Can mushrooms be stored in the refrigerator and for how long?
Mushrooms are a product that has a delicate taste and pleasant aroma. There are many recipes for preparing a wide variety of dishes from it.
One of the important requirements is that mushrooms must be fresh and of high quality. Keeping them in the refrigerator will help preserve them before and after cooking.
We will tell you in this article how to properly and for how long you can store mushrooms in the refrigerator.
Content
Shelf life
Using a refrigerator makes it possible to keep mushrooms cool and protects them from light. You can place fresh and already cooked mushrooms in it.
Fresh
Fresh mushrooms that are collected in the forest or purchased in a store must be prepared for storage. They start by sorting and sorting through supplies..
Each type must be kept and prepared separately. If there are wormy places, they must be cut off; dirt, adhering leaves and blades of grass must be chickened out.
After pre-processing, the products prepared for storage are placed in storage containers and sent to the refrigerator. Fresh mushrooms can last for an average of 3 days; store-bought champignons can last up to a week. If mushrooms were collected in the forest in rainy weather, you will need to dry them first.
Boiled
Mushrooms boiled without salt are often used as a semi-finished product, which will then either be cooked or frozen. If you plan to leave them in the refrigerator, then the shelf life of such a preparation is very short - up to three days. The product must be washed before boiling.
If you need to extend the shelf life to a month, or even two, then you can do this:
- Wash and chop the mushrooms.
- Boil in salted water.
- Transfer the cooked mushrooms to jars, leaving the liquid in the pan.
- Fill the contents of the jars with vegetable oil.
An alternative method is to cook the product without salt, but sprinkle each layer with salt when placing it in a jar. Then pour vegetable oil over the boiled mushrooms.
Fried
Mushrooms that you plan to fry must first be washed and drained. You can dry them on a cotton towel.
Mushrooms are fried in vegetable oil for about a quarter of an hour., until all the liquid that is released from them evaporates. Once the dish has cooled, you can transfer it to a container and refrigerate it for up to three days.
If mushrooms are fried in order to be frozen later, you can use the frying method in a dry frying pan - without adding oil.
Baked
It is also possible to make mushroom preparation in the oven. The chopped pieces are laid out on a baking sheet in one layer.
Which is correct?
Depending on how storage is organized, the shelf life of the product is determined.The determining points are the preparation and initial quality of the harvest, correctly selected storage containers, as well as temperature and other conditions.
Since mushrooms absorb odors well, It is not advisable to keep them near products with a strong, bright aroma.
Capacity
An enamel or glass container is best suited for keeping mushrooms. Since the product must breathe, sealing tightly with a lid is not suitable.
It is best to cover the top of the container with paper or cloth. You can also use kraft paper bags as packaging.
You should not choose aluminum vessels as storage containers, as this metal reacts with the product, which provokes oxidation. Plastic bags can be used, but only for a short time, and with provision of air access.
Temperature
In a refrigerator the temperature is maintained at a stable level from 0 to +7? C. These are optimal conditions for storing fresh, boiled and fried mushroom stocks.
Processing of freshly harvested
Fresh mushrooms collected from the forest must be pre-processed before being placed in the refrigerator.
Mandatory measures include:
- sorting by type;
- dry cleaning;
- cutting off spoiled and wormy areas.
Mushrooms grown under artificial conditions, as a rule, do not require careful preliminary preparation for storage.
Features for oyster mushrooms
Since oyster mushrooms do not last longer than a day at room temperature, you should try to put them in the refrigerator as soon as possible.Fresh from the store, they can be kept in a cool place for up to three days.
Like wild mushrooms, they should not be washed in advance. As a last resort, if the mushrooms are very dirty, they are washed under running water.
But then you need to dry it well using a paper or cloth towel.
Artificially grown oyster mushrooms can be stored in the refrigerator for longer than a week if you use additional techniques. Without special conditions, the product can be stored for up to 3-4 days. At a temperature of 0-2? C, the workpiece can lie for 3 to 5 days.
If you wrap the product in foil or tracing paper, the supply can be stored for up to 10 days. If the packaging is vacuum, the mushrooms can last up to 1.5 weeks. In situations where longer storage is required, oyster mushrooms can be frozen.
Conclusion
Storing mushrooms in the refrigerator is a practical way to extend the shelf life of a perishable product by several days. But even in this case, it is necessary to follow the rules of content organization.
