The mushroom picking season is quite short, but you want to enjoy them all year round. In order to have the opportunity to delight yourself and your loved ones with the gifts of the forest both in winter and summer, you can prepare them. There are different ways to increase the shelf life of mushrooms: they can be frozen, pickled, pickled or dried. Perhaps the first method is the easiest and fastest. All that remains is to figure out what can be prepared from frozen mushrooms.
How to freeze and defrost correctly
The good news is that you can prepare many delicious dishes from frozen forest products. These include soups, main dishes, baked goods, and salads. Recipes for dishes made from frozen porcini mushrooms are especially interesting. But in order to do all this with a bang, you need to properly freeze and defrost mushrooms, otherwise they may lose their taste and aroma.
Mushrooms can be frozen not only raw, but also boiled, fried or stewed. You need to process the collected mushrooms as soon as possible, especially when it comes to porcini mushrooms, honey mushrooms, boletuses and boletuses. The rest of the mushrooms can wait a day.
Freezing raw is best suited for forest mushrooms: honey mushrooms, chanterelles, forest champignons, boletus, boletus and boletus. In this way, you can prepare mushrooms for subsequent cooking of soups.
Before freezing, raw mushrooms must be thoroughly washed and dried, laid out on a towel. Then you need to place them in one layer on a tray and place them in the freezer, setting the temperature to the lowest possible level. After 12 hours, put the mushrooms into bags and put them back in the freezer, operating as usual. If the collected mushrooms are whole, but not very beautiful, use short cooking for 10 minutes. This procedure is mandatory for mushrooms that are planned to be fried later.
Stewing mushrooms preserves their flavor and texture. Before stewing, mushrooms need to be kept in a solution of citric acid for 6 minutes (1 tsp per 1 liter of water). First, you need to fry them in vegetable oil for 5 minutes, then cover with a lid and simmer for 15-20 minutes, then turn off and let it brew. After cooling, divide into bags. Frozen stewed mushrooms work well for making pasta.
Frying mushrooms for subsequent freezing can be done on the stove or in the oven. Place the mushrooms in a thin layer in a frying pan and fry for 5 to 15 minutes (this depends on the size of the pieces). The resulting preparation is good for filling pies.
Mushrooms contain a lot of valuable protein; they rightfully take their place in the cuisines of different peoples of the world. There are several cooking methods: boiling, frying, freezing, salting, pickling. This material will tell you how to freeze and preserve porcini mushrooms.
Freezing is used to preserve the properties of mushrooms and preserve them for as long as possible. All known species can be subjected to this type of treatment - boletus, aspen, chanterelle, boletus, and white boletus. Industrial freezing is used to extend the shelf life of oyster mushrooms and champignons, but personally processed mushrooms will have an order of magnitude higher taste.
Important. Frozen mushrooms are a long-term source of food for preparing delicious soups, roasts, and winter salads. The main thing is to carefully sort the collection before processing, removing spoiled, stale, or too saturated with moisture stems and caps.
Porcini mushroom is especially valued by connoisseurs for its delicate and rich taste; its protein-rich fleshy parts are not inferior to meat in energy value. And if you properly preserve such a treasure and freeze it, you can provide yourself with a tasty and healthy delicacy for a long time.
Selection and preparation of mushrooms before freezing
Experienced chefs place special emphasis on the process of preparing mushrooms for long-term storage. After all, it will depend on this whether they will remain in their original form for a long time or the whole freezing idea will end in failure. So, to put them in the freezer you need mushrooms:
- fresh;
- strong;
- clean;
- with minimal liquid content.
If you use mushrooms that are 2 or more days old, then after defrosting they will almost immediately become unusable. The same applies to caps and legs that have been heavily soaked in water and have picked up moisture. It is imperative to clean the surfaces of mushrooms before cold packaging from debris, twigs, and damaged areas. Whole, strong and fresh mushrooms will retain their taste for a long time, but “old”, bruised ones will immediately lose their shape after thawing and will look very unappetizing and grey.
Methods for freezing porcini mushrooms for the winter
There are several classic options for freezing porcini mushrooms; the recipes for their preparation are quite simple: cooling raw or after pre-boiling. Which method to choose is up to everyone to decide for themselves.
“Raw” saves time on processing for direct freezing, “boiled” allows you to quickly prepare a semi-finished dish - soup or roast.
Under no circumstances should you mix different mushrooms. Firstly, each type has its own structure: there are mushrooms with a strong stem and a loose cap, very delicate ones that quickly lose their presentation if handled carelessly, and others.
Secondly, such a “hodgepodge” will affect the taste of the product - you will end up with some kind of average mushroom, similar to everything at once, as if taken from the furthest refrigerator of a regular supermarket.
Such a product has no more advantages than a hastily purchased briquette of frozen champignons of uncertain taste. And our goal is to fully preserve all the notes of the exquisite taste of the porcini mushroom.
Raw
This technique allows you to preserve as much as possible all the taste qualities of the mushroom and preserve it in its original form. We need fresh, strong, worm-free and clean white hare, so the issue of sorting is approached with the utmost care. All damaged, watery, too soft legs and caps are mercilessly rejected - they are not suitable for freezing.
Next, the fungi are processed whole or, after cutting them into slices - whichever is more convenient for you. For freezing, it is good to use zipper bags made of thick polyethylene: they reliably store the contents and are easy to open.
Boiled
And this method will require mandatory heat treatment. It is also used when you are not sure (or are afraid) about raw mushrooms, although all mushroom pickers and cooks unanimously repeat: if you don’t know whether your find is edible or not, it’s better not to take it. The method is well suited for preserving “substandard”: broken caps, damaged (but not rotten) legs, small mushrooms.
Boil the product before freezing for no more than 5 minutes, after cutting it into slices or crumbling it into cubes. They are immediately thrown into boiling water, then allowed to cool, filtered, left in a colander, and only then placed in a bag for cold preservation. You can use 1 large package or several small ones - whichever is more convenient for you, but the second option is preferable.
A small portion is used immediately, it is easy to make a pie or soup from it, but a large-sized package will then have to be re-frozen, which is not very good.
Stewed
Another way to reduce the time spent preparing a finished dish. Sorted, peeled and washed mushrooms are cut into small portions, then fried over low heat in vegetable oil (no longer than 20 minutes). The second method is to stew in the oven, on a baking sheet, in its own juice - this way the piquant, sweetish taste of the mycelium is better preserved. The completely cooled product is placed in bags and frozen.
Fried in the freezer
One of the most famous harvesting methods, which every experienced housewife is familiar with. Mushrooms are fried in vegetable or butter, then placed in glass jars of a suitable container and filled with the resulting juice. Frying in pork lard is allowed - this depends on personal taste preferences. Heat-treated mushrooms filled with fat can be stored for quite a long time, completely retaining all their taste.
A simple method for the “lazy” and those who give credit to their own products rather than purchased semi-finished products. Prepared (clean and chopped) mushrooms are boiled with the addition of spices or just like that. The finished broth can be stored in several ways:
- In glass jars.
- Food containers.
- Regular packaging bags.
- Divided into cubes.
Any of the above methods will allow you to quickly prepare a hearty lunch or dinner using pre-frozen rich mushroom broth.
How long can they be stored?
A reasonable question that arises among lovers of homemade preparations: how long can frozen mushrooms and semi-finished products from them be stored? If the above conditions are met (strong and fresh mushrooms, not damaged, without wormholes or rot), the product will be stored in the freezer for a whole year. But for this we must not forget about a few simple rules.
Important. The lower the temperature, the longer the shelf life (the longest period is ensured by an indicator of -18 ºС), and mushrooms taken out of the cold are immediately used without residue - re-freezing is unacceptable.
How to defrost mushrooms correctly?
Freezing and packing raw, boiled or fried mushrooms is half the battle. You still need to defrost them properly. In order for frozen foods to retain their taste and not lose them in a couple of minutes, it is recommended to transfer them from the freezer to the refrigerator before preparing the dish. Such intermediate defrosting will allow the semi-finished product to gradually gain temperature, without losing color and taste.
The method of forced defrosting in a microwave or oven, beloved by some housewives, will do harm, not good: instead of fragrant, tasty mushrooms, as if picked yesterday in the forest, you will end up with an unappetizing grayish mess, which is scary to use as food.
Lovingly selected, carefully cleaned and properly frozen mushrooms (raw, boiled or stewed) will retain their inherent delicate, unique taste for a long time, serving as raw material for preparing soups, roasts or cold appetizers. This is extremely important for the royal, white mushroom - a recognized favorite among boletus, russula and boletus.
Alexander Gushchin
I can’t vouch for the taste, but it will be hot :)
Content
Before using forest products in a dish, it is necessary to pre-heat them. This should be done to improve the taste, remove toxins and harmful substances that can accumulate in boletus, aspen mushrooms, milk mushrooms and other species. Find out how to cook mushrooms correctly and for how long.
How long to cook mushrooms
The variety of species is so great that each representative requires an individual approach for preparation. Experienced people know exactly how long to cook mushrooms, but housewives who have not encountered this type of fishing find it difficult to complete the task. All types have their own cooking time, so to create a delicious soup you should know exactly the cooking hours. Thermal treatment methods are influenced by the condition of the product, which can be either recently picked, frozen or dried.
Dried
The gifts of nature in this form are the most fastidious. If they are not processed correctly, they will be tough even after cooking, so be sure to find out how long to cook the mushrooms. First, they should be soaked for 3.5-4 hours, filled with ice water, and then sent to the pan. You shouldn’t throw out the water after soaking, because the rich aroma will go away with it; it’s better to cook food with this broth. For any dish, it is advisable to cook dried mushrooms after soaking for about 2 hours. We can consider that the gifts of the forest are ready when they settle to the bottom of the container where they were boiled.
Fresh
When the mycelium ripens, the autumn harvest period begins. Artificially grown champignons and oyster mushrooms are available in markets and stores all year round. There is a general rule that indicates that fresh mushrooms should be cooked for no more than 20 minutes. However, each type requires slight timing adjustments. If you do not want the food to darken, then before cooking the mushrooms, they should be washed in lemon juice or vinegar. How many minutes to cook mushrooms? It is enough to boil the champignons for 5-10 minutes, and the white ones need to be brought to readiness for at least half an hour.
Frozen
Frozen forest gifts are good because they will always be at hand: they are often sold in stores or caring housewives stock them up during the summer-autumn harvesting period. When frozen, water remains, which should not get into the pan, so the food should be defrosted naturally or in the microwave, then rinsed. Frozen mushrooms should be cooked for about 20-30 minutes, and thrown exclusively into cold water, while they should boil exclusively over low heat. Foam will appear during the process, but it must be removed.
How to cook mushrooms correctly
Many people like the taste of the gifts of the forest, but in order to make a rich soup, puree, minced meat for pies or an appetizing second course, you should take into account the rules for preparing mushrooms. Almost every type of them can be cooked, which is a simple and effective method of heat treatment. Thanks to this process, all the contaminants that the forest’s gifts absorbed during the growth process, toxic substances, are removed, and bitterness is neutralized. How to cook mushrooms? During heat treatment, some of the nutrients are lost with water, so it is better to pour very little liquid.
White
Representatives of this species are among the most nutritious and delicious gifts of nature, but they must be boiled before frying or baking. Many housewives are interested in how long to cook porcini mushrooms for soup? The average heat treatment time is at least 20-25 minutes. If you are planning to prepare a product for the first course, then it is better to let it boil for about half an hour, and then combine it with other ingredients. Representatives of this species should not be overcooked, because they will taste rubbery, and during the process you need to periodically remove the foam.
Honey mushrooms before frying
Honey mushroom occupies a leading position for rolling and marinating, but this type can also be fried with onions in sour cream - the dish is also very tasty. However, before frying, this type should be boiled for the required amount of time. How long to cook honey mushrooms until done? The process occurs in a couple of stages: first, they are boiled in water for about twenty minutes, then the water is drained and boiled again. At the second stage, add honey mushrooms, onions, bay leaves, peppercorns, and leave on the stove for another 20 minutes. Cooking time depends on the size of honey mushrooms: small ones cook faster, and large ones take longer.
Champignons until done
Some eat champignons even raw, but many housewives still prefer to boil them. Thanks to this, they become more juicy, tender, and richer in taste. Small champignons can be boiled whole, but large ones can be cut into several pieces. Food should be placed in boiling water, but before that it must be salted and seasoned. How long does it take to cook champignons? It all depends on what dish you add them to: if you want to put them in a salad or fry them, then you need to boil them for about 10 minutes; the time will take 20 minutes.
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How to cook mushrooms correctly. How long to cook frozen, dried or fresh mushrooms
In Russian cuisine, mushrooms rightfully occupy a special place - many dishes are prepared from them, using them boiled, fried or stewed. Even a small amount of mushrooms added as an ingredient in the main dish, side dish or gravy can brighten up any lunch or dinner, turning it into a real holiday. You can use not only fresh or dry mushrooms for this, but also frozen ones.
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Frozen mushrooms
You can freeze mushrooms and then use them for frying or prepare other dishes from them yourself. Usually at home, when there is no possibility of quick freezing, the mushrooms are first boiled, the water is decanted and placed in separate portioned bags of 200–300 g. In this way, you can freeze any mushrooms brought from the forest: porcini, aspen, boletus, chanterelles and even russula or honey mushrooms.
The store also sells frozen mushrooms - artificially grown champignons and oyster mushrooms, as well as forest mushrooms - white mushrooms or honey mushrooms. These mushrooms are frozen raw and can be purchased by weight in the quantities you need for cooking. To fry for two or three servings, you will need 500 g of frozen mushrooms of any kind or frozen assorted mushrooms.
When purchasing mushrooms in a store by weight, make sure that they are not sticky clumps: this is a sign of violation of storage conditions and that they have already been thawed
How to fry frozen mushrooms
Frozen mushrooms do not need to be thawed before cooking. If you want to fry them, first fry finely chopped onions in a frying pan and, when they turn golden, place boiled or raw frozen mushrooms in the frying pan. They will give juice, which must be evaporated by frying and stirring the mushrooms over medium heat. There is no need to put a lot of spices into the mushrooms so as not to interrupt their natural taste and aroma, so the contents of the pan can only be salted and a little ground black pepper added. But 2-3 tablespoons of sour cream will only emphasize and enhance the taste of mushrooms.
If you want to cook potatoes fried with frozen mushrooms, it is better to do it in two stages
First, fry the mushrooms and onions separately until the liquid from them has completely evaporated. Then start frying the potatoes cut into small cubes in a separate pan. When it is already half-raw and a crust begins to appear, salt it and place the mushrooms fried with onions in the frying pan. Next, until the potatoes are ready, fry them together and serve, sprinkled with finely chopped herbs.
To prepare a delicious gravy from fried frozen mushrooms, fry finely chopped onions in vegetable oil. Once it begins to caramelize, add the coarsely grated carrots to the pan and blanch for 2-3 minutes. Add frozen mushrooms, fry them until the juices evaporate, sprinkle the contents of the pan with 1-2 tbsp. flour, stir, lightly fry everything in flour, and then add 1 glass of water. Simmer everything until the flour thickens, then remove from the stove and let stand for 10-15 minutes. This gravy can be poured over unsweetened porridge or served with meat or poultry.
Most people like to spend weekends and holidays in the forest on picnics, and many return home with baskets of mushrooms. At the same time, very often the baskets are filled with white ones, which have a special taste. You can not only cook various dishes from them, but also freeze them. But not everyone knows how to cook frozen porcini mushrooms and how to use them later.
Description and characteristics
This representative of the mushroom world is of great value and has a rich taste. They can be recognized by their stem and cap. They are found in the forest from June until October. It is worth noting that the porcini mushroom has approximately 15 relatives.
The hat has a diameter of 8-9 cm, but there are some that reach 27-30 cm. The color can be different: from beige to brown. The leg is 15 cm long, sometimes more. The pulp itself is dense and has a pleasant aroma.
Porcini mushrooms are considered valuable, and a wide variety of dishes can be prepared from them: soups, main dishes, pates, salads, appetizers and sauces. At the same time, they can be prepared for future use: pickled, dried, canned, and even frozen.
Freezing rules
It seems like it could be easier than freezing mushrooms. But to do this, you need to know a few rules:
- Before freezing, the product is washed and dried well;
- Now you should divide the portions, and cut large specimens into pieces;
- For freezing, you can use sealed bags or special containers in which the workpieces are sent to the freezer.
It is not necessary to freeze mushrooms raw; this can also be done with prepared ones. They can be stored in this form for almost a year. You don’t have to defrost them before cooking.
Dish recipes
Basically, you can cook anything from frozen mushrooms. There are countless recipes for frozen porcini mushrooms; the main thing is to take into account the form in which they were frozen and what you want to cook from them.
Mushroom soups
Almost every day every family cooks soup and thanks to mushrooms you can change the monotony and diversify the menu. So, a few recipes for mushroom soups.
Cream soup with melted cheese
- porcini mushrooms - 300 grams;
- any broth - about 2 liters;
- carrot - 1 pc.;
- onion - 1 pc.;
- potatoes - 4 pcs.;
- processed cheese - 2 pcs.
The onion must be chopped as finely as possible and fried in a frying pan, and the carrots must be grated. Mushrooms also need to be added to the frying pan and fried. You should put chopped potatoes into the broth and then cook them for 20 minutes, and then add the contents of the frying pan. The broth is boiled for another 10 minutes and then finely chopped cheese is added. Wait until the cheese is all melted and then add salt to taste. Now the soup is ready, but you can also use a blender to finally achieve the consistency of a pureed soup.
Ingredients:
The mushrooms must be left to defrost, then washed, cut and fried. The broth must be prepared in advance. Add finely chopped carrots, onions and pickles to the mushrooms, fry everything well in oil. You need to throw the potatoes into the broth and let them cook for 10 minutes, then add the fried vegetables, add salt and cook for 20 minutes over low heat. At the end of cooking, you can add greens.
Second courses
The roast with porcini mushrooms is especially popular. It has a unique aroma that will definitely appeal to everyone in the household.
Ingredients:
- mushrooms - about 1 kg;
- bulbs - 3 pcs.;
- meat pulp - 600 g;
- carrot - 1 pc.;
- cream - approximately 100 ml.
Finely chop the onion and fry in oil, it is better to use butter. When it turns brown, add carrots, and at the very end - frozen mushrooms. As soon as they completely release water, you need to add pieces of meat. Simmer for about 30 minutes and make sure that the water does not completely evaporate. When the roast is ready, add cream or sour cream and salt.
Mushrooms with sour cream
This dish is suitable for any side dish and goes well with both potatoes and rice.
Compound:
The dish is prepared from defrosted mushrooms so that the water completely drains from them. Pour oil into a well-heated frying pan and fry the onion. Then add mushrooms and simmer for 15 minutes. Salt, add other spices to taste and pour in sour cream. Cover the top and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring while doing so.
The mushrooms should defrost within 2-3 hours, and then they should be cut. Finely chop one onion and bell pepper into strips. Place all ingredients in a frying pan and simmer with added oil. After this, you need to pour a handful of flour, while stirring the vegetables well, add salt, add cumin and pour boiling water so that the water slightly covers the dish. Close the lid and leave to simmer until the water evaporates. At the end add the tomato, which should be cut into cubes. Decorate with greenery as desired.
Delicate sauce
The sauce is added to any dish; it can whet the appetite and give a unique taste. It is worth noting that the most common recipe for porcini mushroom sauce will give you a much tastier dish than other mushrooms.
For the sauce you need:
Frozen mushrooms should be boiled, then cut and fried with onions in melted butter, and finally add flour. Total frying time is about 10 minutes. The cream should be warm and should be added at the end, then salt the sauce, add spices to taste and leave to simmer over low heat until it thickens. The sauce can be consumed cold or hot and is suitable for all dishes, especially meat.
Snacks and salads
It is worth noting that a large number of delicious snacks can be made from mushrooms, starting with pate and ending with entire snack compositions.
Mushroom pate
- frozen mushrooms - 800 g;
- lemon juice;
- butter - 200 g;
- salt and spices.
Mushrooms are boiled in salted water, and then they must be minced in a meat grinder. Oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper are also added there. This dish is very easy to prepare, and the appetizer is tasty, satisfying and suitable for both breakfast and a holiday table.
Salad “Tenderness”
Ingredients:
- chicken or turkey fillet - 400 g;
- porcini mushrooms - 500 g;
- eggs - 2 pcs.;
- cucumbers (preferably fresh) - 2 pcs.;
- onions - 1 pc.;
- canned corn - 1 can.
The onion must be finely chopped and fried until it is browned, and the excess oil must be drained. Chicken fillet needs to be boiled and cut. Do the same with eggs. Cucumbers and other products must be cut into cubes. Mix everything, add mushrooms, salt and mix well with mayonnaise. The salad is ready, it can also be made in layers, it turns out very tasty.
There are many recipes for preparing frozen porcini mushrooms, and it’s up to you to decide which one to choose, but it’s worth noting that in ancient times, cooks did not share recipes with anyone, especially dishes with mushrooms. They passed down all the recipes by inheritance, because porcini mushrooms were most often served on the tables of masters, and foreign guests were amazed when they tried them. You too create, and then your guests will be delighted!