How To Pickle Mushrooms

The most popular way of preparing mushrooms is their pickling. How to pickle mushrooms? How to make it high-quality, tasty and at the same time simple? How to improve the taste of forest mushroom and preserve its benefits?

Early autumn is the time of the mushroom harvest. Lovers and enthusiasts of "quiet hunting" rush to the forests for the most diverse varieties of mushrooms. Today, the fashion for mushroom growing has become widespread - it is both a way to spend time in nature and an opportunity to diversify your diet.

Quick transition:

• What useful properties of mushrooms are known to man?
• What is mushroom pickling?
• Beware, botulism!
• How to pickle mushrooms: recipes

Since childhood, we have been told about toadstools and amanita mushrooms - that mushrooms hide an easily accessible danger. Knowledgeable people joke: a mushroom picker makes a mistake only once. But in this joke only part of the joke, the rest is the truth. Mushroom harvesting should not be taken lightly and irresponsibly. Each mushroom should be selected and cut only after you are absolutely sure of its edibility. However, the work with mushrooms does not end at the stage of harvesting. They need to be cleaned and prepared - not only safely, but also tasty. The most popular way of preparing mushrooms is their pickling. How to pickle mushrooms? How to make it high-quality, tasty and at the same time simple? How to improve the taste of forest mushroom and preserve its benefits?

What useful properties of mushrooms are known to man?

Forest mushrooms are considered a unique product due to their composition. As in many other plants used by humans for food, mushrooms contain:

• proteins and carbohydrates,
• essential amino acids,
• antioxidants,
• B vitamins,
• vitamins C, E, PP,
• provitamin D,
• mineral elements - phosphorus, potassium, zinc, iron, calcium, iodine.

Their nutritional value is comparable to meat - that's why they are so popular in vegetarian menus. A distinctive advantage is the fact that mushrooms practically do not lose their useful properties as a result of cooking, such as drying or boiling, freezing. Mushrooms contain a minimum of fats, so they are low in calories. However, other substances make them unique, the high content and harmonious combination of which is difficult to find in any other product. Such mushroom "raisins" include:

• lecithin - prevents the accumulation of cholesterol in the body, which makes mushrooms indispensable for cardiovascular diseases and metabolic disorders;
• ergothioneine is a powerful antioxidant that has an anti-cancer effect and improves the health of the liver;
• chitinmannose - a substance used for the treatment of boils, abscesses and sore throat, capable of restraining the growth of the tubercle bacillus;
• ß-glucans - contribute to raising immunity, strengthening the body's defenses, which makes them indispensable, for example, during fasting.

It is interesting that different types of mushrooms have different compositions and are useful in their own way:

• porcini mushrooms are, first of all, a source of riboflavin (a substance responsible for the health and growth of nails, hair, and skin), due to which the thyroid gland functions normally;
• mushrooms - contribute to the removal of cholesterol from the body and reduce the risk of atherosclerosis; fiber and carbohydrates contained in mushrooms normalize the activity of useful intestinal microflora and help to remove various toxic substances from the body;
• chanterelles are a source of vitamins A, B, RR, trace elements copper and zinc, which makes them useful in improving vision (in restoring the mucous membrane of the eyes), recovery from hepatitis C and obesity;
• champignons are a source of valuable proteins, carbohydrates, organic acids, minerals (iron, phosphorus, potassium and zinc) and vitamins (nicotinic acid, vitamins of group B, E, D); useful for the body's immune system, acceptable for use in salt-free diets and the diet of diabetics; useful substances contained in them help to avoid headaches and migraines.

Nutritionists recommend including forest mushrooms in the diet of people suffering from the following ailments:

• allergy,
• atherosclerosis,
• bronchial asthma,
• helminthiasis,
• hypertension,
• gout,
• diabetes,
• tonsillitis,
• tuberculosis.

However, mushrooms are not a product that should be overdone. Its specificity makes it unique and unrepeatable in terms of its positive qualities, however, due to its composition, mushrooms are difficult for the body to absorb and provoke digestive disorders in large quantities.

It is better to refuse regular consumption of forest mushrooms for people with weak digestive tract function. The rest of the dishes with mushrooms should be consumed no more than 2 times a week, and better – 1 time a week.

When it comes to cooking mushrooms, it is useful to know how to pickle mushrooms, because this is one of the most popular ways to prepare them in reserve. As already mentioned, it is not worth consuming mushrooms often, and therefore they can be an excellent snack if they are marinated or salted.

What is mushroom pickling?

Pickling is a popular way of cooking food. A type of conservation, the essence of which is the use of acids in a certain amount, which inhibits the vital activity of microorganisms.

Canning itself consists in the technical processing of food products, in the process of which the vital activity of microorganisms capable of spoiling the product is suppressed. Marinade necessarily contains not only acid (vinegar, table salt), but also sugar and vegetable oils.

By resorting to pickling food products, a person seeks to destroy a favorable habitat for mold, bacteria, and yeast. This is achieved not only by processing the food product with a certain concentration of acid and salt, but also due to the use of pasteurization, storage at low temperatures, in a sealed and oxygen-free container.

Traditionally, marinade for preserving mushrooms contains 4 components:

• boiled water - as a basis;
• acids - prevents the development of bacteria, this is usually lemon juice and citric acid, vinegar;
• spices and spices - used to add additional flavors and flavors to products with an unexpressed taste, including some types of mushrooms;
• vegetable oil - protects the product from excessive acid action on it and, most importantly, provides a film that prevents the minimal penetration of oxygen from the outside.

If desired, the marinade for mushrooms can be supplemented with the addition of sugar and garlic, a variety of spices.

Pickling mushrooms may seem like a primitive process - prepare a concentrated solution, treat the collected mushrooms with it. However, not everything is so simple. Experienced housewives and mushroom pickers draw the attention of beginners to what stages must be carried out in the process of preparing delicious and, most importantly, safe pickled mushrooms. So, how to pickle mushrooms correctly:

• the first step is the right choice of mushrooms; firstly, you need to be sure of your harvest, and secondly, not every edible mushroom is suitable for pickling, use such as white mushrooms, buttercups, porcini mushrooms, boletus mushrooms, boletus mushrooms; none of them should contain traces of rot, holes from worms, they should be firm and fresh;
• step two - proper preparation of mushrooms; mushrooms suitable for pickling must be not only edible and of good quality, but also processed accordingly - it is strongly recommended to clean the mushrooms from contamination, sort and sort them by size and variety, cut off the tips of the legs and remove damaged parts, large mushrooms should be properly cut into 2-3 parts ;
• step three – choosing a pickling method and a specific recipe; mushrooms can be marinated in the marinade (the jar containing the mushrooms immersed in the marinade is pasteurized), or separately (the mushrooms are pasteurized separately from the marinade, they are poured with it only at the end); in the first case, the marinade will turn out to be cloudy, in the second - transparent;
• the fourth step is preparation for storage; even properly processed mushrooms are recommended to be stored exclusively in cool conditions (in the refrigerator or in a freezer); an integral point in each recipe is the addition of vegetable oil on top of the cooked mushrooms, and only then hermetic injection, this prevents the development of mold.

It is noteworthy that the tight fitting of hermetic lids to the contents of the jar, supplemented by ignoring the last rule of pickling mushrooms, threatens the formation of botulinum bacteria in the jar - a spore-bearing long bacillus that provokes the development of the dangerous disease botulism.

Beware, botulism!

Botulism is a severe toxic-infectious disease, the development of which affects the human nervous system. The most popular is food botulism, which develops as a result of eating products containing accumulated botulinum toxin, namely botulinum bacteria.

Botulism is dangerous because it causes consequences for human health:

• paresis of the muscles of the diaphragm, abdominal press, intercostal muscles, hypoxia;
• damage to some nuclei of cranial nerves responsible for swallowing movements, visual reflexes;
• damage to the autonomic nervous system;
• decrease in bladder tone;
• damage to the facial nerve, inhibition of the function of the vagus nerve.

Pathological-anatomical changes in botulism are caused by hyperemia, full blood of internal organs, cerebral edema, point hemorrhages in the mucous membrane of the gastrointestinal tract.

The source of botulism most often turns out to be poorly prepared canned goods. Canned foods prepared in factory conditions according to quality standards are subjected to a thorough inspection, in addition, it is much easier in factories to comply with all the necessary requirements for the processing of a canning product. At home, such norms may not be observed - due to inattention or by accident.

In order to avoid botulism, it is strongly recommended not to buy canned products from hands, since the buyer cannot be sure that the seller will comply with all the necessary rules, and the product affected by botulinum does not show itself in any way.

When preparing homemade preserves yourself, to avoid botulinum, it is recommended:

• carefully clean the mushrooms (remnants of the soil may contain pathogenic microorganisms);
• pour boiling water over the mushrooms several times with some frequency (botulinus is not resistant to heat and dies at 80 ° C within 15 minutes);
• do not use metal lids for rolling pickled mushrooms, but only polyethylene ones (a layer of vegetable oil and a polyethylene lid as a way of isolating the mushroom from the outside environment help to reduce the risk of botulism); at the same time, mushrooms should be stored in a cool place.

 

How to pickle mushrooms: recipes

There is a huge variety of answers to the question of how to pickle mushrooms . This field is not so much for fantasy as for careful following of the recipe, but a huge number of recipes are offered. Among them are traditional flavors and original recipes with unusual and unusual seasonings for conservators.

How to pickle mushrooms according to a traditional recipe:

• combine 2/3 cup of 8% vinegar and 1/3 cup of water in a saucepan, add 1 tbsp. salt, bring to a boil;
• put 1 kg of previously prepared (cleaned and, if necessary, cut) mushrooms into the marinade, after 15 minutes add 5 peas of allspice, 1 tsp. sugar, a few bay leaves, boil for 3-5 minutes and remove from heat;
• cool, spread on sterilized jars, pour a little oil on top, close with a lid.

How to pickle mushrooms with cinnamon:

• pour 2 cups of water into a pan, add 1 tsp. salt, 2 tsp. sugar, 6 peas of allspice, 1 gram each of cinnamon and cloves, 3 grams of citric acid; bring to a boil, add 5 tbsp. table 6% vinegar and wait for boiling again, remove from heat;
• tamp the prepared mushrooms into sterilized jars, fill with marinade, sterilize - close the jar with a lid, place in a container with water that is on the stove at a temperature of up to 70 ° C, take out the jar after half an hour.

How to marinate mushrooms with garlic:

• pre-boil the mushrooms - pour cold water, put on fire, boil for half an hour from the moment of boiling, periodically removing the foam;
• add 1.5 tbsp to 1 liter of water. salt and sugar, 6 peas of black pepper and 3 peas of allspice, 1-2 bay leaves, boil for 5 minutes and add 1 tsp. vinegar essence, remove from heat after a few minutes;
• use ½ liter of marinade for another cooking of mushrooms within the next 15 minutes;
• on the bottom of a sterilized one-liter jar, put 1 umbrella of dill, a few slices of garlic, then mushrooms, and then pour ½ liter of the remaining boiling marinade; pour a layer of vegetable oil, cover with a lid, roll up in a warm lid and leave to cool, without turning over.

How to pickle mushrooms with onions:

• boil mushrooms in two waters, cut into convenient pieces; tamp into sterilized jars by ¾;
• pour 3 cups of water into a pan, add 1 cup of 9% vinegar, 1 tbsp. sugar and salt, bay leaf, 3 peas of black pepper and allspice, onion chopped into rings, bring to a boil, and after another 5 minutes, remove from heat;
• cool the marinade slightly and fill the jars with it almost to the top, mix the mushrooms with the marinade;
• close the jars, sterilize for 7 minutes.

How to pickle mushrooms with parsley root and celery:

• pour 2 cups of water into a pan, add 1 tsp. salt, 2 tsp. sugar, 6 peas of allspice, 3 grams of citric acid, a few slices of parsley and celery roots; bring to a boil, add 5 tbsp. table 6% vinegar and wait for boiling again, remove from heat;
• tamp prepared, previously boiled mushrooms into sterilized jars, pour marinade, sterilize for 15-20 minutes.

Recipes for pickling mushrooms can include such original spices as thyme, oregano, marjoram, savory, parsley, celery and basil leaves, as well as clove buds and onion rings.