected one or two kilograms of fleshy boletus, then in a short time they can be dried by shredding them with "noodles". The resulting thin strips must be placed at the same distance from each other on a baking sheet or a large dish, then put in a shaded place that is ventilated and turned over regularly. After that, they must be strung on a forest or thread, hung in a draft (in a place inaccessible to direct sunlight) - preferably under a canopy or roof.

Boletus can be dried if the cut pieces are laid out on a horizontal surface. If the weather is warm enough and the sun constantly affects the mushrooms, they will dry out in a few days. One way or another, the moisture remaining in the mushrooms will not play a significant role - unfinished mushrooms can always be brought to readiness using the oven.

The chosen method of drying porcini mushrooms directly determines what will be taste properties them after cooking. Maximum effective way is the drying of mushrooms in a dedicated dryer.

How to determine readiness

In the case when the mushroom can be easily broken, then it is not ready yet. Any mushroom that is completely and qualitatively dried can be easily bent, but it is practically impossible to break it due to its high elasticity and lack of moisture.

Also, the dried mushroom has a light color, there are no various spots. The aroma is pleasant and the mushroom does not look burnt.

Video: a quick and proven way to dry mushrooms

In a fruitful year, mushrooms in the forest can be collected in buckets. Real delicacies are prepared from mushrooms: they are fried and boiled, stewed and baked. Mushroom flavor and the aroma perfectly complements any dishes from meat, fish, vegetables or cereals. Only one mushroom soup what is it worth! Of course, such a versatile product would be desirable to have at hand throughout the year, and not only in the high season. To prepare a stock for the winter, many are engaged in conservation - mushrooms are salted and pickled, frozen boiled or fresh. The simplest and most traditional method to prepare supplies is to dry mushrooms.

When picking mushrooms, remember that among them there are edible, conditionally edible and poisonous. Mushroom poisoning leads to sad consequences; take only mushrooms that you are sure of

Important! You can eat only those mushrooms that you are 100% sure of safety. Choose and prepare mushrooms responsibly.

First, let's decide which mushrooms can be dried. Tubular mushrooms are best suited for drying, that is, having a lower surface of a cap (hymenophore) in the form of a sponge, consisting of numerous thin tubes in which spores ripen. First of all, these are white (boletus, oak, Polish), moss, boletus, boletus and boletus. On the lower tubular side of the cap, they can be easily distinguished from lamellar mushrooms, which are practically unsuitable for drying (you can only take mushrooms, chanterelles and champignons for this).

Tubular mushrooms are best suited for drying, that is, they have a sponge-shaped cap on the bottom surface.

If you are interested in general information on drying mushrooms at home, read on.

How to dry mushrooms properly

Proper drying, in fact, begins at the time of collection. Each mushroom found must be carefully examined for its worminess. If the leg is slightly damaged, then it is cut to a clean height, "not beaten" by worms. It is better to throw away mushrooms heavily eaten (to the very cap), and not put them in a basket, otherwise the worms will move to other already collected specimens.

Worms are larvae that hatch from insect eggs (mushroom mosquitoes and flies). The worminess to some extent confirms the edibility of the mushroom.

Cleaning

Whole healthy mushrooms are cleaned dry, without water. It is not recommended to wash them, because the mushroom pulp intensively absorbs water, and this affects the drying time and taste. If necessary, you can wash the already dry mushrooms just before cooking.

The main contaminants - the remnants of soil and moss - are carefully scraped off (scraped off) with a sharp knife

During the cleaning process, the knife is not washed, but wiped with a dry cloth or napkin. Adhered sand, blades of grass, needles, pieces of leaves are brushed off the surface of the mushroom with a soft sponge or brush (you can take an old toothbrush) without pressing down. All peeled mushrooms must be sorted by type and size. This will help to achieve even drying.

It is not recommended to wash mushrooms intended for drying (this affects the drying time and taste).

Slicing

If you are going to dry mushrooms at home, then small ones can be taken whole, and medium and large ones must first be cut into pieces of approximately the same size.

The shape of the cut pieces is not important - you can plan with plates, bars or straws. The thinner and finer the slices, the less time it will take to dry the mushrooms.

It is recommended to use a knife made of high-quality stainless steel or ceramic, so that darkening on the sections is minimal. It is better to chop or split mushrooms, making a shallow cut and breaking with a knife to the entire remaining thickness. Do not cut under any circumstances - the pulp will crumble and fray.

In large mushrooms, the stem is first removed from the cap. In this case, it is more convenient to act not with a knife, but break off with your hands, slightly scrolling. A mushroom leg, if it is not very long, should be cut lengthwise, not across. The hat is on the top side.

Drying

Having cleaned and chopped all our mushroom harvest, we proceed to drying it. There are different ways to dry mushrooms at home. The easiest and most affordable way is natural gradual drying-drying in the open air.

For natural drying, mushrooms are laid out or strung on a strong harsh thread and hung in an open, well-ventilated space.

If you are organizing outside drying, choose a shaded area and cover the mushrooms with gauze or a clean rag to keep out insects. In the evening, they must be brought into the house, otherwise they will suck in moisture from the air during the night. The decomposed mushrooms will take an average of 2-3 days to dry, and when suspended, they will reach the desired condition in 12-24 hours. The timing is strongly influenced by weather conditions - temperature and humidity.

Often, wooden frames with gauze stretched over them are used to dry mushrooms.

Drying mushrooms naturally takes a long time, especially compared to methods that use heating and heating household equipment- electric and gas ovens, microwave ovens, electric dryers.

How to dry mushrooms in the microwave

A microwave oven is also a suitable unit for drying mushrooms at home. True, this option is more troublesome. If mushrooms contain a lot of water (for example, oil), then in the microwave they will cook rather than dry out.

Drying in the microwave is carried out under the minimum heating conditions (100-150 W), used to defrost food.

The mushrooms should be finely chopped and placed on a large flat plate or wire rack lined with baking paper. The drying process is carried out in several cycles: the oven is turned on for 10-15 minutes, then the mushrooms are taken out and allowed to cool. At the same time, the door is kept open for 5-10 minutes so that the moisture completely evaporates from the microwave. This should be done at least 3-4 times, constantly checking the condition of the mushrooms and removing well-dried pieces.

How to dry mushrooms in an electric dryer

Many households now have electric dryers, which greatly facilitate the preparation of vitamin reserves for the winter.

Basically, an electric dryer is used to preserve a dried crop of fruits and berries, but the mushrooms in it will dry out with the same success.

Prepared mushrooms are laid out on removable trays of the dryer and set in place. At what temperature to dry the mushrooms, choose depending on their number and thickness of the slices. The recommended temperature range is 30 to 70 ℃. In models equipped with a fan, be sure to turn on the circulation of warm air to prevent overcooking and speed up the drying process.

One of the most common ways to dry mushrooms at home is by oven drying. The fastest drying option (but not preparation): string all the pieces on thick threads and hang them inside a slightly open oven in front of the door. You can fasten the threads to the handles of the kitchen drawers located above, or to the regulators of the hob. The oven mode is set to minimum heat. In the process of drying, the mushrooms are advised to move and turn more tightly. This procedure will take only 1-2 hours.

Convection (forced ventilation) in the oven provides optimal drying conditions

If you do not want to do stringing, then it is advised to put large pieces of mushrooms on a wire rack or on a baking sheet, covering them with parchment paper for baking. Mushrooms are placed in one layer at a distance of 1-2 mm from each other. If there is a lot of starting product, do not try to dry everything at once. Divide into portions according to the size of the sheet, put the rest in the refrigerator, folding it into a container with a tight lid. If your oven has a convection mode, unfold mushroom preparations on several trays at once and place them in the oven at the same time.

Many are worried about the temperature at what temperature to dry mushrooms in the oven. First, turn on the stove at 45-50 ℃ and, if your appliance is not equipped with forced ventilation, leave the door ajar so that moist steam does not accumulate inside. If you immediately set a higher temperature, then the mushroom proteins will begin to brew and the surface will darken. At low temperatures, the workpiece must be kept for 1.5-2 hours until a thin dry film is formed on the surface.

Then the temperature is raised to 60-70 ℃ and left for another 2-3 hours, depending on the size of the chopped mushrooms. The final drying is carried out at low (50-55 ℃) values or even in convection mode with the heating turned off. This will take another 1-2 hours. The condition of the mushrooms must be checked. Dried ones - turn over or remove, move wet ones to the center of the baking sheet, leaving small gaps between them.

How to tell if mushrooms are dried

Attempts to dry mushrooms faster at a constantly high temperature lead to the fact that in a gas oven they can burn, and in an electric oven they can dry out and turn into blackened "pebbles". When dried properly, the pieces should completely lose moisture, but remain pliable and elastic.

You can determine the degree of drying of mushrooms by the sound with which they fall on a plate or in a glass jar. The drier the mushroom, the louder the sound.

If you overlooked and the mushrooms are still dry, do not rush to throw the product away or wet it with water. Grind the pieces into a powder in a coffee grinder or blender bowl and use it as an aromatic seasoning for your meals.

It is important not only to properly dry the mushrooms, but also to provide suitable conditions for their further storage.

Dried mushrooms absorb moisture from the air, so they should be kept covered. glass jars or clay pots

For long-term storage, any temperature is suitable; the place should be chosen dark and ventilated with a humidity of no more than 70%. Many people advise keeping dry mushrooms hanging in gauze or linen bags, away from products with strong strong odors. But since mushrooms easily absorb foreign odors and moisture through the fabric, they can begin to deteriorate and mold. In addition, moths quickly build up in tissue bags.

Rating 4.83 (15 Votes)

Found a mistake in the text? Select it and press Ctrl + Enter.

A foray into the forest for "forest meat" evokes a storm of the brightest emotions in us, especially when we find mushroom meadow! Having brought home a rich prey, even a large family cannot cook and eat everything at once, so today there is information on how to properly dry mushrooms at home! This knowledge is also important because they, unlike canned or pickled, in this form retain all their medicinal and nutritional properties.

The advantages of dry mushrooms over canned ones are simplicity and simplicity in storage, high stability and preservation nutritional properties with long-term conservation of stocks. The important advantages of dried forest gifts are also:

Excellent digestibility and high nutritional value, in comparison with salted or pickled mushrooms;
Higher protein content than their canned forest cousins.
Brighter aroma and taste.

Which mushrooms are best susceptible to drying?

Basic: white, boletus, oak, boletus, boletus, mushrooms, honey agarics, goats, chanterelles.

Ways to dry mushrooms at home

Outdoors on sunny, hot and dry days;
In an oven slightly heated to 60-70 degrees. With this method, it is necessary to slightly open the door for additional air circulation.
On a gas, electric or Russian stove;
In special electric dryers.

Proper preparation of mushrooms for drying

We use only fresh and healthy specimens for further drying, without a wormhole. Do not wash them before drying, as they will darken and take longer to dry. Before laying in the dryer, the caps and legs are cleaned of needles, leaves, moss, sand and earth with a slightly damp cloth.

Cut large caps into slices (for better and faster moisture loss). Cut the legs of porcini mushrooms, boletus and aspen mushrooms into circles 2-3 centimeters long or more. We do not dry the legs of species such as boletus, mushrooms, honey agarics and chanterelles, but only use hats. But we dry morels and lines whole.

Mushroom drying rules and tricks

Time

The product should lose moisture gradually. This process cannot be accelerated, otherwise it will taste bitter in dishes. You should withstand a sufficiently high temperature (up to 70 degrees) and do not overexpose them in the dryer. But too slow drying can affect the quality or even make the product unsuitable for further use.

How to dry mushrooms outdoors

If you decide to carry out drying of forest gifts in the open air, then with this method the process should last at least 7-8 days.

In this case, we string the hats and legs on strong threads, fishing line or thin twine, while the mushrooms should not touch each other. Having done this work, we attach the fishing line and be sure to protect it from dust and insects with gauze.

Drying in the oven

Put the prepared mushroom parts in one layer on a baking sheet, wire rack, frame, or cover a part of the floor with straw (if you are using a dry room). Small caps dry out the fastest, so you should periodically check the mushroom layout and remove the forestry that is already ready for storage.

We try not to overdry the mushrooms, which can lead to a loss of aroma and direct spoilage of the product. Also, overdried food (too high temperature or too long drying time) in dishes does not boil down and does not soften.

Mushrooms, collected with such passion, cannot but dry up, because then during storage they quickly deteriorate, becoming covered with mold.

Correctly and qualitatively dried forest beauties are light and dry to the touch, they break quite easily, but do not crumble! In taste and aroma, they resemble fresh, just picked mushrooms.

* Gourmet Trick
The most fragrant and delicious mushrooms obtained by two-stage drying. First, they are wilted in the sun, and only then they are transferred to the oven, to the stove or to the Russian stove.

Important information!

Almost all types forest mushrooms contain vitamins C, B1, B2, D and PP. For example, the amount of vitamin B1 in a forest product is about the same as in beef liver or crops; vitamin B - as in butter!

And how rich the mushrooms are in minerals! Your body will be able to feed on iron, phosphorus, calcium, potassium, as well as such beneficial chemical elements as zinc, manganese, iodine and copper, which normalize metabolism and digestion.

It is not in vain that you spent time reading the article on how to dry mushrooms correctly, because in a dried product all useful and nutrients are preserved.
Bon appetit and autumn mushroom memories in winter!