What is the best way to freeze mushrooms. How to freeze mushrooms for the winter - the rules you need to know

Mushrooms are a product long known and loved by modern housewives, used in the preparation of both classic, popular dishes and gourmet gastronomic masterpieces. Despite the fact that these mushrooms can be bought at almost every grocery store, some zealous housewives prefer to have a fragrant supply in the refrigerator and freeze them for the winter in the old fashioned way. There are several ways to harvest this product - mushrooms are stored both raw and pre-boiled and fried.

When preparing mushroom preparations for storage in the refrigerator, you should learn how to freeze the product, as well as pay attention to the selection and preparation of mushrooms. For storage, choose fresh, even specimens of a light, slightly pinkish hue, without spots and cuts.

The product is washed under warm, running water, without peeling the skins, but only removing debris and dirt, as well as cutting off the remnants of the mycelium.

Freezing champignons

Neat, whole mushrooms can be stored whole in the freezer, separating the caps from the legs, and also pre-cut into cubes or slices.

In addition, champignons can be pre-fried or boiled. Cooked mushroom slices are significantly reduced in size, and this saves space in the freezer.

Important! Before freezing, champignons should never be soaked in water - the mushrooms will be saturated with excess moisture and will become unusable after defrosting.

Raw

Raw mushrooms are usually frozen for roasting as the main ingredient. Housewives who plan to use mushroom preparations for soups, casseroles and main dishes often store the product cut into neat slices or cubes.

To do this, washed and thoroughly dried mushroom pieces are laid out in a thin layer on a flat surface and sent to the freezer for 2-3 days. Next, the frozen blanks should be carefully poured into bags and transferred to a permanent storage location.

Important!Frozen mushrooms are best stored in portions, since after defrosting they cannot be re-frozen.

Is it possible to freeze whole in the freezer

Hostesses prefer to send small, neat young mushrooms for storage as a whole. This is especially true for specimens in which the film under the cap has not yet separated.

The thoroughly washed product is dried to dryness with paper towels, laid out in one layer on a flat surface wrapped with plastic wrap, preventing the mushrooms from touching each other, and sent to the freezer for 3-4 days.

After the workpiece freezes, it is transferred to sealed plastic containers or vacuum bags with a special latch, after releasing air from them.

Boiled

One of the popular ways to store mushroom semi-finished products is to freeze the boiled product. Coarsely chopped mushrooms are boiled in water for 10-15 minutes without salt and pepper, after which they are thrown into a colander. Liquid must be completely drained from them.. Dried mushrooms are laid out in food containers or sealed bags and sent to the freezer.

Did you know?Modern housewives often use disposable cups tightly wrapped with cling film to store boiled mushroom blanks. It is inexpensive, convenient and practical.

Fried champignons

For quick preparation of second courses using mushroom semi-finished products, they can be frozen after frying. Thoroughly washed and chopped champignons are fried in hot vegetable oil until the excess liquid evaporates. Then the mushrooms are cooled, dried on a paper towel and folded in portions.

For frying champignons, it is better to use refined oil and do not add salt and spices to the mushrooms - this will preserve the product's bright taste and aroma of fresh mushrooms.

How long to keep in the freezer

Depending on the method of freezing mushrooms, the period of their storage is also different. So, raw champignons are stored in the refrigerator for the longest time. The freezing period is one year.

Fried champignons are the least susceptible to storage; they can be kept in the refrigerator for no more than 4 months. Boiled blanks can be stored frozen for six months. In this case, the storage temperature should be -18 ... -16 ° C.

How to defrost mushrooms

When using frozen foods, it is important to defrost them properly. This process should be gradual. At the first stage, mushroom semi-finished products from the freezer are moved to the refrigerator shelf before thawing, and only then can they be transferred to the table.

After that, the mushrooms can begin to cook. It is better not to allow the product to completely defrost, as the blanks will lose their aesthetic appearance - they will darken and become unappetizing.

Frozen champignons are a good option to prepare a delicious and unusual dish for unexpected guests. Indeed, in every home there are classic companions of this product - potatoes, onions and cheese. In addition, having champignons on hand, you can always please your household with a delicious soup or mushroom pie. How to freeze mushrooms for the winter: 4 important rules

How to freeze wild mushrooms for the winter according to all the rules, read in this article.

All the same mushrooms that you pick in summer and autumn are suitable for bookmarking for the winter: from chanterelles to porcini, the main thing is that they are edible.

The quiet hunting season should not pass by our freezer. Because - alas, but in winter we are unlikely to find fresh boletus, chanterelles and mushrooms in supermarkets. We will buy factory-frozen mushrooms or eternal ones, like the Egyptian pyramids, champignons and oyster mushrooms.

But! If we make a little fuss and defeat our own laziness for a while, then ... then we put mushroom stocks in the freezer, freeze them according to the rules and in winter we will enjoy fragrant mushroom soup, fragrant stew and even delicate Spanish omelet.

Rule #1: clean, fresh, young

Our mushrooms, no matter how we freeze them, should be fresh, clean and, if possible, not broken. Much depends on this - both the appearance of the product after defrosting, and the quality. Therefore, mushrooms need to be collected, bought, exchanged, begged - fresh. Maximum - yesterday's assembly.

Attention! When peeling mushrooms, don't piss too much of them. The mushroom easily absorbs water, which will turn into ice in the freezer. Why do we need water in the mushroom?

Rule number 2: freeze fresh mushrooms

It is easiest to freeze mushrooms whole and fresh. After cleaning, they are put in the freezer on a flat surface, and after a few hours they can be poured into a prepared bag or container. Mushrooms, mushrooms, wild mushrooms, boletus, boletus, chanterelles will be ideal mushrooms for freezing in this way.

We need the fungus to be strong, then even after defrosting they will keep their shape and decorate any dish.

Attention! It is best to defrost raw mushrooms by placing them in the refrigerator. Then they will be just like fresh, just out of the woods.

Rule number 3: freeze boiled or stewed mushrooms

If you are afraid of freezing fresh mushrooms and want to make sure, then boil them before freezing. Not very long - up to 5 minutes. Most often, mushrooms intended for frying are frozen in this way. This method is also suitable for broken, lost their appearance, but fresh and tasty mushrooms.

To prepare the mushrooms, drop them, peeled and cut into pieces, into boiling water for 5 minutes. Then let cool, drain in a colander and arrange in food bags or containers.

Calculate the number of mushrooms in the package so that you can use one package for cooking one dish. As a rule, half of the small packages are obtained - from 300 g to half a kilogram, and half - with a larger weight, from 500 g to 1 kg.

You can also freeze fried mushrooms. To do this, clean, prepared mushrooms are fried in a small amount of vegetable oil for 20 minutes until all excess moisture has evaporated. Completely cooled mushrooms are laid out in bags and frozen.

By the way, so that mushrooms do not lose their sweet taste and aroma when frying, mushrooms can be fried on a baking sheet in the oven. For such roasting, even sunflower oil is not required, and the mushrooms themselves are cooked in their own juice.

Rule number 4: keep the temperature

Frozen mushrooms for the winter can be stored at -18 ° C for up to a year. After completely defrosting the mushrooms, use them immediately, and in no case leave them for later in the refrigerator.

How to freeze mushrooms for the winter so that the harvest is not wasted. This is one way to store mushrooms in winter. Consider below what types you need to choose for this and how to properly freeze.

For this type of storage of the product, both forest mushrooms and purchased mushrooms are suitable, because their cost in summer is much lower than in the cold season.

What mushrooms freeze

Mushroom pickers know that almost all edible types of mushrooms can be frozen. It is best to give preference to those that fully preserve the aroma of the fruit:

There are slightly worse species, but they also retain their taste:

• oyster mushrooms;
• boletus;
• russula;
• waves;
• white;
• mushrooms.

For residents of the city, champignons and oyster mushrooms are considered the most affordable and optimal option. You can buy them anywhere if getting into the forest is problematic.

Note! Although White mushroom is one of those species that can be frozen, it is better to dry it for the winter. So the aroma of the fruit will be more fully conveyed.

Important! Air in the container or bag must be kept to a minimum as it will accelerate the aging process of the products. Therefore, it is necessary to fill the bag to the brim and squeeze the air out of it.

Still, it is preferable to harvest forest mushrooms, they are more natural. But here, too, there are some subtleties. Mushrooms should be collected in the depths of the forest, and not from the edge. They tend to absorb harmful substances through the mycelium, so the "roadside" ones are not suitable. Mushrooms must be young.

Sorting

After collecting fresh mushrooms sorted by structure. There are several types of them:

• marsupials. These include truffles, saucers, morels;
• Tubular. These are porcini mushrooms, mossiness mushrooms, aspen mushrooms, boletus mushrooms;
• Lamellar. Such as mushrooms, chanterelles, milk mushrooms, champignons, russula.

Raw mushrooms take up a lot of space in the freezer. Therefore, they are preliminarily subjected to heat treatment. Then the volume decreases by 4-5 times.

Marsupial and lamellar species must be boiled before freezing.

Tubular types are best frozen raw, as they have a sponge cap, which, due to the porous structure, absorbs liquid during cooking. This makes them very watery. If you still want to boil them, then before freezing, you need to squeeze them well with your hands.

Freezing preparation

• For freezing, choose the strongest specimens.
• Mushrooms should be cleaned of debris and foliage with a coarse brush or knife. The lower part of the leg is cut off.
• If the specimens for freezing are very dirty, then they can be slightly rinsed, but not soaked, and then dried with paper towels.
• Those that will be boiled can be safely washed without thinking that they will absorb too much moisture.

Methods for freezing mushrooms

Raw

As mentioned above, tubular species, such as redheads and porcini mushrooms, are best suited for this.

• If the fruits are small, they can be frozen whole, large ones are cut into plates, 1-2 cm thick.
• Prepared fruits are laid out on a horizontal surface and sent for several hours into the freezer.
• When they are already frozen, you can move them to a container or bag for storage.

Watch the video! Frozen mushrooms. How to freeze mushrooms

boiled

• Those mushrooms that will be boiled are cut.
• They are dipped in boiling water and boiled for 5-10 minutes, and then thrown into a colander to glass the liquid.
• After cooling, the pieces are laid out in bags so that the portion is for one time use, and sent to the freezer.

If mushrooms were cooked, the broth must be poured out, and the broth from porcini mushrooms or aspen mushrooms can be used to make soup.

Watch the video! Freezing boiled mushrooms

fried

• For this, tubular and agaric mushrooms are suitable. They must be cut into slices or pieces.
• The pieces are then fried in a frying pan with a little vegetable oil until crispy, about 20 minutes.
• Cool, arrange in bags and send to the freezer.

Important! No salt, no pepper, no spices are added to them.

• After thawing, this product is ready to eat. Mushrooms can be added to salad or fried potatoes.

Watch the video! How to freeze fried mushrooms

Baked in the oven

Another option is to freeze mushrooms that have been previously baked in the oven. They have a bright and rich taste and aroma.

• To bake, the mushrooms must be laid out on a dry baking sheet and put in the oven for 20 minutes.
• After that, cool, pack in bags and send to the freezer.

Watch the video! Harvesting mushrooms for the winter

Freezing temperature and shelf life

Frozen mushrooms keep up to 12 months. The temperature in the freezer should be -18 -19 degrees. This is a general requirement but may vary. It is necessary to take into account the condition of the freezer and the method of preparing mushrooms for freezing.

You can summarize like this:

• frozen raw mushrooms will be useful for 8 to 11 months of storage. When the period approaches the year, they somewhat lose their taste.
• Boiled and fried mushrooms, under conditions of package integrity, can be stored without loss of taste and useful qualities for 12 months.
• Stews retain their taste and benefits for up to 8 months, then they begin to lose their nutritional properties.

A fairly decent shelf life for frozen mushrooms will be something to please the family during the winter holidays and even longer.

How to defrost mushrooms

You should remember the basic rule - you need to defrost without "accelerators" like a microwave or hot water. Therefore, if you plan to cook a special dish, you need to calculate and defrost in advance. A 2 kg bag will be defrosted in about 12 hours.

The defrosting will be gentler if the mushrooms are moved first. in the fridge and then into a bowl at room temperature. But even here there are exceptions.

For example, if the mushrooms are fried, sometimes you can put more frozen food in the pan. A frying pan will help get rid of frost in a matter of minutes. Therefore, frozen mushrooms can be immediately laid out in a pan with fried onions.

This storage method can be used for many products - pumpkins, tomatoes, apples, strawberries, cherries and so on.

Important! Remember that it is better not to re-freeze mushrooms, because after defrosting they will become a shapeless gray mass. Therefore, it is better to calculate the portion that will be used at a time and freeze packaged in such quantities.

After thawing, mushrooms should not be stored for a long time, they should be used immediately. These simple tips will help delight households with fragrant mushrooms all winter!

Watch the video! How to freeze forest mushrooms

Mushrooms are a valuable source of proteins, dietary fiber, vitamins and valuable amino acids needed by the human body. They have a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular and nervous systems, activate the immune system, promote wound healing and recovery from illness. And of course, it's just a delicious product from which you can cook countless wonderful dishes. For the winter, these unique gifts of nature are harvested in different ways. How to freeze mushrooms correctly will be discussed further.

Freezing is the most optimal technology for preserving food for a long time. During this procedure, no more than 20% of useful substances are lost. Subject to all the rules, mushrooms can be stored from the summer for a period of more than 12 months. Self-harvesting can significantly reduce costs in winter, because at this time they are sold several times more expensive than in the season of mass growth and collection.

Freezing advantages and disadvantages

Freezing is the oldest way to preserve food. Since ancient times, it has been noticed that exposure to cold prolongs their shelf life, leaving the appearance and taste almost unchanged.

The benefits of deep freezing include:

• Fast and easy processing.
• Small weight loss of raw materials.
• Preservation of taste, aroma, color and shape.
• Unlimited cooking options after defrosting.
• Slight loss of nutritional value.

Of course, there are also some negative points:

• High energy consumption.
• The need for significant space for accommodation.
• Maintain constant temperature. Multiple defrosting is strictly unacceptable.

Mushrooms suitable for freezing

Any mushrooms are subject to freezing, but not all of them can be harvested raw. According to their structure, they are divided into marsupials, lamellar and tubular. The latter can be frozen without prior heat treatment. Of the lamellar ones, only oyster mushrooms and champignons are harvested fresh. The rest are first cooked and only then frozen in the form of semi-finished products.

How to choose and prepare mushrooms

Only young, fresh and undamaged specimens are suitable for cold preservation. Processing should be done within a day after collection. In old, overripe, an active process of protein decomposition occurs, which is comparable to decay.

The waste products of worms and larvae are toxic to humans; fungi affected by them are not recommended to be eaten, let alone preserved. Violation of the cooking technology can lead to severe poisoning.

Raw materials must be sorted out, cleaned of debris, discarded unsuitable - sluggish, crumpled, wormy. Then wash, dry. Removing water prevents food from freezing. Large specimens should be cut, small ones can be harvested whole. The butternuts need to be skinned.

Freezing utensils

Frozen mushrooms are stored in containers or bags made of food-grade polymer material. Bags are preferred as they save space and pack food more tightly. If you decide to use containers, then it is better to take square and rectangular ones in order to compactly place them in the freezer.

To preserve the taste and aroma, the container must be filled so that, if possible, there is no air left in it. The use of vacuum containers is recommended. Air can be squeezed out of plastic bags manually. Sealed packaging prevents unwanted shrinkage, the transfer of odors in the vicinity of different products.

Mushrooms should be frozen in small portions, which will be eaten shortly after thawing. If for some reason the product has not been cooked within a day after being removed from the freezer, it will have to be thrown away, otherwise you can get serious food poisoning.

Refrigerator preparation

Before storing food for a long time, the refrigerator must be washed to remove any unpleasant odor. In the freezer, a place should be allocated where they will not coexist with meat, fish, seafood. 3-4 hours before the intended laying of products, you need to adjust the temperature regime, setting the lowest possible indicator.

The temperature in the freezer should be from -18 ˚С and below.

Freezing methods at home

Mushrooms can be frozen both raw and heat-treated - boiled, fried, baked. You can freeze fresh those of them that do not have bitterness - boletus, boletus, fly mushrooms, champignons, boletus, boletus, oyster mushrooms. Species that secrete a specific milky juice must be soaked in salted water, then boiled. After that, the products are removed from the water, cooled, dried, laid out in prepared containers and frozen.

raw mushrooms

The easiest and fastest way to freeze mushrooms is to harvest them fresh and whole. In this case, after sorting, washing and drying, they are laid out on a small tray in one layer and placed in the freezer. When the blanks freeze, they are poured into bags and placed in a prepared place. From mushrooms frozen in this way, you can subsequently cook any dish. Their taste, aroma, shape and color are not lost during storage. You can even pickle them.

Salty

Salted mushrooms are kept in the refrigerator at temperatures up to +5 ˚С for no longer than 2 months. Freezing allows you to increase the shelf life up to 1 year. They are thrown into a colander, allowed to drain the brine, slightly squeezed, laid out in bags and placed in the freezer. As needed, the portion is defrosted, seasoned with onions and vegetable oil and consumed.

Boiled

If fresh mushrooms do not have a good presentation - they are dented or broken, they should not be frozen raw. Short-term boiling in lightly salted water is designed to slow down the development of pathogenic microflora and extend the storage time. Boiled foods decrease in volume, become soft.

You can use this recipe:

• 1 kg of mushrooms;
• 1 carrot;
• 5-6 peas of allspice;
• 2 bay leaves;
• 1 clove;
• salt to taste.

Boil all ingredients, except mushrooms, until carrots soften. Throw mushrooms into boiling brine, boil for 10 minutes, removing foam. Drain, squeeze lightly, pat dry with a towel. Pack up, place in the freezer.

Many mushrooms are conditionally edible, have a bitter taste, or are completely poisonous when raw. These include valui, volushka, breast, dubovik, honey agaric, rowing, morel.

Before freezing, they must be prepared in the following order:

1. soak during the day, changing the water several times;
2. boil three times in large water (5 liters per 1 kg of raw materials);
3. discard the product in a colander.

After each cooking, the broth is discarded, the mushrooms are washed. Boiling them in salted water, it is possible to completely eliminate bitterness, toxic substances are destroyed when heated to 70 ˚С.

Blanched

1. Brine is boiled in a ratio of 20 g of salt per 1 liter of water with the addition of citric acid at the tip of a knife.
2. The product is placed in a colander and immersed in boiling water for 2 minutes.
3. For the same time, they are immersed in ice water.
4. The colander is set aside in the sink to drain the liquid.
5. Mushrooms spread on cloth towels to dry.

Steam treatment for 5 minutes is also possible. To do this, use a double boiler or put a colander with prepared raw materials over a pot of boiling water.

Stewed

In case of an unexpected arrival of guests, a catastrophic lack of time or an attack of unwillingness to stand at the stove, there is a way out - to prepare stewed mushrooms. First, they need to be lightly boiled or blanched. Then stew in a thick-walled bowl for half an hour with onions and spices. When all the moisture has evaporated, turn off the heat, cool, pack and place in the freezer. Here, for example, is an interesting recipe with the addition of wine.

For him you will need:

• 800 g mushrooms.
• Half a glass of dry white wine.
• 1 tsp allspice pepper.
• 100 ml vegetable oil.
• Salt, herbs.

The product is cut, stewed in stainless steel for 20 minutes, salted. At the end of cooking, wine, pepper, herbs are poured in. Bring to a boil, then cool and pack.

fried

Harvesting fried mushrooms is also a first aid option for any occasion. Any fat is suitable for this, butter or vegetable oil is more often used. Such a semi-finished product is stored for 3-4 months, after which the oil will begin to taste bitter. Mushrooms should be blanched, fried over low heat until the liquid has completely evaporated, salt, add spices to taste. Cool, divide into portioned bags and place in the freezer.

Mushrooms with broth

Spongy mushrooms, when cooked, give a tasty and fragrant broth, which is also subject to cold preservation. You can boil them with carrots and potatoes, salt and season and pour everything into freezer containers. You will get an excellent semi-finished product that is suitable for use immediately after defrosting.

Mushrooms and broth are often prepared separately, placing the solid base in a bag and the liquid in a plastic container.

baked

A semi-finished product with a bright taste and aroma is obtained by baking mushrooms in the oven. To do this, cover the baking sheet with foil, spread whole or sliced ​​\u200b\u200bchampignons, mushrooms, boletus or boletus on it and bake until cooked without adding oil. In this case, they are slightly dried and after defrosting they need further cooking.

What temperature is needed to freeze

Mushrooms are recommended to be frozen at a temperature of -18 ˚С and below. It is important that the process takes place as quickly as possible. When slowly frozen, the liquid inside the tissues of the fungus forms large crystals that will rupture the cells. This will negatively affect the quality of the defrosted product. To quickly freeze the workpieces to the full depth, it is necessary to lay them in small portions, leaving gaps for the circulation of cold air.

On the packaging, be sure to leave notes about the date of the bookmark.

Terms and rules of storage of the frozen product

The shelf life of mushrooms in the freezer depends on the temperature:

• from -20 to -18 ˚С blanks are stored for up to 12 months;
• from -18 to -14 ˚С, the shelf life is reduced to 4-6 months;
• up to -12 ˚С can be stored for no more than 3-4 months.

Frozen blanks should be kept at the same temperature, -18 ˚С is optimal. Defrosting is allowed only once, re-freezing is prohibited.

How to defrost mushrooms

Defrost is a slow business. Raw mushrooms can be thawed in the refrigerator for a day or at room temperature for about 3 hours. Frozen after stewing, boiling and roasting can be thawed in a microwave oven in the appropriate mode in several steps with interruptions. In this case, the weight should be set to half that required, maintaining an interval of 10 minutes between the thawing stages. Then the impact of the device will be more uniform. You can also cook mushrooms without defrosting by placing them in a pot of water and immediately putting them on fire.

During freezing, all biochemical processes leading to product spoilage are suspended - the development of bacteria, mold and yeast microorganisms. Invisible companions of any product, they do not die at negative temperatures and after defrosting they will continue their vital activity. Therefore, it is necessary to minimize the time of the subsequent stay of the product in the open air before cooking and eating.