The best way to provide yourself and the whole family with winter supplies is to dry seasonal fruits and vegetables. This step allows you to best preserve the beneficial properties of some products. This preservation method is especially good for mushrooms, since they contain a large amount of proteins that the body needs in winter. Not having time to do this in the summer season, most housewives prefer to dry mushrooms in the oven. Below are detailed facts and tips on the preparation of mushrooms, types and characteristics of stoves, drying methods.
What mushrooms can be dried in the oven
All kinds of these plants are probably good in dried form. The exception is only some types of lamellar mushrooms, which upon drying become unpleasant bitterness.
And here are some types of forest inhabitants that can be dried:
- tubular: porcini mushrooms, boletus, boletus, boletus, mushrooms;
- lamellar: champignons, deer mushroom, autumn mushroom, summer and winter, umbrella mushroom, hangman;
- common chanterelle ;
- ram mushroom and polypore.
You must make sure that everything collected is not poisonous, carefully sorted, cleaned of mucus, washed. Together, you can dry different types of this delicacy - and the taste will be more saturated. In general, drying mushrooms in the oven is quite simple, especially given the abundance of functions in modern ovens.
How to prepare mushrooms for drying
So, the spore plants are collected, wiped, selected from the garbage and are waiting in line. What else should be done with them? Before drying the mushrooms in the oven, you should:
- it is good to sort them out, rinse or wipe them;
- select them and make them about the same size;
- slightly wither in the sun from moisture;
- prepare the grill for the oven.
Mushrooms should be the same size to dry evenly. It often happens that small pieces dry out faster and have to be pulled out before large ones. Therefore, chopped mushrooms of the same size evenly distributed over the lattice will not cause trouble in this regard.
Mushrooms before drying can be put on oilcloth and left to wither for a short time in the sun - so they will retain as many useful substances as possible. And, of course, after such a good preparation, the question of how to dry the mushrooms in the oven will disappear, since all that remains to be done is to bring to readiness. It is better to cut them into slices or plates, so they will dry faster and store them in this form is much more convenient. But if nevertheless the washed mushrooms are dried without preliminary heating in air, then it is important to know the operating rules of each type of kitchen equipment.
If, however, your head is puzzled by the question of how to dry mushrooms in a gas oven - here you should already know a little about the oven itself. The heating method, temperature, which tools are best to use - all this is important.
Particular attention should be paid to such a problem as drying porcini mushrooms in the oven, since they are a bit more capricious of ordinary species.
White mushrooms
Representatives of white color belong to a separate category. This is one of the most fragrant and tasteful species rich in protein. Before going to the oven they are wiped with a rag, removing dirt from the surface, in rare cases they are washed, but in this way they dry longer.
And, of course, the question arises of how to dry porcini mushrooms in the oven. Thoroughly select, sort, cut into identical slices. Of all the mushrooms, it is worth choosing the most elastic and hardest, they will preserve the structure better, and do not fall apart. You should also prepare several grids with large cells and ensure good air circulation. Foil can be spread on the grill.
From dried white slices, you can make a powder used as a spice.
General rules for using ovens
It does not matter what the housewife decided to do: how to dry the mushrooms in the oven of the gas stove, and to dry them in the electric oven. All this requires careful preparation.
For example, we will answer the question of how to dry mushrooms in an electric oven. It is very important to lay the mushrooms on the grill, because the electric ovens are arranged in such a way that the lower heating element always warms more than the upper one. When laying mushrooms on a baking sheet, they simply stick, moisture forms at the bottom, and may eventually become moldy during storage.
When using an oven with a stove, you should make sure that no one plans to cook anything on the frying surface in the near future , while at the same time drying the mushrooms in the oven. Drying temperature is usually set at around 70 ° C. There are several options: for raw mushrooms, it is better to first set a lower temperature (30-40 ° C), and then increase to 60-70 ° C. Or, initially set a constant temperature from 40 to 60 ° C, preheat the oven and put the blanks in it.
Drying mushrooms in an electric oven
Thanks to its high functionality, a modern electric stove is able to dry mushrooms no worse than our ancestors did in the good old days, stringing them on a string and leaving them to dry in the sun.
The main objective of drying is the evaporation of moisture from products. This contributes to the movement of warm air. That is why these plants dry very well and quickly in closed warm rooms, but if you asked yourself how to dry mushrooms in an electric oven, the answer will be even simpler.
Many modern ovens have such a function as an “internal fan” (some manufacturers have “convection”). The mode of switching on the upper and lower heating elements using a fan is ideal for evaporating moisture from products, which creates the movement of air inside the oven, thereby simulating natural weather conditions. If the oven is old and there is no fan, then the mushrooms should be dried with the door open.
Thanks to the fan in electric stoves, drying time is reduced by about 30%. That is, instead of the usual five hours of drying, you can limit yourself to three and a half. Drying mushrooms in an electric oven is one of the most modern and fastest ways to dry mushrooms.
Drying mushrooms in a gas oven
How to dry mushrooms in a gas oven? Also very simple. Gas differs from an electric oven in that it heats up very quickly, and this is only a plus - it saves time. Also in gas ovens, heat goes mainly from below, and is often distributed unevenly. In this case, grilles should be placed closer to the upper heating elements in the gas stove, and it is also important to keep the door open for better air circulation. Modern analogues of a gas oven are not much different from electric ones in terms of functionality. They can connect a fan with both heating elements.
Drying mushrooms in a gas oven is much faster due to the ability of the oven to heat up quickly, but there is a risk and overdrying them, so the process should be monitored more carefully, and sometimes it is better to lower the temperature by 10 ° .
Dried Mushroom Storage
It is recommended to prepare in advance a room in which banks with blanks will be stored. Dry, clean, ventilated, without light. Mushrooms are very moody, especially if they are not well dried. When dry, they do not fall apart, have a solid structure, smell good, but their lack of ability to absorb moisture from the environment.
Dried mushrooms very well absorb the smells of surrounding foods and moisture, so storing them is often more difficult than drying the mushrooms in the oven. Tightly sealed glass jars are ideal, from which oxygen should be evaporated by burning alcohol on the lid. If there are no cans, dense fabric bags, tight bags, plastic containers are suitable.