Pickling Chanterelles (Cantharellus cibarius)
Now I usually always aim to precook and freeze excess mushrooms since that’s the best way of preserving imo, however I had a lot and freezer space is at a premium! So some of them became destined for pickling.
This time I used two pickling methods, salt pickling and regular vinegar based pickling. The former achieves lacto fermentation which develops the natural flavours and I typically prefer, however it is said to be less shelf stable. Vinegar pickling is the one most people will know the base flavour of, and done with sterilised jars is close to endlessly shelf stable. I’ve never done them side by side so I’m curious to compare.
To both I added spices (peppercorns, cloves, mustard seeds), and seasonings (onion, wild garlic, dill, chive, parsley). The vinegar pickle also includes some brown sugar. But really you can follow any pickle recipe you like. Key is sterilising jars which I do in the oven!
I precooked the chanterelles, then made up my pickling liquid. I cooked the mushrooms in the liquid to get everything up to temperature before pouring into my hot sterile jars and closing. They should seal themselves. Easy as that!
