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Large harvests from quiet hunting raise the question of the safety of the product. There are several ways to store porcini mushrooms. Depending on the expected period, the conditions for keeping boletus mushrooms may change.
Where to store porcini mushrooms
To ensure that the product does not lose its consumer qualities over time, care must be taken to create suitable conditions for its preservation. There are several classic ways to store fresh porcini mushrooms. The most popular are:
- cooking;
- drying;
- freezing
Depending on the chosen method, porcini mushrooms are stored differently. The boiled product is placed in the refrigerator for several days. Frozen boletus mushrooms are stored in the freezer in plastic containers or plastic bags. Dried mushroom pieces can be stored at room temperature provided proper indoor conditions are provided.
How long do porcini mushrooms last?
Freshly harvested crops need to be processed as quickly as possible. Over time, the taste characteristics of the fruit begin to deteriorate. If measures to preserve the harvest are not taken in time, porcini mushrooms can deteriorate and cause harm to the human body.
It is worth understanding that high air temperatures indoors or outdoors can accelerate the rotting of the product. Do not store porcini mushrooms in closed bags after harvesting. In such cases, they begin to more actively release toxic substances.
Depending on the storage method chosen, the shelf life of the product may vary.
How long can fresh porcini mushrooms be stored?
Before storing boletus mushrooms, it is necessary to carry out their initial processing. It is worth going through them carefully to remove spoiled and rotten specimens. Each mushroom is washed with running water, removing particles of leaves and dirt accumulated on it. Using a knife, remove the lower part of the stem and damaged areas of the fruiting body.
After this, the porcini mushrooms are washed again with water and wiped with a napkin or paper towel. The dried fruiting bodies are placed in a plastic container, covered with gauze and placed on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. To store them in this way, a constant temperature of no more than 2 degrees is required.
In such conditions, boletus mushrooms are able to retain their taste and beneficial properties for up to 2 days. Usually this time is enough to resolve the issue of further processing of the product. If you store them in this way for more than 7 days, toxic substances begin to accumulate in the caps.
How long to store boiled porcini mushrooms in the refrigerator
Cooking allows you to kill almost all the harmful substances contained in boletus mushrooms, thereby slightly extending the shelf life of porcini mushrooms. The fruit bodies, washed and cleared of dirt, are cut into large pieces and filled with water. The average boiling time is about half an hour.
The liquid is drained, and the fruiting bodies are transferred to a plastic container and put in the refrigerator. At a temperature of 2-4 degrees they are stored for up to 3-4 days. There is a great way to extend the shelf life of the product - immediately after cooking, place it in a sterilized glass jar and seal it with a lid. In this case, boletus mushrooms can withstand up to 6-7 days at the right temperature.
How long to store dried porcini mushrooms?
Drying allows you to repeatedly increase the shelf life of any product. Deprived of moisture, porcini mushrooms completely stop the rotting process. This semi-finished product is not too demanding on environmental conditions. There are several ways to prepare it:
- sun drying;
- drying in the oven;
- using an electric dryer.
Drying can significantly increase the shelf life of the product
Regardless of the harvesting method, it is best to store the semi-finished product in a cloth bag, which will allow natural ventilation. At room temperature, dried porcini mushrooms can be stored for up to six months. In dry, dark rooms with low temperatures, their shelf life can reach up to 9-12 months.
How long to store frozen porcini mushrooms
The most popular way to preserve large harvests from silent hunting is freezing. In this form, the fruiting bodies can be easily stored until the next harvest. Experienced housewives advise boiling pre-processed porcini mushrooms. The average cooking time before freezing is 15-20 minutes.
After this, the water is drained and the boletus mushrooms are wiped dry with a paper towel or dried. Place them on a large cutting board or baking sheet so that there is a small distance between the pieces. Then the porcini mushrooms are placed in the freezer for 3-4 hours.
The finished semi-finished product is taken out and placed in plastic bags or containers and put back into the freezer. At an average temperature of -15 degrees, mushrooms can be stored for up to a year. Lower temperatures make frozen porcini mushrooms have an almost infinite shelf life.
It is important to remember that the mushroom flavor disappears from the frozen product over time. After a year of storage, boletus mushrooms will lose their noble aroma and taste like less valuable mushrooms. It is best to store them in this way for no more than 5-6 months.
How to preserve porcini mushroom
There are various situations when it is necessary to maintain the freshness of food for a certain period of time. Most often this happens when the harvest is too large, when it is not possible to process the collected boletus mushrooms as quickly as possible. Depending on such situations, it is necessary to choose the right strategy for preserving the fruits of silent hunting.
There are often cases when forays into the forest drag on for a day or more.In such cases, experienced mushroom pickers advise covering the bottom of a basket or bucket with a layer of moss collected in the forest. It will provide protection from high temperatures and improve natural ventilation. For a better effect, the top of the basket is also covered with moss and sprinkled with fresh pine needles.
Fresh harvest from silent hunting must be processed as quickly as possible
If you need to preserve the harvest at home, you should pay attention to the desired preservation conditions. Depending on the expected time frame, you can use different methods. It is important to remember that fruiting bodies begin to deteriorate quite quickly, so delaying can completely destroy bountiful harvests.
How to preserve porcini mushrooms for a day
Most often, the question of short-term conservation of product nutrients arises during large harvests, when the housewife is physically unable to process the collected volume of boletus mushrooms. Despite the seemingly insignificant time frame, storing fresh porcini mushrooms at home at room temperature is extremely undesirable. High relative humidity and temperatures above 22-24 degrees for 5-6 hours will trigger irreversible processes of their deterioration.
Pre-processed porcini mushrooms are wiped dry and put in the refrigerator. It is worth covering the container with gauze or a paper towel to avoid the entry of unwanted microorganisms. If it is possible to transfer the harvest to a cellar or cold basement, this method will allow you to easily preserve porcini mushrooms for a day or even 3 days.
How to preserve porcini mushrooms for a week
In contrast to short-term or maximum long-term storage, keeping boletus mushrooms fresh for 7 days is a rather difficult task. After 3 days of being in the refrigerator, porcini mushrooms will begin to release substances that are toxic to the human body, so you have to resort to various culinary tricks. The most popular include boiling followed by keeping it in a sterile closed container. You can leave it in water with pieces of ice.
Boiled boletus mushrooms are placed in a large plastic container. They are mixed with ice cubes and cold water and left in the refrigerator. Thanks to this, a constant temperature of up to +1 degree is maintained in the container. The main thing is not to forget to replace melting ice once a day.
How to preserve porcini mushrooms for the winter
Freezing is the best way to prolong the freshness of boletus mushrooms
Long-term storage allows you to enjoy the taste of summer even in the cold winter months. With the right method, the mushroom taste and bright aroma will remain for quite a long time. Since it is not possible to store the product fresh for a long time, a compromise has to be made using drying and freezing methods.
Both methods will allow you to retain most of the beneficial properties of the fresh product. However, it should be remembered that long-term storage reduces the noble mushroom aroma. Since drying allows you to get a semi-finished product faster, experienced housewives advise resorting to freezing. Fresh or boiled mushrooms are placed in the freezer and, using the “shock freezing” mode, they are turned into a product that will easily survive several winter months.
Advice from experienced mushroom pickers
Very often, short shelf life and sudden spoilage of the product can be caused by improper preparation. Some housewives overlook the fact that small worms and small insects can accumulate inside porcini mushrooms. Experienced mushroom pickers advise soaking the fruiting bodies in lightly salted cold water for 6-12 hours before storing. During this time, the pests will completely leave the boletus mushrooms.
If you intend to preserve the product for a longer period of time, you should use some tricks when freezing. When cooking porcini mushrooms, you can add a small amount of citric acid or juice to the water. The components included in their composition, when interacting with the mushroom surface, make its color and structure more attractive. The pieces become whiter and denser.
Conclusion
Storing porcini mushrooms at home for future use is quite simple. Depending on the desired time frame for preserving the nutritional qualities of the product, you can resort to various methods of maintaining freshness. If you follow the advice of experienced housewives, you will be able to enjoy the noble mushroom taste and aroma for many months.
