As with keeping most fruit and veg at their best, we all tend to put most of them in the fridge, well apart from maybe potatoes, onions and garlic. However over the last year we have found all sorts of tricks to extend the life of different foods that were previously unknown to us, beyond the realm of the fridge/freezer.
First stop…preserving our super healthy and very tasty shrooms!
Extending the life of our mushrooms
Take mushrooms for example, refrigeration is the best way right? Well yes, but leaving the plastic film over them causes them to go off quicker and become slimy due to the build-up of moisture. Piercing several holes in the plastic will increase their life by a couple of days, but no more than the general 4-5 days life span. However, there is in addition to refrigeration a very simple trick to extend the life of your mushrooms well beyond the ‘best before’ date. Now this might be common knowledge, but we had never heard of it before.
How to keep our shrooms fresher for longer
You simply cover them with a piece of kitchen towel or even toilet paper (maybe double layer it) to reduce the amount of moisture accumulation by absorbing excess moisture and limiting movement of air. You can go to more extreme lengths by individually wrapping each mushroom which is probably the best method, but you will waste time and plenty of kitchen towel. Wasting kitchen towel is not scrimping! and wasting precious time, well that’s not good either.
It’s simply amazing, on average they will now last a good week longer, but so far we have extended their life just under two weeks beyond the ‘best before’ date. Obviously it can depend on your fridge temperature, what state they were in when purchased and how long they were at room temperature before being refrigerated.
Additional fungi suggestions
- Obviously try to purchase the youngest, freshest looking mushrooms
- Get them into the fridge asap preferably away from the light
- To reduce mould growth, do not wash them prior to storage; leave that until you are about to use them.
Alternatively for even longer preservation…
Alternatively you can always dehydrate them by drying them out, then pop them in an air tight jar for long term storage and then rehydrate your shrooms when needed! We are planning to start dehydrating fruit and veg that we grow, as during a harvest you can never eat it all or you get bored of eating the same thing day in, day out.
Your thoughts…
Has anyone had any other successes with storing their frugal fungi?
Piers Caswell
