How to properly dry chanterelle mushrooms at home in the oven, electric dryer and on a string
Mushroom preparations are familiar to every connoisseur of "quiet hunting". Pickling, salting, frying, drying, freezing - all these processes are in demand in families where they like to pick mushrooms. So, having brought home a good harvest of chanterelles, you need to decide which processing method will be used. This article will focus on proven recipes for drying chanterelles.
Before you learn how to dry chanterelle mushrooms at home, you should familiarize yourself with the rules for proper pre-cleaning. It must be said that the drying process excludes the immersion of fruit bodies in water. In other words, the chanterelles should be cleaned dry, without contact with water. It is best to start cleaning in the forest, not uprooting the mushroom, but carefully cutting it off and cleaning off all heavy dirt. Thus, you can make it easier for yourself to come home.
For drying, it is better to choose small and strong specimens, which should remain intact in the process. Large fruiting bodies should be cut into 3-4 pieces. You can then use a toothbrush or regular kitchen sponge to wipe down each hat and plate. Inspect the entire crop again and cut off damaged and rotten areas, if any. When the preparatory stage is over, you can start drying itself.
So, how to properly dry chanterelles at home so that they do not lose their beneficial properties? Let's consider several simple and time-tested methods.
How should chanterelles be dried on a string?
Drying in vivo is considered the most demanded, but at the same time the most time-consuming process. It takes about a week, but certain conditions must be observed here. Many housewives ask: how should chanterelles be dried on a string? First of all, the mushroom harvest is laid out in a thin layer on a newspaper and sent to the sun's rays in a well-ventilated room. This is necessary so that the mushrooms "seize" and wither a little. What to do next, how to properly dry chanterelles after light withering? First, you need to prepare a thick strong thread on which the fruiting bodies will be strung. It is best to plant the chanterelles using a thick needle. Fruit bodies should not be close to each other.
Then the product should be hung in the sun and covered with gauze to keep flies out. You can place the thread in the kitchen above the stove. The readiness of the fruit bodies is checked by pressing: they should bend well, but should not crumble. It usually takes about 6-8 days to dry naturally.
Drying chanterelles in the oven
You can dry chanterelle mushrooms using the oven - how to do it? Many mushroom pickers note that this option is very convenient, since you do not need to wait several days for the fruit bodies to dry out. So, the prepared chanterelles are laid out on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper (you can use foil). Do not try to place all the fruiting bodies at once, divide them into several portions.
Send the baking sheet with the pieces to the oven, leaving the door slightly ajar. Thanks to this, excess moisture will evaporate, and the drying process itself will be faster. Initially, the temperature in the oven must be set to + 50 °. After a couple of hours, it is recommended to increase the temperature by 10 °. After about an hour, you need to remove the mushrooms and check for readiness. In particular, the drying time depends on several factors: the age and size of the fruit bodies, as well as their number and weather conditions during harvest. As you can see, drying chanterelles in the oven is much faster, but do not overdry them.
How to dry chanterelles in the microwave?
This option is ideal if you plan to dry a small amount of mushrooms.How to properly dry chanterelle mushrooms using a microwave oven? First, the cleaned product must be placed in an appropriate container and placed in the kitchen machine. At a power of 120-180 W, evaporate the mushrooms so that all the liquid comes out of them. This procedure usually takes at least 20 minutes. The resulting liquid must be drained, and the microwave must be left open for 10 minutes. After that, load the mushrooms into the device again for 20 minutes, choosing the same power. The procedure is repeated several times with a break of 10 minutes. Recall that the readiness of the product is checked by touch: if the fruit body bends and crumbles only with strong pressure, then the drying process can be considered complete. As it turns out, drying chanterelles is not difficult if you follow certain rules.
Drying chanterelles in an electric dryer
Such drying will certainly delight you with its simplicity. The device itself for drying vegetables will not only accommodate a lot of fruit bodies, but will also significantly save you time. Many housewives are happy to use this method if you need to process a lot of mushrooms. Further, you can find out in detail how to dry chanterelles using an electric dryer at home?
We spread the mushrooms on the grill of the device with a thin layer and set the temperature to 45-50 °. The process usually takes 3-4 hours, so it is better to check the product for readiness. If the mushrooms look moist and easy to press, then they should be dried a little more. You need to store dried chanterelles after cooling completely in glass jars.
How to dry a black chanterelle species?
This is a special kind of mushroom, the taste and aroma of which cannot be forgotten. The fact is that after drying, the black chanterelle only enhances its taste, which, moreover, last longer than all other species. That is why this type of fruit body is most often dried, and then ground into powder. To learn how to dry a black chanterelle, you first need to prepare it. In addition to removing dirt, the skin should be removed from each cap. Then you can safely proceed to any of the above drying methods. You can use an oven, electric dryer, or regular thick thread. If there are few fruit bodies, then a microwave will help you. Important: before cooking, dried black chanterelles should be soaked in cold water or milk for 2 hours.