Methods for harvesting mushrooms for the winter. Primary mechanical cleaning and processing of mushrooms.

Since ancient times, mushrooms have been stored for future use. To enjoy mushroom dishes all winter, they were mainly salted and dried. Mushrooms prepared using the proposed methods retain almost all of their beneficial and taste qualities. They can later be used to prepare various mushroom dishes. Later, mushrooms began to be pickled and preserved, hermetically sealed in glass jars.

Our ancestors, when preparing mushrooms, noticed that dried mushrooms are well preserved throughout the winter. This is due to the fact that only about 24% moisture is retained in mushrooms prepared in this way. Under such conditions, the vital activity of microorganisms ceases or is disrupted. Therefore, dried mushrooms can be consumed without harm to health. The main condition for storing them is the absence of moisture in the room where these mushrooms are located.

During the process of preserving mushrooms, microorganisms are adversely affected by the high temperature to which mushrooms are exposed when using this method of harvesting them.

During the process pickling Mushrooms are affected not only by high temperatures, as during canning, but also by acetic acid and table salt, which also has a detrimental effect on the condition of microorganisms.

During the fermentation process that occurs when pickling mushrooms, lactic acid is formed, which, along with salt, destroys pathogenic microflora.

All edible mushrooms contain many protein compounds, as well as carbohydrates and water. Therefore, mushrooms create a favorable environment for the reproduction of various kinds of microorganisms. Because of this, mushrooms cannot be stored fresh for longer than a day. Fresh mushrooms, for the same reason, cannot be transported over long distances.

When starting to process mushrooms, it is necessary to carefully review each mushroom individually. First of all, this requirement applies to morels and agaric mushrooms. Small midges often get stuck in the holes of morels, and between the plates of the corresponding mushrooms there may be lumps of earth or grains of sand. For processing, mushrooms cleared from forest debris are used, which must be whole and strong. If worms are found in mushrooms, they should not be used under any circumstances. Firstly, it spoils the appearance of such preparations, and secondly, toxins accumulate in worm-like mushrooms, contributing to poisoning of the body.

Content

1 Primary processing – sorting and cleaning of mushrooms.
2 How to wash mushrooms.

Primary processing – sorting and cleaning of mushrooms.

If it is necessary to pickle mushrooms and hermetically seal them in jars, it is necessary to use only boletus caps; for pickling saffron milk caps, only a sock is used, and only a curl is taken from other mushrooms. It is advisable not to preserve all the mushrooms in bulk, but to sort them according to their places of growth. This means that boletus mushrooms collected in the spruce forest are rolled separately from boletus mushrooms collected in the pine forest. They act accordingly with mushrooms of different types collected in different forests. When sorting mushrooms, it is necessary to trim and clean the stem of each mushroom separately.In addition, use a knife to carefully clean the caps from the skin, if necessary, and from various debris. If you come across a mushroom in which the wormhole has affected a small part of it, it can be cut out with a knife. If the wormhole has captured half of the mushroom, it is better to throw it away. Mushrooms intended for drying do not need to be washed. They are cleaned of debris and each mushroom is individually wiped with a clean damp cloth. Mushrooms intended for pickling, pickling and canning must be thoroughly washed in running water.

How to wash mushrooms.

Not only their safety, but also the health of those who will consume them depends on how thoroughly the mushrooms are washed. Therefore, special attention should be paid to the process of washing mushrooms and not saving water. At the same time, it should be taken into account that prolonged washing causes the loss of aromatic substances present in mushrooms. If it is not possible to wash the mushrooms in running water, they are washed in a separate container, changing the water several times. It is best to wash mushrooms in running water, since water under pressure removes dirt stuck between the plates and in natural folds well.

See video: How to pre-clean mushrooms (Maslyata, Polish, chelyshi, aspen, porcini)