Mushrooms

[elaine l]

Is it possible to freeze fresh mushrooms? I realize they will lose something but I bought a large amount for a recipe that I have decided to put on hold.

 

[Andy M.]

You will not get a good result freezing fresh mushrooms. They contain a lot of water and will get mushy.

You can cook them up and freeze then with good results.

 

[elaine l]

Thanks for the speedy reply. I will cook them first then freeze.

 

[BreezyCooking]

Definitely cook them first, otherwise you're quite likely to end up with a gooey, slimy mess. (Gee - can you tell that I've tried this? LOL!!!!)

 

[QSis]

That reminds me: Is duxelles pronounced the way it's spelled (duck - SELLS) or the way Emeril pronounced it the other day (doo - SELLS) or some other way?

Lee

 

[Katie H]

According to Miriam Webster, the correct pronunciation is "duke sell," with "doo sell" as an acceptable alternative pronunciation.

 

[CharlieD]

I freeze fresh mushrooms all the time. The only question is what you are going to do with them afterwards. I, use them for cooking and it doesn't mater how they looked after they were defrosted. If you are planing to put them on a pizza or a fresh salad I would not freeze them.

 

[sparrowgrass]

The other way to deal with mushrooms is to dry them.

Just lay them out on a paper towel on the counter, and in a few days, they will be dry. If they are particularly large, slice them up. Don't wash them first.

I store mine in the freezer, but if they are thoroughly, crispy dry, you could put them in a mason jar and store them in the cupboard.

When you get ready to use them, soak in warm water. Drying makes plain old button mushrooms chewier, more "meaty" and seems to intensify the flavor.

 

[Constance]

I slice and sautee my mushrooms in EVOO before freezing them, but I think Sparrowgrass has a great idea about drying them. I believe I shall give it a try!

 

[elaine l]

I ended up cooking them up in EVOO then froze them. My plan is to use them in a sauce. It will next week that I pull them out of the deep freeze and see how I did. I just love this forum. I have so many questions and now I have folks to answer them.

 

[sparrowgrass]

Constance, if the humidity is high in your house, you may have trouble with molding. But with AC on, mushrooms dry pretty quickly.

 

[kadesma]

The other way to deal with mushrooms is to dry them.

Just lay them out on a paper towel on the counter, and in a few days, they will be dry. If they are particularly large, slice them up. Don't wash them first.

I store mine in the freezer, but if they are thoroughly, crispy dry, you could put them in a mason jar and store them in the cupboard.

When you get ready to use them, soak in warm water. Drying makes plain old button mushrooms chewier, more "meaty" and seems to intensify the flavor.

Sparrowgrass,
I have a large bag of dried porcini's, and learned the hard way to add several bay leaves and a hand full of peppercorns to the container they are in...My first bag went into the garbage as those nasty little bugs got into the mushrooms and I ended up with $$$ wasted..I've been wanting to dry some myself but haven't because of the bugs. When I bought these, the lady who owns this little Italian Deli told me to add the peppercorns and bay leaves..These mushrooms have lasted over 6 months with no little beasties getting in the container. What do you do? Also, do you save the soaking water to use in your pasta sauce or the recipe your making? I have a dehydrater and wonder if they will dry well that way or to just do as you do? Which sounds like a great way to work with them.
kadesma

 

[Constance]

Sparrowgrass, we have central AC, and I keep the house around 70 degrees, so molding shouldn't be a problem.

Kadesma, your dehydrater will probably do the best job.

 

[sparrowgrass]

What Constance said. If I had a dehydrator, I would certainly use it.

I put mine in the freezer after they are dry--no bugs in there.

Yep, I save the soaking water, if I soak them. Be careful, because it may be gritty--leave the last bit in the soaking vessel..

If I am making soup or sauce, I rinse them briefly and add them to the liquid without soaking.

 

[kadesma]

Thanks Sparrowgrass, I am now going to give the dehydrator a go and see what happens. I drain my mushroom water through several layers of cheese cloth.
kadesma

 

[BreezyCooking]

When I soak dry mushrooms (which I do frequently for Asian dishes - all those dried shitakes & wood ears), if I plan on saving the soaking the liquid, I drain the mushrooms thru a kitchen strainer lined with a plain old paper coffee filter. Although it does take a while to drain, it works great - absolutely no grit, etc., gets thru into the strained broth.

In fact, I use paper coffee filters often for filtering impurities out of broth/stock.

 

[Andy M.]

When I soak dry mushrooms (which I do frequently for Asian dishes - all those dried shitakes & wood ears), if I plan on saving the soaking the liquid, I drain the mushrooms thru a kitchen strainer lined with a plain old paper coffee filter. Although it does take a while to drain, it works great - absolutely no grit, etc., gets thru into the strained broth.

In fact, I use paper coffee filters often for filtering impurities out of broth/stock.

I used to do that too but was too impatient to wait for the long filtration process. Try paper towel as a filter. It traps all the sediment and the liquid moves through faster.

 

[notjustamom]

We dry our mushrooms, too. My husband actually picks them himself, morelles and chanterelles. Don't panic, he's done it since he was a child, and he's 44 now. He first started learning about mushrooms from his uncle in Vermont. Now it's an obsession with him, he has every book on the subject and can identify mushrooms on the spot. There are actually quite a few mushroom hunters around here, it upsets him to no one to head to his favorite spots and see someone has beaten him to the mushrooms.

But yes, we either air dry them, or in the dehydrator.