How to freeze mushrooms for the winter: simple rules and instructions

Fresh mushrooms are not stored for long, just a couple of weeks in the refrigerator. Not everyone likes pickling them for the winter, so why not freeze the mushrooms for the winter? The season of “silent hunting” can be perfectly completed with a simple and useful harvest of fresh mushrooms, mushrooms, oyster mushrooms and other mushrooms.

What mushrooms freeze

Both hand-picked mushrooms and store mushrooms, both forest and mushroom farms, are well stored in the freezer. In any case, try to have time to freeze fresh samples in the first day after collection.

For chanterelles, butter, boletus and other mushrooms, the principles of freezing are almost the same. It is worth distinguishing them in form:

1. Tubular with a porous hat (birch trees, etc.) are frozen in raw form.
2. Honey mushrooms, oyster mushrooms and other lamellar species are better to boil before freezing.
3. Marsupials, such as truffles, are necessarily cooked and squeezed out well before being sent to the freezer.

note
To store the product, the temperature in the chamber should not be higher than the standard –18 degrees. Below - it is possible if the device allows. You also need to make sure that the device does not turn off even for several hours.

Shock freezing will be optimal - for this, set the freezer to the lowest possible temperature for 2-3 hours, stand the mushrooms there, and then return the default settings. With this method, maximum vitamins are preserved, the products remain tasty and fragrant, very similar to fresh.

Preparation for freezing: all stages

All collected or purchased mushrooms are carefully sorted. Only whole, healthy and moderately large samples are taken for freezing.

How to clean:

1. Use a special hard brush or knife to remove small debris.
2. Cut off the bottom of the leg.
3. Remove the skirts from the honey mushrooms.
4. Remove the film from the cap oily.

How to wash:

1. If the mushrooms are too dirty, rinse them.
2. Then dry thoroughly. Wipe all parts with a paper towel so that no drops remain.

If there is an opportunity not to wash mushrooms - do not wash! They are saturated with moisture and after defrosting they lose much in taste.

Soaking a product for a long time is also impossible, it is already watery in itself and releases a lot of juice during cooking. After defrosting, this property is exacerbated. That is why too wet samples are slightly boiled and squeezed.

Tip
Mushrooms with minor damage from the worms can be soaked in salt water for 20 minutes. Insects will pop up.

How to boil before freezing:

1. Cut everything into small convenient pieces, as if in a dish. Anyway, after defrosting the product will be used in soup, pizza, etc. By the way, after defrosting, mushrooms are more difficult to cut, as they lose their shape and release a lot of moisture.
2. Boil water in a saucepan.
3. Dip everything in boiling water and boil for 5-10 minutes. You do not need to cook longer so that the pieces do not become rubber.
4. Throw the prepared mushrooms into a colander and shake, letting water drain.
5. The product must be freed of moisture as much as possible (you can even squeeze it gently).
6. When the pieces have completely cooled, you can begin to freeze.

Mushrooms can not only be boiled, but also fried:

1. Cut the product into small pieces.
2. Heat vegetable oil in a pan.
3. Throw slices into oil and fry for 20 minutes, stirring constantly with a spatula.
4. Drain excess juice.
5. Cool the mushrooms and send everything to the freezer in small portions.

Important
Neither salt nor boil during frying! Salt promotes moisture.

Other pre-heat treatment methods:

1. Double boiler: place the product on a wire rack and keep it above the steam for at least 5 minutes.
2. Blanching: add a little salt to a pot of boiling water, dip the mushrooms there, let stand for 2-3 minutes, then transfer everything to ice water.
3. Oven: bake fresh mushrooms on a baking sheet with foil for about 20 minutes to get the most fragrant semi-finished product.

Freeze: the rules

Freezing Raw Mushrooms:

1. White and other large species are best cut into plates, smaller ones can be frozen whole. It is very convenient to divide the mushrooms into hats and legs.
2. First, freeze the slices in separate pieces, so that during storage they do not stick together. Spread everything evenly on a tray or flat dish. Just cover the container with cling film, otherwise the mushrooms will stick to the bottom. Now send it to the freezer and wait a few hours for everything to freeze properly.
3. When the mushrooms become hard, sprinkle them in containers or bags for freezing. Pack the product so that one serving is enough for one use. It will be convenient and quick, and you will not have to re-defrost the workpiece yet.
4. Do not freeze again!

How to freeze mushrooms after boiling:

1. The process of filling boiled pieces is exactly the same as with fresh ones. Prepare convenient small containers and distribute the pieces in portions. It is convenient to freeze 100-300 g, depending on the dish in which these mushrooms are useful later.
2. Boiled mushrooms take up less space.
3. It’s a good idea to freeze the product in a container directly in the mushroom broth, so the pieces will lose shape and taste less after thawing.

purityis.decorexpro.com/en/ strongly recommends signing all containers: the type of mushrooms, the method of freezing (fresh or after cooking), the date of packaging and the expiration date. So you will not forget to use the workpiece in a timely manner and for its intended purpose.

Shelf life and defrosting, how to use the workpiece

The shelf life of frozen mushrooms is 5-7, a maximum of 12 months. Try to eat them before spring to get more benefits. The longer foods are stored, the less tasty and nutritious they become.

The way the mushrooms are thawed also plays a role in the end result. The temperature in the case of mushrooms is added gradually:

1. First move the bag or container to the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. There he should stand for 7-10 hours. It is very convenient to defrost at night.
2. After that, one hour at room temperature is enough to make the mushrooms suitable for further cooking.

Thawed mushrooms that were previously cooked, fried or baked are added to soups, to fried potatoes, cereals for a hearty side dish, toppings of pies, etc. Raw mushrooms are recommended to be prepared separately from the dish. Cooking / stewing methods, etc. are the same as in the case of fresh products.

The taste of defrosting, of course, can not be compared with fresh products, but it is much better than what stores offer in winter. After thawing, immediately eat the forest gifts: they spoil very quickly.