12 Practical Methods for Preserving Edible Mushrooms

Cold Storage Preservation: After harvesting, the fresh mushrooms are sorted, placed in baskets or crates, and covered with multiple layers of wet gauze or burlap. In a cool, shaded place, set out a vat containing a small amount of clean water, place a wooden rack over the water, set the baskets on the rack, then seal the mouth of the vat with plastic film.

Dormancy Preservation: After harvesting, keep the mushrooms indoors at above 25°C for 3 to 5 hours to induce vigorous respiration, then place them in a cold storage at about 0°C for about 12 hours. At about 20°C, the freshness can be maintained for about 4 to 5 days.

Controlled Atmosphere Preservation: This method artificially controls the temperature, humidity and gas composition of the environment to achieve the preservation goal.

Simple Controlled Atmosphere Storage: Fresh mushrooms such as shiitake and button mushrooms are stored in controlled atmosphere bags containing 1%-2% oxygen, 40% carbon dioxide and 58%-59% nitrogen. At 20°C, they can be stored for about 8 days.

"Silicon Window" Bag Preservation: Silicone rubber is in proportion into the wall of a plastic packaging bag to form a "silicon window" preservation bag. This plastic bag can automatically regulate the ratio of oxygen to carbon dioxide inside the bag through the "silicon window," thereby achieving the goal of safely storing fresh mushrooms.

Radiation Treatment: This can effectively reduce spoilage of fresh mushrooms and other produce, achieving a relatively good preservation effect.

Oyster Mushroom Radiation Preservation: Oyster mushrooms are irradiated with cobalt-60 rays at a radiation dose of 50,000 to 100,000 rad, then stored at 0°C. The color, smell, texture and other commercial qualities of the fresh mushrooms can be well maintained for 7 to 10 days.

Straw Mushroom Radiation Preservation: Straw mushrooms packed in paper-plastic bags are treated with cobalt-60 rays at a radiation dose of 80,000 to 120,000 rad, then kept at 14-16°C for 2 to 3 days, with good commercial qualities.

Chemical Preservation: Chemical preservation uses chemical substances to inhibit the respiration intensity of edible mushrooms and prevent the activity of spoilage microorganisms.

Salt Water Soaking Treatment: Soak fresh mushrooms in 0.6% salt water for about 10 minutes, drain them, put them in plastic bags for storage. At 10-25°C, after 4 to 6 hours, the fresh mushrooms turn bright white and can be kept fresh for 3 to 5 days.

Sodium Metabisulfite Spraying: Spray the mushroom bodies with a 0.15% sodium metabisulfite aqueous solution. At 15-20°C, they can be stored for 5 to 8 days.

B-Nine Preservation: Soak fresh mushrooms in a 0.001%-0.1% B-Nine aqueous solution for 10 minutes. At 5-22°C, they can be kept fresh for 5 to 8 days.