Eat Mushrooms. Not Fast Food.
Here's how to preserve your mushrooms the easy way and have them ready to eat at a moment's notice.
There are some mushrooms, such as Chanterelles, that don’t dehydrate very well. Also, I consider dehydrating for this purpose a waste of energy anyway, because once you’re done dehydrating them, they still require cooking in order to eat. But if you freeze your mushrooms, you’ll have them ready to go at a moment’s notice. The method I describe here uses very little space in the freezer.
For a post on cleaning mushrooms, check out this article.
Cooking the Mushrooms
I prefer all of my mushrooms sauteed in butter and olive oil mixture. Approx 1 tablespoon of butter, 1 of olive oil for a full pan. The olive oil serves to raise the smoke point of the butter, but the butter is for the richer flavor. In a pinch, either will do by themselves.
Chanterelles are easy to break apart by hand into bite size pieces. The stems pull apart like string cheese. Shiitakes require the tough stalk removed, then slicing the caps into strips. Others require rough chopping.
I personally like to cook all of my mushrooms by themselves, and *then* put them in recipes (or eat them by themselves). It is hard to get the cooking right otherwise… you want them fully cooked, not slimy.
Put enough mushrooms into a saute pan or skillet with oil on moderate heat.
At this point I like to put a lid on the pan. It helps to conserve and distribute the heat evenly. Not a big deal if you don’t happen to have one - just be sure to stir more often.
The first thing that will happen is that the mushrooms will start releasing their excess water. This is the point I like to make sure I’ve added salt - so that it can dissolve in the water and flavor the mushrooms evenly.
Once all of the mushrooms have wilted, remove the cover, up the heat, and drive off the water. Stir the mushrooms regularly.
You will know they are done once the mushrooms turn dark, the edges start to crisp a bit. If you start smelling smoke, off the heat immediately, remove the pan from the burner, and stir.
You can move the mushrooms to a bowl to cool down a bit if you have more batches to cook before you pack them for the freezer.
Preserving the Mushrooms
Once they’ve cooked down a bit, use the tongs to pick them up and place them into the little snack baggies.
Then close up all but a small corner of the baggy, and squeeze out the extra air. I actually push down with my belly to get all the air out, then close up the bag.
Once the bag is closed, spread them out a bit so that they are laying flat in an even layer. Find a flat spot in the freezer to freeze them in the flattened shape, then stand them up in the freezer door if you wish.
From this point, they are easy to quickly thaw in the microwave for a few seconds, or thaw on the counter. They are ready to eat by themselves or add to a dish. Enjoy!
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