In this article we will talk about how to process mushrooms before cooking, how to do it correctly. We will tell you how to collect forest mushrooms, how to clean and fry them. And we will also answer the most exciting questions, in particular: is it necessary to clean the mushrooms before cooking?
Need for processing
Mushrooms are tasty, but insidious. Their collection, processing and preparation must be treated with extreme caution. Sometimes experienced mushroom pickers get lost in the issue of using one or another type of forest product. After all, mushrooms are poorly absorbed and difficult to digest in the body. A low-quality one in the pan can cause not only digestive problems, but also serious poisoning.
For these reasons, it is customary to thoroughly clean, sort and process the mushrooms. Many of them require special attention. Each fungus must be looked at, cleaned, removed the film and dirt, boil. We decided to talk more about the processing of mushrooms, paying attention to the most popular in use - champignons. We have collected all the advice of specialists and are ready to tell you.
Selectivity Training
The question of champignons has been around for a long time. On the one hand, the nature of this fungus has been little studied, and the unknown can carry a huge danger. On the other hand, champignons are most often bought in stores, and there they come from greenhouses. This suggests that the mushroom is grown artificially, under the supervision of specialists and there is hardly any forest mud there. Should I wash, scald and peel these mushrooms? For this type of product, a good washing or cleaning is often sufficient, without cutting off the upper film. After all, you need to process the champignons so that they do not lose their pleasant aroma and taste.
If you are not confident in yourself, you are afraid to pick mushrooms and process them yourself, champignons can be purchased at your supermarket at your table, for example, frozen mixes or already washed and chopped.
Forest mushrooms are a completely different matter. With them you need to pretty mess around. The process will be described below. And if you dare to pick mushrooms yourself, how to do it?
Where to pick mushrooms?
We will definitely talk about how to process mushrooms before cooking, but first of all I would like to recall the correct collection.
Of course, it is much easier to buy mushrooms in a store or in the market, they are there all year round and breed well beyond will, but for fans of a “quiet hunt” who have the excitement of picking mushrooms, it would be useful to know a little about where and how to collect mushrooms.
First of all, champignons take root anywhere: in the forest lowlands, and in the mountains, and in the meadows. Most often they grow on manure heaps, in landfills, even on household ones. They like to breed near human dwellings and where cattle graze. It's all about well-fertilized manure soil. But sometimes stubborn champignons grow even from under the asphalt. Amazing After all, the mushrooms look so weak.
Champignons are hiding under a layer of loose fertile soil. If you saw a hat or tubercle, do not be too lazy to dig the soil, perhaps there is a whole family of mushrooms. If so, in this area it is worth paying attention to all the tubercles.
In general, there are three types of champignons, they are divided by habitat:
All of them are united by the main feature - a large, thick hat, turning pink from the sun. Old mushrooms usually blacken, getting a dark, brown color. But the young ones are distinguished by a dense spherical hat and a pleasant color.
When to collect?
Mushrooms are harvested from April to May, when the weather is warm and humid. Meadow cultivar can be harvested until October. Forest often appear by August, this variety of champignons differs from counterparts in light brown color with dark scales.
In the north, in cold areas, champignons germinate by the end of July, most often where the sun's rays fall. They do not last long, until about mid-late August.
Mushroom picker rules
In addition to how to process the mushrooms before cooking after harvesting, each mushroom picker should know that in no case should they be collected at household landfills or along roads. Do not risk your health.
It is also impossible to collect old mushrooms, champignons have the ability to absorb waste and toxic substances, to accumulate harmful elements.
Their main difference from the false representative is that in an inedible mushroom, the flesh on the break is red and has an unpleasant smell.
Be very careful when picking mushrooms yourself.
Store selection
Choosing mushrooms in the store, you simplify your life by the fact that you do not need to pick mushrooms on your own and you can be sure that they were grown and picked by professionals. But if you buy fresh champignons, you should understand that during transportation mushrooms could get damaged and deteriorate. It does not matter how to process the mushrooms before cooking, it is better to be safe and choose only high-quality mushrooms. To do this, when buying mushrooms, you should use the set of our rules.
First of all, choose small mushrooms. And the question here is not only in their ability to absorb, the young ones are more dense, and on the plate they look more attractive.
Inspect the appearance of the fungus, a quality body should not have blackening, dents. Its color is usually white or pinkish. The hat is velvety to the touch, the fungus has a matte sheen.
The hat should be firmly seated on the leg to determine whether it is young or not, look under it, the plate will be dark with the old mushroom, and the creamy ones with the young one.
Of course, the product should not have any odors other than its natural.
Having bought mushrooms in a store, you can store them at home for no more than 5–7 days, at a low temperature, and in no case in a plastic bag.
How to process mushrooms before cooking?
Cleaning is one of the most exciting issues of all culinary specialists. First of all, you should know that it is not necessary to clean the mushrooms, the main thing is to brush away the soil from them, update the cut on the leg - and they are ready to cook. But still I want to reinsure myself.
How to clean store mushrooms before cooking? And how - assembled independently?
Small mushrooms are not necessary to clean. Champignons up to 2 cm belong to the category of small mushrooms. Their peel on the hat is so thin and hardly noticeable that you risk crushing the mushroom faster before removing the film. But those who have a larger body - up to 5 cm, should be cleaned, their film is quite solid and can interfere with the dish. Sweep away the dirt from them, pick up the film on the hat with the tip of a knife and pull it to the middle, so clean it with a cavity. Do not forget to update the slice if the product has been lying for several days - the mushrooms begin to dry from the leg.
If the mushroom is even larger, then it has a skirt, dark plates. They do not bring harm, but, from the point of view of aesthetics, you can remove them. It does not affect the taste.
Do I need to clean mushrooms before cooking? Here is our answer: it is not necessary, most importantly, to shake off all the dirt.
By the way, the mushrooms that you collected in a clean meadow, away from roads and landfills, are also not necessary to clean.
And wash or cook mushrooms?
Do I need to cook mushrooms? Most mushrooms can not be washed and boiled, draining water several times. But champignons - on the contrary. Of course, you can argue, because mushrooms are such an unpredictable product, how can you use it if you don’t boil it?
The fact is that champignons absorb water well, and they do it very quickly, which can adversely affect your dish. And from cooking, mushrooms can even lose their taste, giving their qualities in mushroom broth.
Of course, it is necessary to wash the mushrooms, you never know what chemicals could settle on them, but do not soak and digest them.
Rinse the mushrooms better and quickly put them on a dry towel, so you will not spoil the taste of the mushrooms and, if possible, clean them from pollution.
Frying champignons
So, we figured out whether to clean the mushrooms before cooking, it remains the case for small. Find out how to cook champignons. Most often, they are fried for additives in julienne, in salad, in the filling of the pie and just like that. So how much to fry mushrooms in a pan until cooked?
It takes 10-15 minutes until mushrooms are ready, this is enough to prepare a delicious dish. And if you add a spoonful of sour cream and give another minute - then the garnish is not necessary at all.
Mushrooms are cooked very quickly, and if you are going to add them as an additional ingredient somewhere else, for example, if you plan to bake chicken with mushrooms in pots, then you can give them a few minutes less. How much to fry the mushrooms in a pan depends on the purpose for which you fry them. And also on their size.
So we figured out how to process the mushrooms before cooking, how to assemble and choose them in the supermarket, whether they should be washed and boiled, how to fry them. Following our rules, you can not worry, the competent choice and processing of mushrooms will protect you from poisoning or indigestion.