Boletus: how to dry mushrooms at home - dried boletus for the winter

Butterflies are common both in the European part of Russia and throughout the northern hemisphere. The favorite place of growth is the sunny edges of coniferous forests. These mushrooms get their name from their oily brown cap.

Preparing mushrooms for drying

Oils have a porous structure. Since the caps absorb water very quickly, it is not recommended to wash the mushrooms before drying. Particularly dirty areas are best wiped with a damp, clean dish sponge.

Some people clean the butter before drying. Using a sharp knife, remove the skin from the cap and clean the stem. However, such cleaning is very time-consuming and does not in any way affect the taste of the product. Therefore, decide for yourself whether you will completely clean the butter before drying or not.

Small boletus is dried whole, and large caps and legs are cut into small pieces or plates.

Drying methods are oily

On a thread

Mushrooms are strung on a thick thread or fishing line and placed over a gas stove or in the fresh air in a ventilated place. The main thing is that the mushrooms on the “beads” are not located tightly to each other. Drying time – 2 – 3 weeks.

In the dryer over the stove

There are special stove dryers, the design of which consists of a mesh frame installed above the frying surface. Drying in such a dryer takes about a week.

In the Russian oven

Mushrooms are placed on trays and sent to a warm oven. If the mushrooms “sizzle” and the moisture in them foams, it means the oven is still too hot. To prevent the mushrooms from being cooked, you need to remove them and wait for it to cool. Oven drying takes approximately 4 days.

In the oven

Line baking sheets with wax paper or foil. Mushrooms are laid out on the prepared surface, preferably in one layer.

Drying in the oven includes several stages:

• Initially, the butter should be dried for a couple of hours at a temperature of 50 degrees.
• After this, the temperature is increased to 70 degrees. At elevated temperatures, the mushrooms are dried for 30 - 50 minutes.
• At the final stage, the temperature is again reduced to 50 degrees and dried in this mode until ready.

To ensure more uniform drying, the trays with butter mushrooms are periodically swapped, and the mushrooms themselves are turned over.

To ventilate the air in the oven, keep the door ajar during the entire drying procedure.

Vitaly Skripka in his video will tell you how to dry mushrooms in the oven

In an electric dryer

Mushroom slices are laid out on the grids of trays in one layer.The trays are placed on top of each other, and the dryer is turned on to the “Mushrooms” mode. If your device is not equipped with such a function, then the temperature is set manually at 60 degrees. Periodically, the containers with mushrooms are swapped. Drying time depends on the method of cutting the mushrooms, as well as the ambient humidity. On average, it is 12 – 20 hours.

Watch the video from “Ezidri Master” - How to dry butter in an electric dryer?

In a convection oven

The butter is laid out on a wire rack in a single layer. Small mushrooms can be placed on baking paper to prevent them from falling through. The temperature in the unit is set at 70 - 75 degrees, and the blowing power is at the maximum value. So that moist air can escape freely and the mushrooms do not cook, the air fryer lid is slightly opened. Oil drying time is 2 hours.

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

How to store dried boletus

Properly dried boletus has a subtle mushroom aroma and a light brown or gray color. When squeezed, the slices break, but do not crumble into powder.

Store dried mushrooms in glass jars with tight-fitting lids. You can also use canvas bags for storage, which are tied tightly with rope. The storage area should be dry and cool.

The shelf life of boletus is 2 years.