Today, quick freezing is one of the first places in organizing product storage. Let's look at how to freeze porcini mushrooms. Housewives often choose this method, since long-term frozen storage allows the natural taste to be preserved, and all beneficial substances and microelements remain almost unchanged.
Preparatory stage
Purchased or collected boletus mushrooms are carefully cleaned of forest debris with a soft brush or dishwasher.It is not recommended to collect them near the highway, as the mushrooms absorb harmful substances from car exhaust.
It is advisable not to wash the gifts of the forest. You should resort to this procedure if there is too much dirt: the mushrooms are lightly rinsed under the tap or washed in water acidified with vinegar. You should not soak them for a long time, as their structure resembles a sponge that quickly absorbs moisture. To freeze porcini mushrooms for the winter, the presence of liquid is extremely undesirable, so the product must be dry before freezing.
Fresh frozen storage
Porcini mushrooms can be frozen fresh. Preliminary sorting is carried out, large specimens are cut into several small slices. Small ones can be used to prepare interesting holiday dishes, and when divided into parts, add them to goulash or cook soup.
Ready boletus mushrooms are placed in special containers or bags for freezing food. Plastic containers are thoroughly washed and kept over a steaming pan for 2 - 3 minutes.
If the mushrooms were rinsed during the preparatory work, it is better to place them at some distance from each other, otherwise they will freeze. It is advisable to sprinkle them with citric acid so that the boletus mushrooms do not lose color.
After 12 hours of cooling in the refrigerator, they can be transferred into bags of approximately 200 - 300 g, after squeezing out the air, and in this form placed in freezers for storage. Before preparing a dish with mushrooms, there is no need to defrost them: the preparation is placed directly from the bag in a frying pan or in a saucepan with soup.
Frozen boletus mushrooms are not recommended to be re-frozen. This not only reduces their taste, but in some cases leads to poisoning.If it is necessary to defrost one refrigerator compartment, the packages should be transferred to another during this time. You should not freeze raw mushrooms if there are frequent power outages.
Small specimens can be washed thoroughly, the garlic cut into small pieces, put everything in a plastic bag and put in the freezer.
Methods for freezing boiled specimens
In response to the question of how to properly freeze porcini mushrooms for the winter, it is often advised to prepare them in a boiled form. This method has an advantage over storing fresh frozen ones - such preparation takes up less space. This is especially true for families who have a small refrigerator. In addition, specimens after cutting out wormholes and those that have lost their attractive appearance are also suitable for this option.
Mushrooms are cut into large slices and boiled for 5 - 10 minutes in lightly salted boiling water. Cooking longer is not recommended. After that, they are thrown into a colander to drain the liquid. The total volume should decrease by about 3 times.
After complete cooling, you can fill special containers or plastic bags. Mushrooms frozen in this way are added to soups or gravies.
Freezing the broth
The water in which boletus mushrooms are boiled is used for cooking. It is pre-boiled to thicken the liquid and then frozen in ice cube trays.
After cooking, the mushrooms are placed in jars and filled with broth. In this form, frozen porcini mushrooms can be stored for about 1 year. When necessary, you can put the contents into the pan, and in 10 minutes the broth will be almost ready.
Cooking in own juice
Mushrooms retain even more beneficial substances when they are boiled in their own juice. To do this, place them in a thick-bottomed saucepan or deep frying pan and cover with a lid. When heated over low heat, after a few minutes the process of evaporation of the liquid will begin. It is recommended to heat the dishes not too much, just up to +70 degrees.
Gradually, the volume of mushrooms will decrease by three times, which will be a signal of readiness. After cooling, the contents of the pan along with the liquid are poured into special plastic bags. You can also add chopped herbs and ground allspice there, and then close the containers tightly.
To avoid problems, when freezing, it is better to put in the bag the amount of mushrooms that will be needed to prepare one dish, so that you do not have to re-freeze them.
Fried mushrooms
Before freezing porcini mushrooms for the winter, you can pre-fry them in a frying pan. Peeled mushrooms are cut into cubes and placed in a frying pan without a lid. Gradually they begin to release liquid, and after about 20 - 30 minutes the water should completely evaporate. After this, you can add vegetable oil.
Frying is carried out until a golden crust forms. Then they are placed in a colander and allowed to drain off excess fat. Place in bags only after complete cooling. Packaged in portions, in quantities sufficient to prepare the dish. Store in the freezer of a regular refrigerator.
Frozen boletus mushrooms will not lose their taste for 1 year. The temperature at which they should be placed for long-term storage should be around -18 – 20 degrees.
Frozen porcini mushrooms usually do not require pre-thawing to cook.But if necessary, they are first kept for 5 - 6 hours in the refrigerator, and then placed for further defrosting in a room with a temperature of +20 - 23 degrees.
How to use
Recipes for preparing freshly frozen boletus mushrooms recommend boiling them before frying. Those specimens that were boiled before being placed in the freezer can be immediately thrown into a frying pan or pan for preparing soups.
If the mushrooms were fried before freezing, they can be served with gravy. If you cook with vegetables, fry the onion and carrots, cut into strips.
Then add sour cream to the pan and simmer the vegetables until almost done, only then add the mushrooms. After a few minutes of simmering, the mushroom gravy will be ready.
