The mushrooms got their name from the word "heavy" - for their fleshiness and massiveness. They grow in coniferous forests and, in terms of their qualities, are ideally suited for processing. In Russia, salty milk mushrooms have long been valued, with which even a lean table became a festive one. Salted and pickled milk mushrooms are an excellent appetizer, tasty and appetizing.
How to properly prepare milk mushrooms for pickling
Since this mushroom grows in damp places under a thick layer of needles, it must be processed before pickling. Put the milk mushrooms in a basin or a large bowl, cover with cold water and let stand for half an hour so that the dirt adhering to the caps softens a little.
Rinse out each mushroom by scrubbing the cap with a stiff dishwashing sponge or old toothbrush. Cut off the legs, leaving only 1/3. Cut large caps into 2 parts. When washing, sort the milk mushrooms so that only young, undeformed specimens, not wormy and without rusty spots, get into the marinade.
A characteristic feature of milk mushrooms is bitterness, in order to remove it, they must be soaked in salted and acidified water. 1 liter of water requires 10 g of salt and 2 g of citric acid, the water must be changed twice a day - in the morning and in the evening. Keep in mind that this stage is mandatory when pickling milk mushrooms; when boiling, even in several waters, the bitterness from the mushrooms will not completely go away.
If it is very warm in the room where the milk mushrooms are, the soaking period can be reduced to one and a half days.
How to pickle milk mushrooms
Choose the recipe according to which you will marinate the milk mushrooms according to your preferences. In a traditional recipe, for 1 kg of mushrooms prepared for pickling, you will need:
- 1, 5 tbsp. table salt;
- 3 pieces of cloves;
- 1, 5 glasses of water;
- 1 tbsp. 9% vinegar;
- 3 peas of allspice;
- ½ tsp dill seeds;
- 2 cloves of garlic;
- 2 leaves of lavrushka.
Put the soaked mushrooms in a saucepan, cover with cold water and after boiling, cook over medium heat for 20-30 minutes, periodically skimming off the foam. Drain and add mushrooms. Pour marinade water into a saucepan, add salt and spices, except for garlic. When the marinade boils, put the milk mushrooms in it and cook for another 15 minutes.
Using a slotted spoon, put the milk mushrooms in sterilized glass jars, pouring them with coarsely chopped garlic, pour hot marinade over them and roll up the jars. Turn them over and wait until cool. Then store in a cool, dark place.
The cold method of pickling milk mushrooms, traditionally used in Russia, allows you to maximize the preservation of all the nutrients contained in the milk mushrooms, including vitamins.
You can eat pickled milk mushrooms the next day, this is quite enough so as not to get poisoned. But it is not enough for the mushrooms to be saturated with the aromas of the marinade. Therefore, the classic period of their readiness is 30-40 days. We'll have to be patient, but it's worth it.
