Mushrooms are delicious on their own and in plenty of recipes. In the refrigerator, mushrooms will only last for 7-10 days. Once they go slimy, there is no going back. Freezing mushrooms will allow them to be kept safely for up to a year if they are prepared right and stored correctly. Yielding plenty of time to make use of them.
Can You Freeze Fresh Mushrooms?
Yes, there is no need to allow your fresh mushrooms to go to waste.
To freeze fresh mushrooms you must clean, blanch or sauté, pre-freeze, and transfer into an airtight freezer bag. Store in the freezer for up to 12 months.
How Do you Freeze Fresh Mushrooms?
Step One: Cleaning the Mushrooms
- Brush off excess dirt from the mushrooms.
- Do not wash with water if they are going to be cooked. This will make the mushrooms mushy and unpleasant.
Step Two: The Sauteing Method
- Cut the mushrooms up into equal-sized pieces.
- Warm oil or butter in a skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add the cut-up mushrooms to the pan and cook, stirring often with a spatula for four minutes. Not cooking them all the way, just softening them.
- Place the mushrooms on a plate for about 15 minutes until they are all the way cooled off.
Step Three: Storing the Mushrooms in the Freezer
- Once step two is completed, place mushrooms in a single layer on a cookie sheet and place the sheet in the freezer for two hours, or until the mushrooms are completely frozen.
- Remove mushrooms from the freezer and transfer them into freezer-safe bags in recipe-sized portions.
- Remove excess air from the freezer bag.
- Store in a safe spot in the freezer for up to 12 months.
Best Way to Freeze Mushrooms
The best way to freeze mushrooms is to cook them first. This will prevent them from losing their nutritional value. However, you can still freeze raw mushrooms and they will still be safe to eat. They may not keep as long in the freezer raw as they would be cooked, so always check your mushrooms before consuming them.
How to Freeze Raw Mushrooms
Step One, Clean the mushrooms
- When working with raw mushrooms, it is recommended to rinse the dirt off of them with cold water. Since you will not be cooking them until after the freezing process, it will not cause them to go mushy.
- After rinsing the mushrooms, pat dry with a paper towel. Make sure they are completely dry to prevent freezer burn.
Step Two, Chop the mushrooms
- If you want to have chopped mushrooms later, this is the best time to chop them. If you know you want whole mushrooms, ignore this step. It will be more difficult to cut them while frozen.
Step Three, storing raw mushrooms
- Transfer the mushrooms into airtight freezer bags in recipe-sized portions.
- Store in a safe area in the freezer.
How to Freeze Dry Mushrooms
Freeze drying is a fantastic way to keep mushrooms preserved for a long time and will add a more complex and intense flavor to the mushrooms that fresh mushrooms will not have. This method is often used to substitute meat. If safely stored freeze-dried mushrooms can last years.
Step One, wash the mushrooms
- Wash with icy water and scrub away dirt gently.
- Dry thoroughly with a paper towel.
Step Two, slice the mushrooms
- Slice the mushrooms into half an inch or thinner slices.
- The thinner the mushrooms are sliced, the faster they will dry out.
Step Three, arranging and freezing the mushrooms
- Set the sliced mushrooms on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper half an inch apart from each other.
- Put the tray of mushrooms in the freezer for 10 days. An empty, or almost empty freezer works best. Make sure the baking sheet is somewhere in the freezer where it will not be accidentally moved.
Strep Four, storing the mushrooms
- Transfer the mushrooms from the baking sheet into a zip lock bag.
- Remove the air from the bag, vacuum seal if possible.
- Store the mushrooms in a cool, dry, dark place.
Now that you know how to prepare all types of frozen mushrooms, it is time to enjoy. Mushrooms are a fantastic addition to plenty of recipes. All these different freezing methods will keep mushrooms for much longer than a refrigerator would. So, there will be plenty of time to decide how you will make use of your mushrooms.
