Mushrooms are very tasty and rich in protein, vitamins and minerals. Fats and proteins in mushrooms are much more than in plants used in food. Dishes from mushrooms are distinguished by a variety of forms, but their special, mushroom, aroma and piquancy unites them. Mushroom caps are mainly used for food, as there are much less nutrients in the legs. Due to the fact that mushrooms spoil very quickly, it is advisable to cook them no later than 4-5 hours after cutting. For long-term storage, mushrooms are salted, dried, pickled and canned. In this material, I would like to dwell on pickling, as one of the main methods of harvesting this delicious product.
How to salt mushrooms?
Mushrooms are salted in two different ways, cold (it is also called dry) and hot.
How to salt mushrooms in a cold way? Salting candidates, preferably recently collected, are sorted by size and name. Only one product of the same size and type should be salted in one dish. Carefully sort, do not get worms, old, damaged or spoiled mushrooms in the pickling tub. Moss, insects and grass should be weeded out very carefully. Roots, too soft or obviously damaged places must be cut out, the oils should be peeled off the hat. Ginger should not be washed, just wipe them with a wet towel.
If your mushrooms are mostly small, you can salt them whole, but how to salt the mushrooms if they are large? Two additional procedures will be required. First, separate the caps from the legs, and then cut the mushrooms into 2-6 parts (the amount depends on the size of the mushroom).
When the main work on the preparation of the product is completed, we begin to put it in a container in which salting will occur. We put the mushrooms with their hats up, a layer of 6 cm thick. Each layer is covered with salt, usually 45 grams of salt is consumed per 1 kg of mushrooms. You can add green parsley, dill or mint. When the dishes are full, they should be covered with a wooden circle on top, it should be less than the diameter of the pickling container and move freely inside it, but at the same time it’s good to cover the mushrooms. On top of the lid we put a clean canvas and cover the whole structure with a load. Now you need to wait a few days and when the mushrooms settle, you will need to repeat the procedure, adding a few additional layers with mushrooms, sprinkled with salt and herbs. Repeat these steps until the container is filled with mushrooms.
If the bowl is filled to the top, then it is time to fill it with a solution of salt, which should be prepared by taking salt and water at the rate of 45 grams of salt per liter of water. Pour mushrooms with the resulting saline so that they are completely covered with water, then you can put the dishes in a cool place. It is better of course that it be a basement or a cellar, because I don’t know how to salt mushrooms, if you don’t have the opportunity to put them in a cool room with a constant temperature.
If mold appears on the fabric with the container covered, wash it and cover the dish again. In two to three weeks, the mushrooms will be well salted, and they can be eaten.
How to salt mushrooms in a hot way? First you need to prepare them, this process is completely similar to preparing for cold salting. If you have already completed this stage, we begin to salt the mushrooms right away. We prepare a solution at the rate of 20 grams of salt per liter of water. Blanch the mushrooms in a bowl with boiling solution, the hats should be kept for four minutes, legs for 6 minutes. When all the mushrooms are blanched, it is necessary to decant the solution and place the product in the dishes prepared for salting. Then, according to the same scheme that is described in the cold method, they should be sprinkled with salt, covered with a wooden circle from above and put oppression on this circle. In this form, they should stand for 1-2 days, then they must be taken out to the basement for several days so that they settle. Then everything is the same as with layers during cold salting. When the container is full, you need to fill in a five percent solution of salt and put it in a cool room. Mushrooms will be ready in two to three weeks.