31 Days of MOO No. 17 Canning Mushrooms
Getting a Year's Supply of mushrooms on the Shelf!
When mushrooms are cheap, I buy up big!
I've tried growing them, and it's fun, but I can't grow enough to last us a year or so. That means I watch and wait at this time of year, and when they get to $5 per kilo or under, I start to buy them and get them into jars for the pantry.
I wash them. Even if they look clean, I still wash them, then let them drain in the colander. Mushrooms seem to collect the soil (or whatever growing medium is used), and frankly I don't want to eat it, but it isn't safe to can either.
If you don't like the stems, break them off as you wash them, it saves a little time. I leave them on, we don't mind the stems.
When they are drained, depending on the size, I either halve or quarter them.
I like to work in an assembly line fashion so I set the kitchen up in the order needed to get them processed.
Step 1. Wash the mushrooms well. Even cultivated mushrooms can harbour dirt or soil or growin medium, and we do not want dirt or soil or growing medium in our jars!
Step 2. Drain. After they've been washed, drain your mushrooms. Tip them into a colander and let them sit for a few minutes for the excess water to drain away.
Step 3. Cut them for the jars. I like to quarter the mushrooms, but you can slice them, and if they are the small button mushrooms, you can leave them whole. If you slice them, you will get more in the jar.
Step 4. To blanch the mushrooms, put them itno a large pot, I use my pasta pot, top up with water and heat the pot until simmering, stirring constantly so the mushrooms blanch easily. This step takes about 10 minutes to let the mushrooms cook down and shrink.
Don't skip the blanching! If you do, you won't be happy with the end result and your time and effort will be almost wasted. Skip the blanching and the mushrooms will shrink during processing and you'll end up with a jar 3/4 water with a few floating mushrooms. Blanching them stops them from shrinking so much, and the end result is so much better.
After about 10 minutes, the water will turn brown (a delicious mushroom broth) and the mushrooms will look cooked. They will have cooked down considerably.
Step 5. Prepare your jars and fill them with the hot, blanched mushrooms. Push them down gently, but don't pack them down tight. For mushrooms you can process either pints or half-pints, these are the two sizes that have been tested for canning and food safety.
Step 6. Top up with either hot water OR the broth from the blanching. I like to use the broth left from blanching; it is full of flavour and goodness so don't waste it. Top up with broth to 1" headspace.
Debubble - this is important! Use your pokey stick to get any air bubbles out.
Check the headspace - if you need to add more liquid, do it now. If the jar is overfilled, take some of the mushrooms out until you have the 1" headspace. If necessary debubble again.
Step 7. Wipe the rims with a vinegar soaked cloth. Put the flat on and then the ring to finger tight.
Step 8. Hot jars into a hot canner. Let the canner vent a steady stream of steam for 10 minutes, then add the regulator (jiggler). When the canner has reached the pressure for your area, set your timer for 45 minutes for both half-pints and pints.
When the processing time is up, turn the canner off and let it release pressure naturally. This can take 30 - 40 minutes, depending on the pressure in the canner. When the pressure is at zero, let the canner sit a further 10 minutes before opening the lid. Leave the lid cranked open for 10 minutes, then remove.
Remove the jars and let them sit for 24 hours before washing, labelling and putting them on the shelf.
I've tried growing them, and it's fun, but I can't grow enough to last us a year or so. That means I watch and wait at this time of year, and when they get to $5 per kilo or under, I start to buy them and get them into jars for the pantry.
I wash them. Even if they look clean, I still wash them, then let them drain in the colander. Mushrooms seem to collect the soil (or whatever growing medium is used), and frankly I don't want to eat it, but it isn't safe to can either.
If you don't like the stems, break them off as you wash them, it saves a little time. I leave them on, we don't mind the stems.
When they are drained, depending on the size, I either halve or quarter them.
I like to work in an assembly line fashion so I set the kitchen up in the order needed to get them processed.
Step 1. Wash the mushrooms well. Even cultivated mushrooms can harbour dirt or soil or growin medium, and we do not want dirt or soil or growing medium in our jars!
Step 2. Drain. After they've been washed, drain your mushrooms. Tip them into a colander and let them sit for a few minutes for the excess water to drain away.
Step 3. Cut them for the jars. I like to quarter the mushrooms, but you can slice them, and if they are the small button mushrooms, you can leave them whole. If you slice them, you will get more in the jar.
Step 4. To blanch the mushrooms, put them itno a large pot, I use my pasta pot, top up with water and heat the pot until simmering, stirring constantly so the mushrooms blanch easily. This step takes about 10 minutes to let the mushrooms cook down and shrink.
Don't skip the blanching! If you do, you won't be happy with the end result and your time and effort will be almost wasted. Skip the blanching and the mushrooms will shrink during processing and you'll end up with a jar 3/4 water with a few floating mushrooms. Blanching them stops them from shrinking so much, and the end result is so much better.
After about 10 minutes, the water will turn brown (a delicious mushroom broth) and the mushrooms will look cooked. They will have cooked down considerably.
Step 5. Prepare your jars and fill them with the hot, blanched mushrooms. Push them down gently, but don't pack them down tight. For mushrooms you can process either pints or half-pints, these are the two sizes that have been tested for canning and food safety.
Step 6. Top up with either hot water OR the broth from the blanching. I like to use the broth left from blanching; it is full of flavour and goodness so don't waste it. Top up with broth to 1" headspace.
Debubble - this is important! Use your pokey stick to get any air bubbles out.
Check the headspace - if you need to add more liquid, do it now. If the jar is overfilled, take some of the mushrooms out until you have the 1" headspace. If necessary debubble again.
Step 7. Wipe the rims with a vinegar soaked cloth. Put the flat on and then the ring to finger tight.
Step 8. Hot jars into a hot canner. Let the canner vent a steady stream of steam for 10 minutes, then add the regulator (jiggler). When the canner has reached the pressure for your area, set your timer for 45 minutes for both half-pints and pints.
When the processing time is up, turn the canner off and let it release pressure naturally. This can take 30 - 40 minutes, depending on the pressure in the canner. When the pressure is at zero, let the canner sit a further 10 minutes before opening the lid. Leave the lid cranked open for 10 minutes, then remove.
Remove the jars and let them sit for 24 hours before washing, labelling and putting them on the shelf.