New tricks for mushroom processing, these practical methods are worth a try

Mushrooms are a nutritious and healthful food that people love. With the large-scale development of mushrooms, new processing methods have emerged.

1. Mushroom pickles

Salted base: Remove debris from the mushrooms, wash and drain them, prepare brine at a ratio of 10-15 kg of salt per 100 kg, place the mushrooms in the brine until just submerged, seal and salt for 1 week, turning them twice during this period so the salt penetrates evenly.

Soaking in sauce: Take out the mushrooms and drain off the brine, soak in clean water for one day, remove and dry the surface moisture, then put them into a sauce jar and soak in sauce at a ratio of 50-70 kg of sweet bean sauce per 100 kg, with the temperature preferably around 20°C. During the sauce-soaking period, stir once every morning, and after 10 days they can be taken out of the jar. They taste delicious and can be used both as a side dish and as an ingredient for stir-frying.

2. Mushroom pickles (lacto-fermented)

Ingredients: 20 kg fresh mushrooms, 4 kg each of cabbage, celery, lettuce, carrot, and green pepper, 500 g each of ginger, baijiu, and Sichuan peppercorns, and an appropriate amount of white sugar. Pretreatment of raw materials: Wash the mushrooms and vegetables among the above ingredients with clean water, drain the water, remove the leaves from the celery and cut into 2-3 cm long sections, and cut the other vegetables into 5-6 cm strips.

Pickling brine: Hard water is best for the pickling brine (it helps keep them crisp); add 800 g of salt per 10 kg of water, boil in a pot, then remove from heat and let cool for later use. To speed up the pickling process, a small amount of high-quality old pickle brine or artificially inoculated yeast can be added to the newly prepared brine.

Pickling: Mix the mushrooms and cut vegetables evenly with Sichuan peppercorns, baijiu, ginger, white sugar, etc., put them into a washed pickle jar, pour in the pickling brine, cover, then fill the water groove at the top of the jar with clean water to seal the opening; after sealing, let it undergo natural fermentation and it is ready to take out and eat. It can be served as a cold dish, or cooked with seasonings.

3. Sweet and sour mushrooms

Salting: At a ratio of 10 kg of salt per 100 kg of washed fresh mushrooms, spread one layer of mushrooms and one layer of salt evenly in a barrel, sprinkle 1-2 kg of salt on top (to prevent spoilage), cover with a bamboo mat and press down with a stone; after 24 hours, take them out and drain off the salt liquid, then salt again at a ratio of 8 kg of salt per 100 kg of mushrooms; after 24 hours, they are a semi-finished product.

Vinegar soaking: Soak the semi-finished product in clean water for 12 hours, take it out and drain off the liquid (about 8 hours), put it into a jar, pour in vinegar equal to half the weight of the semi-finished product, soak for 12 hours, then take it out and drain off the vinegar liquid (about 3 hours).

Boiling in sugar: Pour the drained sugar liquid into a large pot and bring to a boil, add the soaked mushrooms, cover and simmer over low heat, stirring from time to time; after boiling, spread out to cool, at the same time pour out the sugar liquid in the pot and let it cool completely, then pour the mushrooms into a porcelain container and seal for one month and it is done. It can be used as a tea snack, candied fruit, cold dish, and seasoning.