Dried Button MushroomsDrying Time, Storage and a Tomato Pasta Recipe

Button mushrooms are a staple of Western cooking with olive oil and garlic.

Drying deepens their flavor and boosts their aroma and savoriness. Like dried porcini, using them with their soaking liquid adds depth to a dish. They’re perfect for soups, risotto, pasta and stews.

	Drying time	Storage
Dry	2–4 days	3 weeks at room temperature
Semi-dried	Half a day	4 days in the fridge

Drying times assume drying during the day in sunny weather and bringing them in at night.

How to dry button mushrooms

1. Wipe clean: Mushrooms soak up water, so don’t wash them. Gently wipe off any dirt with a paper towel.
2. Trim the stems: Cut off the hard, dirty tip of the stem.
3. Slice (optional): You can dry them whole, but slicing them about 5 mm (¼ in) thick lengthwise dries them faster.
4. Lay out and dry: Spread them on a basket without overlapping, somewhere sunny and breezy. Turn them about once a day and bring them in by evening.

Where and when to dry is covered in How to Dry Vegetables, and tools in Tools for Drying Vegetables.

When they’re done

Dry (2–4 days)

They’re done when they’ve shrunk, turned brown, and feel hard enough to snap when pressed.

Semi-dried (half a day)

The surface is dry. Sautéed or in ajillo, they don’t get watery and come out fragrant.

Day by day

Before drying

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Storage

• Dry: Put completely dry mushrooms in a bag or airtight container with a desiccant, and keep somewhere cool and out of direct sun for about 3 weeks. In humid summer weather, keep them in the fridge.
• Semi-dried: Keep in a bag in the fridge and use within about 4 days.
• Frozen: Both dry and semi-dried can be frozen for 2–3 months.

Fuzzy white or green growth, black spots or a bad smell are signs of mold or spoilage. Don’t eat them; throw them away. More in How to Store Dried Vegetables.

Rehydrating and using them

• Always cook them: Never eat mushrooms raw. Always cook them first.
• Rehydrate: Soak in water for about 5 minutes. The soaking water is full of flavor, so use it in soups and sauces. Semi-dried mushrooms just need a quick rinse.
• Use them dry: Add them straight to soups, risotto, stews and tomato-based dishes.
• Good in: Pasta, risotto, cream soups, ajillo, omelets.

Recipe

Tomato pasta with dried button mushrooms

Ingredients (serves 2)

• Dried sliced button mushrooms from 8 mushrooms
• 2 medium tomatoes
• 2 cloves garlic
• Dried red chili to taste
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1½ tsp granulated consommé (bouillon)
• 200 g (7 oz) pasta
• A pinch of salt
• Basil, to garnish

Method

1. Soak the dried mushrooms in water for about 5 minutes and drain. Save the soaking water for soup. Semi-dried mushrooms just need a quick rinse.
2. Cut the tomatoes into 1 cm (⅜ in) cubes.
3. Put the olive oil, chopped garlic and chili in a frying pan and heat gently until fragrant.
4. Add the tomatoes, mushrooms and consommé, and simmer over medium-low heat until most of the liquid has cooked off.
5. Bring a separate pot of water to a boil, add salt, and cook the pasta.
6. Drain the pasta, add it to the tomato sauce and toss.
7. Serve topped with basil.