Quick Answer: How to Dry Morel Mushrooms
One of the easiest methods to dry Dry Morel Mushrooms is by using an oven. If the oven is not available and the climate is dry and sunny, air drying or sun drying is another great option. Lastly, using a food dehydrator also works great for this purpose.
In this article, I will be outlining the best methods to dry morel mushrooms from the comfort of your home.
You’ll be requiring your everyday kitchen appliances for the same.
I’ve not only poured my personal experience with drying morel mushrooms but have also incorporated hours of research on what food bloggers and experts have to say on drying morel mushrooms at home.
There are many ways to dry morel mushrooms and I’ve got you covered with the three simplest methods.
Since each of these methods are unique in their own way, let’s kick things off with the most common method referred to for drying morel mushrooms at home.
How to Dry Morel Mushrooms Using the Oven
Using an oven to dry morel mushrooms is a great way to dry them in bulks. The method is quite simple and straightforward and only takes around 8 hours before you get perfectly dried morel mushrooms in the comfort of your house.
Materials
- Morel Mushrooms
- Racks
- Baking Sheets
- Cookie sheets
Tools
- Oven
Instructions
- Prepare the Tray - Place cooling racks on several baking sheets.
Preheat the Oven - Preheat the oven to 130 to 140 degrees Fahrenheit (around 60C). - Soak the Morel Mushrooms - Begin with a soak in cold water, then swish the morels around before pulling them out of the water, leaving any grit remain.
- Pat-dry the Mushrooms - Morels should be drained fully and wiped dry with paper towels or clean kitchen towels.
- Place the Morel Mushrooms - Place the cleaned mushrooms on the cooling racks to cool.
- Arrange the Mushrooms - Evenly place all your mushrooms on top of some cookie sheets before sliding the racks into the oven. Ensuring some distance remains between each of them.
- Dry the Morel Mushrooms - Replace the racks in the oven.
You can leave the door slightly ajar to allow better air circulation otherwise excess heat may damage or burn the mushrooms rather than drying them.
- Check the Mushrooms - Allow the mushrooms to sit for 8 hours, or until they are completely brittle and dry.
After a couple of hours, check in to see whether the mushrooms are dried or not. - Cool the Mushrooms - Remove the racks from the oven once completely dry and let the mushrooms cool down before storing them in the right place.
Dry Morel Mushrooms Using Air Drying
Time Taken: 2 to 7 days
What You Need:
- Morel Mushrooms
- Needle
- Yarn or thread
Air drying is a great method that was even used during the olden days.
This method doesn’t make use of artificial heat which helps preserve the mushrooms for a longer time.
Air drying requires a warm room or indoor area and time of up to a week before you get perfectly dried morel mushrooms in the comfort of your home.
Soak the Morel Mushrooms
Begin with a soak in cold water, then swish the morels around before lifting them out of the water, leaving any grit behind.
Pat-dry the Mushrooms
Morels should be drained thoroughly and patted dry with paper towels or clean kitchen towels.
Tie the Morels
Thread the needle and string the cleaned morels lengthwise, knotting the thread at the end of each morel mushroom to keep them in place.
Leave at least a ½ inch distance between each morel mushroom to allow plenty of air to circulate around each mushroom.
Knot the Thread
Knot the floss or thread at the end of each morel mushroom to keep them snugly in place, leaving at least 12 inches between each morel.
This allows enough air to circulate around each mushroom which results in a faster drying process.
Hang the Mushrooms
Hang the morel strings in a cool, dry place for at least 2 days or up to a week depending on how long it takes for the mushrooms to completely dry.
Dry the Morel Mushrooms
Let the mushrooms air dry until the texture is completely brittle and dry.
The mushrooms will no longer be soft, instead, they will become a little hard due to the loss of all the moisture.
Dry Morel Mushrooms Using a Food Dehydrator
Time Taken: 10 hours
Optimum temperature – 100 degrees Fahrenheit
What You Need:
- Morel Mushrooms
- Dehydrator trays
A food dehydrator is another great alternative to use when drying morel mushrooms.
The method is easy and requires less than 24 hours before you get perfectly dried morel mushrooms in the comfort of your home.
You will be grateful if you have your own food dehydrator. This is because morel mushrooms dry well when dried in a food dehydrator.
Soak the Morel Mushrooms
Start with a cool soak, then swirl the morels around in the water before pulling them out, leaving any grit behind.
Pat-dry the Mushrooms Completely
Morels should be completely drained and wiped dry with paper towels or clean kitchen towels.
You need to make sure no excess moisture remains since that will only slow the drying process.
Arrange the Mushrooms
Before putting the trays in the food dehydrator, evenly distribute all of the mushrooms on them.
Arrange them in a single layer on the trays and ensure some space remains between each of them for proper air circulation.
Set your Dehydrator
Set the dehydrator to 100 degrees Fahrenheit or read the dehydrator manual – the final temperature varies depending on the dehydrator.
Dry the morel mushrooms in the food dehydrator: Place the trays in the dehydrator and let the mushrooms dry.
Allow the mushrooms to remain for at least 8 hours, or until they are fully dry and brittle. Check-in after a few hours to see if the mushrooms have dried or not.
Cool the Mushrooms
Remove the trays from the food dehydrator once completely dry and let the mushrooms cool down before storing them in the right place.
The Proper Way to Store Dried Morel Mushrooms at Home
Many people believe that you can’t store morels because they release toxins that remain after canning.
The only real danger is incorrect canning, which can breed bacteria, or accidentally canning a truly poisonous species.
Morel mushrooms are made edible through the use of heat, whether cooked or canned.
Smaller morels should be fine if properly processed in a pressure canner at 10-15 PSI for 45-60 minutes.
Larger mushrooms may require more time. The best bet is to use canning instructions for regular button mushrooms.
Canning, however, should be taken seriously. Anything improperly canned can make you very sick, so make sure you are familiar with canning in general.
Our Take on Which Method is Best
You can simply sun-dry morel mushrooms if you live in a tropical region with plenty of sunlight. You can quickly dry slices with a food dehydrator.
It is the most widely used and effective technique. To dry morels quickly and in large quantities, use an oven.
You could also use a microwave, but you’d have to repeat the drying process every time.
FAQs
Keep the oven temperature below 140°F to avoid cooking the mushrooms rather than drying them.
Dry the morels for 8 to 10 hours, depending on size, until they are brittle and easily broken. Fresh morels can also be dried in a food dehydrator.
While expensive, dried morels are less expensive than fresh morels, and when reconstituted in warm water, they not only make a good substitute for fresh morels but also yield rich mushroom-flavored water to use in a recipe.
Dried morels, on the other hand, are preferable in risotto or tossed with asparagus in a morel-flavored sauce.
Morels are highly valued for their rich, earthy flavor, as well as the fact that their caps are hollow, allowing them to be stuffed. Dried morels have a strong flavor and can be used in place of fresh morels in sauces and stews.
Soak the Morels for about 4 minutes in hot saltwater. Don’t believe anyone who tells you that you need to soak them overnight. The purpose of this step is to kill and remove the bugs from the mushrooms.
Bottom Line
We’ve gone over three basic ways to dry morel mushrooms for various conditions. This article should have given you a better understanding of how to dry fresh morel mushrooms at home.
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