How to Dry Edible Mushrooms at Home
An electric dehydrator will make short work of drying edible mushrooms at home. Electric dehydrators can be purchased at many stores that carry small kitchen appliances or at stores that carry hunting and fishing supplies. You can often find a dehydrator for a very reasonable price at your local thrift store or flea market. Once you have a dehydrator, dried mushrooms and other vegetables are only a few hours away. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- Soft vegetable brush
- Sharp knife
- Dehydrator
- Airtight storage containers
Instructions
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Scrub the mushrooms under cool water, using a soft vegetable brush where needed. Remove the stalks from the mushrooms, using a sharp knife, if they appear tough or are woody.
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Slice larger mushrooms into 1/8- to 1/4-inch slices. Small mushrooms---those that are less than 1/4 inch---can be dried whole.
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Place the mushrooms in a single layer on the dehydrator trays.
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Turn the dehydrator on and allow the mushrooms to dry for eight to 10 hours or until the mushrooms are leathery, yet still slightly pliable. Ideally, you will be able to bend the mushroom slices slightly without them breaking.
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5
Store the dried mushrooms in airtight containers until needed.
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Tips & Warnings
You can also dry edible mushrooms in your oven. Set the temperature to the lowest possible setting. Lay the sliced mushrooms in a single layer on cookie sheets and place in the oven. Leave the oven door slightly ajar. Turn the mushrooms over on the tray after eight hours. The mushrooms will be dry in approximately 14 to 20 hours.
If larger mushrooms caps seem tough to the touch, you can peel them before slicing by using a vegetable peeler or paring knife.
Reconstitute dried mushrooms when needed by pouring boiling water over the mushrooms in a bowl and allowing them to absorb the moisture for approximately 30 minutes.
Dried mushrooms can be directly added to soups, sauces and stews. They will rehydrate from the moisture available in the recipe.
