Why do chanterelles bitter after freezing?

Attractive and tasty mushrooms are harvested in the summer. A variety of dishes are prepared from them, and prepared for the winter. For harvesting, mushrooms are dried, boiled, frozen and canned in various ways. Many housewives are surprised to find that after thawing, golden mushrooms begin to bitter. What does this come from, and how to avoid this in the future?

There are only two reasons for the appearance of a bitter taste: improper processing after harvesting and errors in harvesting for long-term storage. If you follow all the recommendations, you can permanently protect dishes from mushrooms with an unpleasant bitter aftertaste.

General collection guidelines

Unpleasant bitterness in mushrooms can be present for a reason if the summer turned out to be arid. Chanterelles need regular water intake. Mushrooms tend to absorb harmful toxic substances - this is one of the causes of bitterness. Therefore, do not collect them near industrial enterprises and along roads. Also, mushrooms that grow in coniferous forests are prone to the appearance of a bitter aftertaste.

Freezing rules

For this type of storage, it is better to choose small young mushrooms. In order to avoid the appearance of a bitter taste due to improper freezing, you must perform the following steps:

1. After the chanterelles are collected, you need to process them. The first step is to remove the garbage and sort the mushrooms. Small mushrooms need to be separated from large specimens.
2. Hats should be separated from the legs, then rinse well in clean water. It is necessary to get rid of the remnants of grass and earth.
3. After cleansing, mushrooms need to be poured with cold salted water for 2 hours. Then they need to be dried well, for this mushrooms are laid out on a towel.
4. Once the raw materials for freezing are ready, you can proceed directly to the process. Many housewives freeze raw mushrooms. This can also cause a bitter taste. To avoid this, you first need to boil them, periodically changing the water during cooking.
5. Chanterelles are placed in packets in small portions and placed in the freezer. If you want to get each mushroom separately, then you need to freeze it in layers. First, one layer of packages is formed, as soon as the mushrooms are frozen, they are laid out in a prepared container, previously separated from each other.

How to remove the bitter taste of chanterelles after freezing: tips for housewives

If after the mushrooms have thawed, it turns out that they are bitter, then they must be soaked in cold water with the addition of salt. This is best done overnight. If after this process the bitterness did not disappear, then it is necessary to conduct heat treatment. Good taste will give the mushrooms spices. You can add bay leaf, peppercorns or cloves. It is recommended to add a little vinegar.

Note! An unpleasant bitter aftertaste may appear in chanterelles that have been stored for a long time. It is not recommended to store frozen mushrooms for more than three months. After the expiration date, a dangerous concentration of harmful substances that can cause food poisoning accumulates in them.

Dried mushrooms may also be bitter. If such a nuisance has occurred, then the mushrooms should be soaked in cold salted water for 6-8 hours. At this time, water must be changed regularly to avoid acidification. After this, pour the mushrooms with warm milk, and leave for another 2 hours. Then the chanterelles should be cooked a little with the addition of spices.

Mushrooms frozen in broth

For cooking the first dishes, it is very convenient to use chanterelles frozen in the broth in which they were cooked. This type of freezing is convenient in that the mushrooms immediately after being removed from the freezer can be placed in a pan and fry.

Cooking such mushrooms is quite simple. First, they are washed, sorted, damaged areas are removed, then boiled in water with the addition of salt for 15 to 20 minutes. After this, the mushrooms are placed in a prepared container and filled with broth. Closed dishes should be placed in the freezer. Such mushrooms can immediately be put in a pan when cooking soups.

How to remove bitterness from fried chanterelles

The bitter taste haunts both boiled and fried mushrooms. Among the possible causes are false chanterelles. Even one of these is enough to spoil the whole pan, because they are much more bitter than edible. A very strong bitter taste is a serious reason to think about whether edible mushrooms are collected in the forest.

However, an unpleasant taste can be removed by soaking the mushrooms in water before frying them. The best moment to do this is immediately after peeling the mushrooms. The soaking method causes an additional investment of time, although it is as simple as 3 kopecks. It is enough to pour cold water mushrooms for one and a half to two hours. After soaking, be sure to rinse the mushrooms and only then start cooking.

Additionally, it is possible to strengthen an already unpleasant feature by chance. So, if the chanterelles lie for a long time after collection, the bitter taste will become much stronger due to the accumulation of toxins in the body of the fungus. Besides the fact that the product will become less useful, the taste will become worse. Therefore, it is recommended that you process mushrooms immediately after harvesting.

For what reason can bitterness in fried chanterelles remain
Under all conditions, there are still a number of possible factors that increase bitterness. Among them is the bitter sunflower oil. If it is discovered that the oil is really bitter, do not rush to throw away the mushrooms. Experienced culinary specialists came up with a “horseback ride” - sour cream / mayonnaise, salt and spices to taste are added to the bitter chanterelles, after which they are stewed over low heat for fifteen minutes. An additional (more complicated) way to eliminate an unpleasant aftertaste is to break in mushrooms in flour and fry in butter. It is also recommended to add onions fried in sugar.

Another possible reason that bitterness still remains is the presence of a large number of false chanterelles. If all of the above actions are completed, but a strong bitter aftertaste still remains, it is strongly recommended to send the mushrooms to the trash can (the risk in this case is not justified).

Proper defrosting of chanterelles

Defrosting chanterelles is a separate conversation. Of course, defrosting in the oven is extremely harmful to the taste and texture of mushrooms. It is better to use a conventional microwave, setting the defrost mode. Also, if time permits, it is recommended to thaw in at room temperature (for acceleration, you can put them in warm water).

Another, more "advanced" way of defrosting begins with scalding with boiling water. After this, the mushrooms are placed in warm milk for 2 hours - this additionally helps to eliminate bitterness.

Many people like to pick and eat mushrooms. In order not to be exposed to the likelihood of poisoning or the use of a poor-quality product, they must be correctly processed immediately after collection. The best way to rid your favorite product of harmful substances is heat treatment.

Video: chanterelles for the winter in butter