How to dry boletus mushrooms for the winter - all ways to dry mushrooms at home

Preparatory stage

It is better not to wash the collected boletus mushrooms before drying, as the porous cap will quickly absorb excess moisture, and the drying process can be significantly delayed.

When sorting through mushrooms, you need to sort them by size and quality. Mushrooms with traces of insects should be removed. If the damage is small, you can cut it out with a sharp knife.

Dirty caps can be wiped with a damp sponge. Use the sharp side of a knife to remove the scales from the mushroom stems.

Large specimens are cut into pieces, and dense small mushrooms are left whole.

Methods for drying boletus mushrooms

On air

You can dry mushrooms the old fashioned way, by hanging them on a thick thread. To do this, mushrooms are placed on a thread using a needle and hung in a dry, warm place. This could be a glassed-in balcony or a kitchen. Mushrooms hung over the cooking surface dry very quickly. Drying time takes 5 – 10 days.

Marmalade Fox in her video will present a quick and proven method of drying mushrooms on a string

In the Russian stove

Owners of a Russian oven can handle drying mushrooms quite easily. To prevent the mushrooms from starting to cook, you need to check the heating temperature. To do this, throw a sheet of paper into the oven; if it does not ignite, then the mushrooms can be sent for drying. You can dry sliced ​​mushrooms on iron trays or racks. Drying time – 10 – 12 hours.

In the oven

Basic rules for drying boletus mushrooms in the oven:

• The heating temperature at the initial stage should be no higher than 50 degrees. After the mushrooms have dried and stop sticking to the baking sheet, the temperature can be increased to 70 degrees.
• Mushrooms need to be dried in stages. To do this, the oven should be turned off periodically, allowing the boletus mushrooms to cool.
• The oven door must be slightly open to ensure proper air circulation. If this condition is neglected, the mushrooms will simply cook.

Drying time depends on how wet the mushrooms were to begin with. On average it is 20 – 24 hours.

Watch a video from Vitaly Skripka on how to dry mushrooms in the oven

In the dryer for vegetables and fruits

The prepared mushroom slices are laid out on lattice trays of the dryer and the “Mushrooms” mode is set. The temperature can also be adjusted manually by setting the thermostat to 65 degrees.Several times during the entire drying period, the unit should be turned off so that the mushrooms cool down and the moisture in them is evenly distributed.

In a convection oven

Mushrooms are laid out on racks in one layer. The drying time will depend on the humidity of the boletus mushrooms, but the timer is initially set to 45 minutes. The air blowing speed is set at the maximum level, and the heating is 60 degrees.

To avoid cooking mushrooms, you need to ensure a flow of fresh air under the lid of the grill. To do this, keep it slightly open for the entire drying period.

Watch the video recipe from the channel “Nina S” - How to dry mushrooms in an air fryer

How to store dried mushrooms

The finished product is placed in fabric bags, which are tightly tied with a knot. Tightness is needed in order to protect the workpiece from food moths.

Another storage option is in glass jars. The containers are tightly closed with a lid.

The shelf life of dry boletus mushrooms is 2–3 years, provided they are properly stored in dry rooms.