Storing fresh mushrooms at home: how to store mushrooms in the refrigerator and freezer
Many housewives, in order to save their time, make substantial purchases of food in advance. Champignons are a good product for home storage, as they are a frequent ingredient in many delicious dishes. Storage of mushrooms has its own characteristics, which should be familiarized with before buying these mushrooms in large quantities.
When purchasing large quantities of mushrooms, you should learn how to store fresh mushrooms at home so that they do not lose their presentation. There are several ways to store this product. It is also useful to know the storage conditions of mushrooms, under which they will not deteriorate and will not lose their suitability for cooking.
At room temperature, mushrooms bought by weight can be stored for no more than a day. However, it is not recommended to keep them for a long time without a refrigerator.
How to store fresh champignons to prevent mushrooms from turning black
How to store fresh mushrooms in the refrigerator if you plan to use them for cooking in the near future? Place the mushrooms in a tray and place on the middle shelf of the refrigerator. You must use them within three days.
Housewives share a little trick on how to store fresh mushrooms so that they do not turn black, because then it is not recommended to add them to food. In the refrigerator compartment, empty the lower tray intended for vegetables, carefully put the mushrooms into it, but not on top of each other so that they can fit more, but in one layer. Wrap the mushrooms on top with a paper towel. Mushrooms can be stored in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
Storing fresh mushrooms in the refrigerator can be done in another way. To increase the shelf life of this product, you can use food grade plastic trays or special containers with holes. If you are using a regular food-grade plastic tray, when you fill it with mushrooms, cover the top with plastic wrap and poke holes in it with a toothpick. Mushrooms should also be applied a little, in one layer, no more. Using a special container, close it with a lid.
How to keep fresh mushrooms in the refrigerator: an effective way
There is another effective way to keep fresh mushrooms in the refrigerator, even for up to 6 days. As soon as you buy the mushrooms, carefully place them in a paper bag, wrap it up and put it in the refrigerator compartment for storing vegetables.
The shelf life of these mushrooms can be increased several times if they are packed in natural fabric bags. Also recently, special bags have become popular, which allow you to store mushrooms in the refrigerator at a temperature of + 2 ° C for more than a week.
Do not forget that it is necessary to wash and peel this type of mushroom just before the preparation of the dish or shortly before that, the shelf life of the peeled mushrooms is significantly reduced.
Method how to store mushrooms in the freezer
The method of storing mushrooms in the freezer is a good option for those who want to stock up on these mushrooms for a fairly long period. Before sending the mushrooms to the freezer, they should be well prepared:
1. Having bought champignons, select quality specimens at home.
2. Carefully remove the film from the capsif there is damage, remove it with a knife.
3. Rinse the mushrooms thoroughly under running water and pat dry well with a paper towel.
4. Mushrooms can be stored whole or cut them into cubes or plates, the shelf life does not depend on this. In the freezer, such a product can be kept for up to three months.
5. Divide the prepared raw materials into containers or bags., close tightly and store in the freezer.
Some housewives use a different way to store fresh mushrooms in the freezer: they do not clean them, but send them directly to the freezer. However, you should be aware that after defrosting it will be very difficult to clean them, most likely, after such processing, the mushrooms are used unpeeled.
It is advisable to store these mushrooms in small portions in the freezer. The point is that these mushrooms must be cooked shortly after thawing.
How to store boiled mushrooms in the freezer
If you have more time to spend on harvesting, you can prepare them for freezing in this way:
1. Pre-boil peeled mushrooms a little in lightly salted water for about 10 minutes.
2. Throw the mushrooms in a colander, let the water drain, wait for them to cool, and place in bags. You can also fry them over low heat without adding salt to keep them out of juice.
Such semi-finished products can be stored in the freezer for up to six months.
Storing baked champignons in the freezer
You can freeze not only fresh or boiled, but also baked champignons:
1. Peeled, washed and dried mushrooms place on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or foil.
2. Bake mushrooms at medium temperature for 10-15 minutes.
3. Remove the mushrooms from the oven, let them cool, put them in bags or containers and put them in the freezer for storage.
Experienced housewives give one useful advice on how to keep mushrooms in the freezer so that they do not lose their taste and attractive appearance. They recommend placing only dry mushrooms in the freezer, so they must be wiped well so that no water droplets remain on them. If they remain on the surface of the mushrooms, water crystals tend to destroy the mushroom fibers during freezing. Because of this, the flesh of the mushrooms becomes loose, during cooking it absorbs a lot of liquid, so the dish turns out to be watery and tasteless. You should also know that mushrooms cannot be re-frozen, if you removed them from the freezer and started the defrosting process, the mushrooms must be cooked.
Sometimes you can hear from housewives that they choose such a way of storing mushrooms at home, like drying them. After such processing, mushrooms largely lose their taste, they become tasteless, in addition, they no longer look appetizing and attractive. Dry mushrooms should be stored in paper bags in a dark, well-ventilated area. The shelf life of dried mushrooms is 8-12 months.