Why milk mushrooms darken when salted, how to salt and bleach them correctly
Salted milk mushrooms are one of the most popular options for harvesting mushrooms for the winter. This dish is a wonderful addition to the festive table, and not only! Knowledgeable mushroom lovers highly value salted milk mushrooms for their high taste: they have a pronounced mushroom taste and crunch pleasantly on the teeth. But this product has one unpleasant property - it darkens quickly during processing. Why milk mushrooms often darken when salted, and how to avoid this?
Why do milk mushrooms darken when salted
The main problem that the hostess encounters when salting milk mushrooms is darkening or blue discoloration. The reaction begins on the way home from the forest. The mushrooms immediately begin to darken on the cut, and when boiled or salted, they completely lose their original white color.
This is because the pulp contains milk, which causes this reaction. Because of it, raw mushroom bodies have a hot-peppery taste that disappears only when soaked and salted. When the mushroom is cut, the released milk comes into contact with the air, and on the cut it turns gray-yellow. Then it literally darkens or turns blue before our eyes.
However, you should not be afraid of this. When properly processed, milk mushrooms will be absolutely edible, tasty and crispy.
When soaked in water
Before salting, mushrooms must be soaked in water for one and a half to five days. During this time, the water should be changed up to five times a day. But often the fruits darken when soaked in water.
Basically, this only happens with mushrooms that have been without water for a long time, therefore, even before cleaning, they must be immediately immersed in it.
Another reason for the darkening of mushroom fruits is sunlight. To avoid discoloration after cleaning, the mushrooms are immediately placed in water under the load and covered with a lid.
Soaking the mushrooms in water before salting is also necessary in order to remove unnecessary bitterness from them and make the pulp more elastic. It is best to do this in warm salt water. Warm water will quickly remove the bitter taste from the fruit, and salt will prevent the mushroom harvest from souring.
In brine
Unfortunately, mushroom fruits can also turn black in brine. Why is this happening? The first reason is overripe mushrooms. They begin to lose their bitterness very quickly and darken because of this. The second reason is the lack of brine in cans. Mushrooms not covered with salt water come into contact with air, therefore they lose their light shade.
How to salt milk mushrooms so that they do not darken
After a long soaking in water, the milk mushrooms can be salted. There are two options for salting: hot and cold.When using the first one, the mushrooms must be boiled in salted water. Next, the boiled salted milk mushrooms are washed. After that, they are folded tightly into sterile jars in layers:
- a small layer of salt, a couple of peppercorns;
- dill umbrellas, currant leaves;
- layer of mushrooms.
Then the layers are repeated. The laid mushrooms are poured with mushroom broth and allowed to air out. The workpiece is cooled and covered with plastic lids. Mushrooms are salted in a cool place for 30-40 days.
When choosing the second option in enameled dishes, raw milk mushrooms are covered with layers of salt, spices, shifted with garlic, dill umbrellas, you can also use horseradish root, which is pre-cut into thin strips. Then the whole mass is placed under the load. After a few days, the milk mushrooms will be let in juice, which will completely cover them and prevent discoloration.
Mushrooms are kept under pressure for 30-40 days. After that, the milk mushrooms can be transferred to jars, pressing tightly and pouring brine under the very lid.
With proper adherence to all technologies, no external changes will occur to the mushrooms.
Is it okay to eat milk mushrooms if they are darkened?
If the mushrooms did not remain without brine for a short time, then they should be completely filled with water and left so for three to five days. After that, they can be eaten.
The situation is worse when the mushrooms, when salted, become dark under pressure. These are definitely not worth eating.
Most likely, an inedible species got into the salting, or there were many old fruits with accumulated toxins. This can be very dangerous to health and life!
How to bleach mushrooms?
If the mushroom fruits do not turn dark when soaked, this issue is solved by boiling them in water seasoned with vinegar or citric acid. This will definitely help bring them back to whiteness.
And if the already salted mushrooms have darkened? To resolve this issue, you should close the cans not with metal lids, but with paper soaked in vodka or medical alcohol.
From above it is wrapped tightly with rope or strong threads. Better yet, top up with hot vegetable oil and leave in a cool place.
