There are few ingredients that have as many uses in Polish cuisine as dried mushrooms. Their deep forest aroma perfectly emphasizes the atmosphere of Christmas dishes, including: Christmas Eve borscht, mushroom soup or . They are also an important element of essential sauces and croquettes.
However, if you want to fully use their potential and enjoy the perfect taste and consistency, you must prepare them properly. Check how long to cook so that they are soft and retain their greatest values.
Many people find it difficult to imagine Christmas dumplings or borscht dumplings without dried mushrooms. However, in order for them to delight with their taste and texture, they must be prepared appropriately. Before they become a full-fledged ingredient in a dish, they must regain moisture.
How to soak mushrooms? First of all, not in hot water, but in lukewarm, boiled water in a large vessel. They should be completely covered, and the time they must spend in the pot depends, among others, on: on the type of mushrooms or their storage time.
If it is short, 3-4 hours is usually enough, but in some cases it may even be necessary to soak the dried mushrooms overnight. Therefore, it is worth spending at least an average of 8-12 hours on it, monitoring the process on an ongoing basis. Of course, after soaking, dried mushrooms must be strained using a strainer.
Cooking time of dried mushrooms depends, among others, depending on how long they were soaked, what you want to use them for and what species you are dealing with. It cannot be too short, otherwise they will remain hard and the dish will not acquire the right consistency.
It is best to throw them into a pot with a small amount of water in which they were soaked. If dried mushrooms are intended for soup, They are usually cooked for 35-40 minutes, for stuffing – about 25 minutes.
Cooking dried ones requires a bit more patience for one-pot dishes, especially when they are to become part of a thick sauce or stewed meat. They are often prepared until completely soft, for about 60-90 minutes.
As a guide, usually: dried boletes and boletes require approx. 30-40 minutes of cooking, harder boletes – approx. 40-50 minutes, but butter mushrooms – 20-25 minutes. So you have to approach it individually each time.
