Food conservation

How to Preserve Mushrooms

Max. D Gray
By Max. D Gray. Updated: February 15, 2017
How to Preserve Mushrooms

Mushrooms are a very valuable food in every kitchen, as they offer endless possibilities when it comes to using them. However, mushrooms are quite delicate and they require special care to preserve them from spoiling. Therefore, if you want to keep mushrooms in top condition for long periods of time, you'll need to use a food preservation technique like dehydration, freezing, fermenting or vacuum packaging.

In this oneHOWTO article we'll explain in detail how to preserve mushrooms without losing their properties or taste.

You may also be interested in: How To Dry Yellow Foot Chanterelle Mushrooms
Contents
  1. How to preserve mushrooms: fresh
  2. How to preserve mushrooms: dehydrated
  3. How to preserve mushrooms: frozen
  4. Preserving mushrooms: in their juice
  5. How to preserve mushrooms: in oil, vinegar or salt

How to preserve mushrooms: fresh

After collecting mushrooms or buying them in a shop, we can keep them fresh in the fridge for a few days. You should place them with their lamellas down, without washing them, in a container which can be made of cardboard and covered with a damp cloth. In this way they'll keep perfectly for a few days but should be cooked quickly or preserved with some other method.

How to Preserve Mushrooms - How to preserve mushrooms: fresh

How to preserve mushrooms: dehydrated

Another of the most common methods for preserving mushrooms is by dehydration, i.e. dried mushrooms. To do this, the first thing you should do is to carefully clean the mushrooms, preferably without water and then you can choose between the different methods for removing water and preventing them from spoiling:

  • Dehydrating mushrooms in the air: either on a rack or by hanging them on a line, as if you were hanging clothes. You should place them in a place that's hot or has good air flow but without much humidity.
  • Drying mushrooms in direct sunlight: the problem with this option are insects, bad weather, etc. Also, if you live in a humid place, it is recommended that you do not leave them outside overnight.
  • Using an oven to dry mushrooms: at a low temperature and with a lot of patience, as this process requires hours. Electric ovens are preferred and use a fan if you have one.
How to Preserve Mushrooms - How to preserve mushrooms: dehydrated
Image: casadiez.es

How to preserve mushrooms: frozen

A good alternative to preserve mushrooms in perfect condition is by freezing them. After cleaning them and preferably cutting them you should blanch them in boiling water, although it is worth noting that they can also be frozen raw. Then drain and dry them with a cloth before putting them in bags or containers to be frozen. You can preserve mushrooms in the freezer for about six months.

How to Preserve Mushrooms - How to preserve mushrooms: frozen
Image: picstocpin.com

Preserving mushrooms: in their juice

This technique involves preserving mushrooms naturally in their own juice, packaged in vacuum jars. First of all, you should sterilize the jars or bottles that you will to keep the mushrooms in good condition.

Then, wash the mushrooms, chop them, blanch them and do not throw away the resulting water. Put the mushrooms in the jar with their cooking juices, filling it up to the maximum, and put the lid on firmly.

To seal the glass jars, you should boil them in a pot that is large enough so the water covers all the containers. Here you can learn more about how to seal glass jars to preserve food.

How to Preserve Mushrooms - Preserving mushrooms: in their juice
Image: tapatdetapes.blogspot.com

How to preserve mushrooms: in oil, vinegar or salt

As an alternative to the previous one to preserve mushrooms, you can also soak them in:

  • Oil: after blanching the previously washed mushrooms, you should put them in a jar without their cooking juices, adding a little salt and finally finishing it off with olive oil. You should do so with large fleshy mushrooms. You can also put in some aromatic herbs to give them a little more flavor.
  • Vinegar: in this case, you should add vinegar directly to the water you're going to use to blanch the mushrooms with a little salt. The resulting liquid is what you will use to fill the jar with mushrooms.
  • Salt: if you want to preserve mushrooms in salt, after blanching them you should put them in a jar without any juice and start adding alternating layers of salt and mushrooms, ending with a final one of salt. Before preparing them, you need to wash them well.

Here you can learn more about how to make a fermentation jar.

How to Preserve Mushrooms - How to preserve mushrooms: in oil, vinegar or salt
Image: petitchef.es

This is how to preserve mushrooms. Do you suspect your mushrooms are spoiled? Take a look at our article on how to tell if mushrooms are still good to eat.

This is how to preserve mushrooms. Do you suspect your mushrooms are spoiled? Take a look at our article on how to tell if mushrooms are still good to eat.

If you want to read similar articles to How to Preserve Mushrooms, we recommend you visit our Food & drink category.

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4 comments
Rating:
Diane
Does the salt preservation method apply to high water content mushrooms like Puffballs?
OneHowTo Editor
Hi Diane,

It does, but it just may take a little more salt. If you find they are not dry enough, you can slice the mushrooms so more surface area comes in contact.
Rating:
David
So .. what proportion of Salt to Mushroom? I've seen 3:1 and 1:3 and many suggestions in between. Do you have a proper recommendation or do you not know either?
OneHowTo Editor
We suggest no more than one spoonful per layer of mushrooms.
Hope this helps
Rating:
casey
thanks for so many good tips on preserving mushrooms. I love them, and I hate throwing such good food away. also, hate food poisoning.
Rating:
millicent dew
I came upon your site by accident searching for information on preservation of mushrooms. This was such a great help to me! Thank you so much!
OneHowTo Editor
We're glad you found our article useful!
Image: casadiez.es
Image: picstocpin.com
Image: tapatdetapes.blogspot.com
Image: petitchef.es
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How to Preserve Mushrooms