Can You Freeze Mushrooms? Yes, you can freeze mushrooms by several methods. The best method to freeze mushrooms is to freeze them raw. You may also freeze mushrooms wholly or into various chops. Mushrooms can also be steamed before freezing. Mushrooms belong to the family ‘Agaricus’ and are classified as vegetables in the food kingdom.
How to Freeze Mushrooms?
If you are not able to use wholly your mushroom supply before it gets worse, then freezing your mushrooms is a great way to keep them safe and avoid throwing them away. The fresh mushrooms will stay safe in the refrigerator for a week. So if you are not able to use them all, then keeping them in a refrigerator is a better way.
There are following ways which you will have to follow before freezing mushrooms as discussed below;
Clean your Mushrooms:
It doesn’t matter how you freeze your mushrooms but you have to clean them first. Once they are frozen without cleaning them, then it will be impossible to remove dirt from them. Many cooks will tell you to avoid cleaning mushrooms but it is not true because mushrooms absorb moisture which may result in making them mushy and soggy.
Freezing Mushrooms Raw:
The best way to freeze your mushrooms is to freeze them raw without any additional preparations. You can freeze them wholly or may freeze them into chops. Simply throwing your mushrooms into a freezer bag may not give the best results. Instead of this, lay mushrooms on a tray with parchment paper and place the whole tray in the freezer.
Steam your Mushrooms before freezing:
The amount of time required for blanching or steaming your mushrooms depends on their size. So it will be better to measure your mushroom by size before doing this. Make sure to separate the larger and smaller mushrooms into separate groups. The mushrooms that are bigger by an inch, then you have to cut them into slices or quarters, otherwise blanching wouldn’t cook them.
When you get ready for blanching mushrooms then put them in a steamer basket and set them above a pot of boiling water. All the mushrooms will take 5 minutes to blanch. Smaller mushrooms that you have cut into slices will take about 3 minutes.
Other ways to preserve mushrooms:
Drying your extra mushrooms:
Drying your extra mushroom is the best way to preserve mushrooms for future use. If you don’t have a dehydrator, then you can try to set your oven at a low temperature and dry the mushrooms. The door should be cracked open to escape the moisture.
This process will take between 6 to 12 hours to completely dehydrate your mushrooms. If in case you want to dry it quickly, then you have to increase the temperature. You have to be careful not to increase the temperature by more than 50 degrees because it will cause the mushrooms to lose their original flavor.
Pickling your extra Mushrooms:
Another way for the preservation of Mushrooms is to pickle them. You can pickle mushrooms just like cucumber and eggs for preserving them for a long time and they will have a great sour taste. You can start prickling by cleaning the dirt off your mushrooms. After that wash them in cold water. Larger mushrooms should be cut into quarter pieces and smaller mushrooms can be left as a whole.
Mushrooms like button mushrooms are small and can be pickle as a whole while mushrooms like cremini or Portobello are large and can be cut into slices.
Summary:
Mushrooms can be preserved by keeping them frozen. If you are unable to use them all, then freeze them for a week. Always pick fresh mushrooms to freeze. You may also preserve mushrooms by freezing them as raw.
Categories of Mushrooms:
1: Cultivated Mushrooms:
Those mushrooms that are grown commercially are known as cultivated mushrooms. Farmers use different techniques to continuously and consistently produce mushrooms for the market. Cultivated mushrooms include mushrooms like button mushrooms, Portobello, cremini, oyster mushrooms, and Enoki, and many others.
2: Wild Mushrooms:
The mushrooms that are harvested by mushroom hunters and foragers are wild. Some famous wild mushrooms include morels, truffles, and chanterelle mushrooms. There are also varieties of poisonous wild mushrooms that look like edible wild mushrooms.
3: Medicinal Mushrooms:
Mushrooms can also be used for medical advantages. Many edible mushrooms have medical properties like Shiitake and Maitake. Other mushrooms are woody and difficult to eat because of their taste so they are used in tea or capsules.
4: Poisonous Mushrooms:
There are a lot of poisonous mushrooms in the wild. So you have to be careful to identify them before eating them. Poisonous species like Amanita Bisporigera look similar to edible mushrooms. Ten can be confused easily with button mushrooms, puffballs, or other edibles.
5: Useful Mushrooms:
Many mushrooms can be used for useful purposes. For many years, the people living in Europe used Amanita Muscaria mushrooms as fly traps. That is why they are named “fly agaric”. The method for trapping flies is that the mushrooms are dipped in milk to attract flies who eat the mushroom by drinking milk and die.
There are many other uses of mushrooms like it can be used for cleaning the environment and for bio mediation. Scientists are working hard to discover new ways of using mushrooms and to bring new inventions every year.
Classification of Mushrooms Scientifically
Mushrooms are classified into various types scientifically based on how they grow and what they feed.
1: Saprotrophic Mushrooms:
Saprotrophic mushrooms grow on destroyed matter. These mushrooms secrete enzymes and acids which break tissue into smaller pieces that get absorbed and from which they get nutrients. These mushrooms can grow on decaying plants, deceased animals, and wood.
These mushrooms are an important part of the food chain and are the sole reason why the deceased matter isn’t over the ground. They recycle deceased matter into the soil. The most common saprotrophic mushrooms include oysters, buttons, shiitake, reishi, morels, and enoki, etc.
2: Mycorrhizal Mushrooms:
These mushrooms have a symbiotic relationship with trees and many other plants. The mushrooms give nutrients and extra moisture to the plants and in return plant gives them sugars and allows them to grow stronger and faster. The mycorrhizal mushrooms include truffles, porcini, chanterelles, and matsutake.
3: Parasitic Mushrooms:
These are the mushrooms that only take advantage and don’t give anything back. These mushrooms destroy and kill their host plant. Parasitic mushrooms contain Chaga, lion’s mane, and honey fungi. These mushrooms don’t just limit their selves to plants but can also harm insects and kill them.
4: Endophytes:
These mushrooms can be cultivated without a host plant. Due to this reason, they are quite similar to mycorrhizal mushrooms. These mushrooms are still unknown to scientists and the researches are continue on this mushroom.
Nutrients in Mushrooms:
| Nutrients | Nutrients in a cup of Mushrooms | Daily Intake of Mushrooms |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 21.1 | 1600-3200 |
| Carbohydrates | 3.1 | 130 |
| Proteins | 3.0 | 46-56 |
| Iron | 0.5 | 8-18 |
| Calcium | 2.9 | 1,000-13,00 |
| Phosphorus | 82.6 | 700-1250 |
| Potassium | 305 | 4,700 |
| Sodium | 4.8 | 2,300 |
| Zinc | 0.5 | 8-11 |
Benefits of Mushrooms in Health:
There are a lot of advantages of mushrooms regarding health. In the following discussion, we will discuss it one by one.
Helps to fight cancer:
Mushrooms contain a high amount of antioxidants that fight against the free radicals present in our bodies. These harmful free radicals if not stopped can cause cancer. A mineral found in mushroom called Selenium helps in the functioning of liver enzymes which further helps in detoxifying cancer compounds. Mushrooms also contain Vitamin D which regulates cell growth and prevent cancer cell growth.
Mushrooms for Cholesterol level:
Mushrooms contain a very low amount of carbohydrates and have no cholesterol and fats. They are rich in fibers and many other enzymes that help in the lowering of cholesterol levels. Mushrooms also contain an enormous amount of lean proteins which help in burning cholesterols. Thus mushrooms are very helpful which regulate the cholesterol level and protect our heart from certain diseases.
Mushrooms for heart patients:
Mushrooms are rich in fiber, vitamin C, and Potassium which helps in the prevention of heart diseases. Mushrooms also lower the level of blood pressure because it contains high potassium and less sodium which in turn decrease the chances of high blood pressure and heart diseases. Creams of mushrooms can be used for the prevention of heartburn problems and acid reflux.
Helps in treating Anemia:
Anemia is a disease which is caused due to lack of iron and is characterized by fatigue, digestive issue, and headache. Reishi mushrooms help in the prevention of these problems because they contain a high amount of iron. Iron is very necessary for the formation of red blood cells which help us to remain healthy and fully functioned.
Help in bones and osteoporosis problems:
Mushrooms help in the strengthening of our bones because it contains calcium. Thus using mushrooms is beneficial for us and will increase the calcium level in our bones. This will help in the prevention of a disease like osteoporosis and many bone-related diseases such as lack of mobility and joint pain.
Mushroom prevent inflammation:
Mushroom helps in the prevention of inflammation because it contains a powerful antioxidant called ergothioneine which helps to prevent inflammation. Reishi mushroom helps to prevent diseases like lower inflammation, reduces tumor growth and many allergic reactions. This mushroom has been used for thousands of years in Asia because of these anti-inflammatory properties.
Mushroom increase absorption of iron:
Mushroom helps in the absorption of iron from food because of the copper content present in mushroom. It also facilitates by getting it released from the primary storage spots of our liver. The copper and iron present in mushrooms also help to prevent anemia.
Reishi mushroom for the immune system:
Reishi mushrooms contain ergothioneine and Sulphur which is a powerful anti-oxidant and help in the increase of body immunity. This mushroom removes all the free radicals which may cause various diseases. Mushrooms also prevent the growth of microbes and fungal infections. The presence of certain vitamins helps in boosting our immunity.
Mushroom help in weight loss:
Mushrooms contain a high amount of proteins and fibers but at the same time, it contains a very low amount of carbohydrates, fats, and cholesterols. The two types of fibers present in the mushroom are Beta-glucans and chitin which helps in the decline of appetite. For lowering your weight, you should add this vegetable to your diet.
Side Effects of Mushrooms:
We have studied a lot of benefits of mushrooms but there also have some side effects of mushroom which are as follows;
Tiredness:
You may feel discomfort and unenergetic after consuming mushrooms. You may also experience fatigue. This type of side effect can be seen commonly in many individuals.
Stomach Upset:
Another side effect of mushrooms is that they can create many stomach problems in many people. It can cause diarrhea after eating mushrooms. Vomiting, cramping, and nausea are also other stomach problems that you may face after eating mushrooms.
Absent-minded:
Another side effect of using mushrooms is the state of hallucination. Hallucination is the state of being absent-minded. The individual may face this effect after twenty minutes of consumption. And after few minutes, this state may reach its peak. You may also listen to sounds in the stomach.
Skin allergies:
Another side effect of mushrooms is that they can create skin problems for few people such as skin rashes and skin irritations. Few people may also face nose bleeding, dry throat, and dry nose, and many other problems when they are taken in high amounts.
Tingling sensation:
After few minutes of mushroom consumption, some people may feel happy and excited. Along with the excitement, they may also feel a tingling sensation. At the same time, some people may also feel depressed.
Headache:
Many people may face headaches as a side effect of certain drugs but consuming mushrooms may also cause headaches.
Anxiety:
Another side effect of mushrooms is that they may cause anxiety in various people. This anxiety may reach its extreme level. When mushrooms are taken in high amounts then this side effect gets worse.
Mental illness:
It is one of the most serious side effects caused due to the use of mushrooms. Many mental disorders such as immense fear, panic attacks, and many other illnesses can be experienced after taking mushrooms in high amounts.
Dizziness:
After few hours of mushroom consumption, some people may also face severe dizziness. It may also confuse when it is taken in high amounts. It may cause consciousness for those people who have a problem with low blood pressure.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Following are some of the important questions:
1: How do mushrooms help your body?
Mushrooms are rich in protein and fiber. They provide us energy and prevent us from certain disorders like heart diseases, cancer, and can prevent inflammation. Mushrooms contain a high amount of B-Vitamins, riboflavin, folate, thiamin, and niacin which produce red blood cells and carry oxygen throughout the body.
2: How do Mushrooms kill you?
Mushroom stops the making of an enzyme that produces proteins which results in the non-functioning of cells and liver failure occurs. The patient of this disease may get serious and may cause death him.
3: Can Mushrooms help you with weight loss?
Yes, mushrooms can help us in weight loss because it contains cholesterols and fats in very less amount. The glucose level in mushrooms can give you a lot of energy and you can work out for longer which can result in weight loss.
4: why are mushrooms so dangerous?
Some mushrooms contain toxic compounds like amatoxins which can damage the liver. That’s why they may be dangerous sometimes.
5: Is it better to freeze mushrooms raw or cooked?
Some mushrooms give a better texture when you freeze them while some mushrooms are better to be cooked first. Others mushrooms are fine to freeze as raw.
6: Can you freeze portabella mushrooms?
In sealed freezer bags or contains, portabella mushrooms can be frozen and can also be kept for several months.
7: Can raw sliced mushrooms be frozen?
Yes, it can be frozen as raw. But it will be better to blanch them first before freezing.
8: Can you freeze fresh mushrooms?
Yes, fresh mushrooms can be frozen. It is one of the important things that you have to pick a fresh mushroom for freezing.
9: Do mushrooms have to be cooked before freezing?
Yes, mushrooms can be cooked before freezing. There are two ways such as sauteeing and blanching.
10: Do frozen mushrooms taste good?
Yes, it tastes good especially on the top of pizza. There are also many dishes in which we can use mushrooms to get them to taste better.
Conclusion:
Mushrooms being Agaricus belonging to the fungi kingdom are referred to as vegetables in the food kingdom. Many types of mushrooms have different benefits. Mushrooms are rich in proteins and fibers and also contain anti-oxidant properties which may help in the prevention of certain diseases such as cancer, and many heart diseases. Mushrooms can also be kept preserve for several months by freezing them. They can be preserved by freezing them as raw. They can also be cooked before freezing. It has a lot of advantages for human beings and can be used in a normal amount to prevent yourself from its side effects.