How to freeze saffron milk caps for the winter at home: all the methods for proper freezing

How to prepare mushrooms for freezing

First of all, let's sort the mushrooms by size and density. It is better to freeze small and strong mushrooms raw and whole in order to preserve their attractive appearance. And large mushrooms are set aside for freezing using heat treatment.

Those mushrooms that are planned to be frozen raw do not need to be washed. You can simply wipe them with a damp cloth or a clean (new) dishwashing sponge.

Mushrooms with large caps are cleaned of dirt and carefully washed in cool water, being careful not to break them.

How to freeze saffron milk caps raw

Prepared strong mushrooms are laid out on a tray or cutting board covered with cellophane. Then the container is placed in the freezer for 10-12 hours.After this time, the mushrooms are taken out and placed in a separate bag or container.

The package is marked with the date of freezing and sent back to the freezer.

How to boil saffron milk caps before freezing

Large clean mushroom caps are cut into pieces of approximately the same size. Then they are immersed in boiling water for about 10 minutes. After the next boil, adjust the heat down so that the mushrooms do not fall apart due to strong boiling.

When cooked, saffron milk caps will produce a lot of foam, so you should arm yourself with a spoon to remove it.

As soon as the mushrooms are cooked (this can be determined by the fact that the mushrooms in the pan have settled to the bottom), they are carefully removed with a slotted spoon and cooled in a colander.

After the saffron milk caps have cooled completely, they are placed into portioned bags or containers. The containers are signed and sent to the freezer.

See the video from the channel “Tasty and Nourishing” - Freezing mushrooms for the winter

Fried saffron milk caps for the winter

Place clean chopped pieces of saffron milk caps on a hot frying pan with the addition of a few tablespoons of vegetable oil. Fry the mushrooms for about 20 minutes until all excess moisture has evaporated.

The finished frying is cooled and placed in containers for freezing. Each bag is marked with the date the mushrooms were placed in the freezer.

See the video from the Lazy Kitchen channel - How to freeze mushrooms for the winter (Mushroom preparations)

How to prepare saffron milk caps for freezing in the oven

For this method, clean mushrooms are laid out on a baking sheet, without adding vegetable oil. Set the oven to a low temperature, approximately 100 ºС, and open the oven door slightly.

After 30 minutes, the mushrooms dried in this way are put into bags and stored in the freezer.

Is it possible to freeze salted saffron milk caps?

Freezing salted saffron milk caps is an ideal option for storing them. With this method, salted mushrooms do not sour or spoil, as happens to them in the usual compartment of the refrigerator.

For this storage method, saffron milk caps are salted cold, but not over-salted. After being pickled under pressure in the refrigerator for a couple of days, the saffron milk caps are packaged in bags and put in the freezer. The main thing is to pack the bags for exactly one serving, since re-freezing mushrooms is unacceptable.

How to properly store and defrost saffron milk caps

Some housewives complain that saffron milk caps taste bitter after defrosting. This occurs due to non-compliance with the shelf life of mushrooms. Raw frozen saffron milk caps can be stored in the freezer for no more than 10 months, and processed ones - no more than six months.

As for the issue of defrosting, it is better to use frozen saffron milk caps without prior defrosting. If there is a need to defrost mushrooms, for example, when defrosting salted mushrooms, then this should be done gradually - first in the refrigerator, and then at room temperature.