Oven Drying
Ancient, easy technique helps summer bounty last all year
Grapes turn to raisins, dates turn to candy and the juiciest of beef sirloin turns to the savory-est of snacks, beef jerky. All with the ...
Ingredients
- To use dried mushrooms, pour boiling water over them in a heatproof bowl. Let them soak for 20 to 30 minutes. Drain, reserving the richly flavored soaking liquid for soup stocks and sauces. Use the rehydrated mushrooms as you would fresh mushrooms.
- Chop steeped mushrooms and add to ground beef for burgers.
- Chop steeped mushrooms and add (along with the steeping liquid) to stew, chili or braises.
- Sauté steeped mushrooms and add (along with the steeping liquid) to pasta, polenta or risotto.
- Chop steeped mushrooms and stir into steamed or fried rice.
- For a quick soup, steep mushrooms in hot stock and stir in fresh spinach or kale.
Preparation
Heat oven to 150°. Clean mushrooms with a brush. Try to avoid getting them wet, but if you have some stubborn dirt and must use a damp paper towel, use it sparingly. Slice them thin, about ⅛ of an inch thick. The thicker the slices, the longer they take to dry out. Arrange sliced mushrooms on baking sheets in a single layer. Cook for 1 hour.
Remove pan from oven and turn mushrooms over. Continue to cook until completely dry, at least 1 more hour. Keep turning them over and checking for dryness every 30 minutes. Cool mushrooms completely (mushrooms will crisp up as they cool) then store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place.
Tips for drying mushrooms:
• Stored properly, dried mushrooms will keep for years.
• Dried mushrooms have a more concentrated flavor than fresh.
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