Funghi sott’olio. So much more than just an Italian version of marinated mushrooms.
I’ve eaten these as part of an antipasti plate since I was a kid. Standard marinated mushrooms, let’s face it, can be slippery and even rubbery. Not a great texture. But these are meaty, chewy and just a shade funky — mushroomy in all the best ways.
I never really knew exactly how the Italians did it until I read Rosetta Costantino’s My Calabria. In it, Costantino reveals her family’s method for preserving mushrooms in oil, and when I read her recipe, I was immediately struck by how similar it is to a Sicilian technique I use every year when I have too much zucchini. Makes sense, as Calabria is only a few miles from Sicily.
Basically you need to remove water from the mushrooms, then boil them in vinegar, then dry them out a bit before submerging in oil. It is a method I’ve seen done with a lot of foods, even meat on occasion. What this particular do-si-do of preservation does is first use salt to pull the existing water from the food.
Once the food is reasonably dry, acidify it with vinegar — bad bugs find it tough to survive in low Ph environments. Finally, keep air (and molds) off the food by submerging it in olive oil.
You should know there is no official USDA protocol for this method of preservation. Costantino tried to get the government to give its vaguely papal gesture for her recipe, but they declined. Suffice to say it works: The Italians have been doing it for centuries, if not millennia.
I tested this method with five kinds of mushrooms: button mushrooms, hedgehog mushrooms, chanterelles, lobster mushrooms and porcini. You need a meaty mushroom to begin with or this method will not work.
Other species that make good marinated mushrooms are blewits, pig’s ears (Gomphus clavatus), shiitake, matsutake, king trumpet mushrooms, and maybe chicken of the woods. Bottom line: The mushroom needs a little heft.
That’s why porcini and their boletus cousins are the ideal. Try this with a leccinum or a birch bolete and you’ll transform a mediocre mushroom into something special.
A few pointers to start:
- Wash your mushrooms and trim any bad spots. Be sure the mushrooms are not wormy.
- Use high quality ingredients: Good olive oil, sea salt, quality vinegar, good lemons. You can definitely taste the difference.
- Store your mushrooms in glass containers, in the fridge. It is entirely probable that they are shelf stable, but I am not a fan of botulism, so I keep mine in the refrigerator.
The recipe that follows is approximate. You may need more or less of the ingredients to fit your containers. One tip: Start with more mushrooms than you think you need. They shrink a lot in this process, and are so good you will run out long before you’re tired of eating them.
Italian Marinated Mushrooms
Ingredients
- 3 to 4 pounds meaty mushrooms
- 1 quart white vinegar or cider vinegar
- Kosher salt or pure sea salt, finely ground
- Zest of a lemon, sliced into wide strips
- 4 dried hot chiles, split lengthwise
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Cut the mushrooms into reasonable pieces. With small mushrooms, like a button mushroom, you need only cut them in half, and you can leave the smaller ones whole. With large chanterelles and porcini, cut them into 1/2 inch thick slices. They will shrink a lot in this process, and they will be pliable, so they can be a little larger than you'd think they ought to be.
- Salt them well. Lay down a layer of salt on a sheet tray and place the mushrooms on it. If the mushroom has a flat side, i.e., a button mushroom sliced in half, lay the flat side down against the salt. Sprinkle a heavy layer of salt over the tops of all the mushrooms.
- Let this stand at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours. You will notice a lot of water coming out of the mushrooms. This is good. Note that I have left the "sponge" on the porcini in the pictures. I no longer do this because the sponge gets really slimy and icky in this process, and tends to stick to everything. Better to remove the sponge and dry it. It makes great porcini powder.
- Put the mushrooms between paper towels and gently squeeze them a bit to remove a little more water.
- Boil them in the vinegar for five minutes; you might need more vinegar than a quart, but it should get you started. The mushrooms will want to float. Use tongs or something to submerge them as much as you can. Fish out the mushrooms and put them between paper towels again and gently squeeze them to remove some of the vinegar.
- Lay the mushrooms on a clean cloth to dry. Let them air dry until they are no longer damp, but still pliable. Don't let them dry out into leather. Turn the mushrooms once or twice during this time. This will take between 12 to 24 hours, depending on how dry it is in your house and how much air circulation you have going. You can also use a dehydrator to speed up the process, but keep an eye on it: Mushrooms can go from perfect to leather in a hurry if you're not careful!
- Add the seasonings. Put the oil, lemon zest, oregano and chile in a bowl and toss the mushrooms in them. Pack this into glass jars. Use a chopstick or some other kind of clean stick to poke around the jar -- you want to find and remove as many air bubbles as possible. Make sure the mushrooms are submerged in the oil. Refrigerate and wait at least a week before eating. These mushrooms will keep in the fridge for 6 months.
I made these 2 weeks ago and they turned out just beautiful. Used King Oyster mushrooms. I am usually gifted gorgeous wild mushrooms from a family forager in Maine…they will be great in this recipe come time this year.
Fantastico Hank! Italians love you.Grazie mille .Magnifiche ricette culinarie! In bocca al lupo signor Shaw!!!!!!! From your admirer of Vancouver island,Britisch Columbia,Canada.
Would it be possible to use dehydrated mushrooms for this recipe (dehydrated in a dehydrator but without salt)?
Chelsea: I don’t know. Never tried it.
Hi I followed this recipe exactly as explained using some porcini and Leccinum mixed with all the things mentioned In your details. After 5 days in the fridge there are little Whitt’s bits on some of the mushrooms. I tried one from the top and it was tasty. Is this mould? Or is it olive oil hardened or something else? Do I have to chuck al my lovely mushrooms 🙁 I can send a picture if you contact me directly.
Chris: Almost certainly solidified olive oil in the fridge.
Thanks! Meant to say “expediently”, BTW.
Hi,
Followed the recipe to a tee with some sliced lobster mushroom last week. Put them in the fridge. The oil, unexpectedly, had solidified.
Will the flavor of the lemon peel and pepper get into the mushrooms while the oil is in a semi solid state?
Do you leave the jar out for a bit to get the oil to re-liquefy prior to fishing out the goodies and serving?
Thanks, BTW. Can’t wait to try them
Steve: yep, it will. That’s normal. And yes, you leave the jar out for a bit before serving.
Hey I love the work you do here Hank. Our foraging friends shared this recipe with me and I am just trying it tonight… They use Suillis and I tried some of theirs and they were quite good! I am trying it now with Painted Suillis. They are air drying for the night now. Any recommendations for the used vinegar?
Caitlin: I use the vinegar for salad dressing a lot.
what or where is the sponge?? please
Hank
Can the jars be put through the canning process to extend shelf life?
Mike
Mike: You can pressure can them, but not water bath can them. I never do, though. I just keep the in the fridge, where they will last a year.
Excited to see how this works out with some nice chanterelles. I agree with others who want a little more clarity with regards to “a layer of salt” and “a heavy later of salt” — Post vinegar bath my chanterelles are pushing the salt pedal (and I have been Pro-Salt since ’65) — I just can see how other batches might have been overwhelmed. Wondering also, if tossing the sliced mushrooms in x amount of salt and sitting them in a colander for that hour or two would be an easier, more effective manner of dehydrating ?? Anyways, back to being excited.. thanks!
These may be good, but this process is waaaay too much work for me to make marinated shrooms. The simpler recipes work just fine and produce nice flavors. Besides, they never last longer than a few days in the fridge when I make them.
Brian: This recipe is specifically for making marinated mushrooms for long storage.
I’m wondering if I’m missing something here. Are you adding the oil and the seasonings to the vinegar or are you just packing the mushrooms in the jar in the oil and seasonings without the vinegar?
Holly: The latter. The mushrooms soak up some vinegar, which acidifies the product.
I made these with foraged porcinis and learned the hard way about the sliming of the sponge- will remove next time…
-thanks!!
Fantastic with Maitake. I do them this way every year that I get enough.
I have so many Hen of the woods that i recently gathered all cleaned and ready to jar. What is the shelf life of this recipe? thanks so much
Joni: I’ve had some in the fridge for a year.
This sounds delicious! My grandmother used to make eggplant this same exact way.?
Question:My husband brought home about 6 lbs. of Chicken of the Woods the other day,and a friend of his told him to SOAK them in salted water for 2 days.As per his friends instruction,he also changed the water about 4 times.I disagreed,as I remember watching my grandmother .Can you tell me what my next steps should be,or did we already ruin these little gems?
Micheline: I’ve never heard of anyone soaking chicken of the woods. Sorry.
Just like Robert from the previous post I have locally foraged mitake that I’m planning on using.Im a little concerned that they will break apart too easily.Has anyone had this problem?Gonna give it a go and hope for the best.
Just did this recipe with hen of the Woods (mitake) that I foraged locally here in NY, and it’s delicious. Zest of lemon makes it.
Thanks
Anyone ever try this with Maitake?
Could I use dried porcini mushrooms
Vern: Nope, you need to start with fresh mushrooms.
My only question or comment after making this recipe is that a clearer explanation of the quantity of salt needed would be good. I was quite worried that I was using too much salt and was going to ruin my chanterelle haul. I just jarred up the mushrooms and so far all seems really good. Thank you for this recipe!!! Looking forward to eating this wonderful speciality item….though doubt they will last 6 months! Yum
Ps Do you think garlic would be a nice addition? Or overpowering?
Has anyone tried this with puffballs? I’ve done the recipe with maitake (fantastic), but we just picked 10+ lbs of puffballs and are looking for lotsa ways to preserve them!
Okay no need for a reply, after a little more research on Shimeji mushrooms. and another look at your recipe. I don’t think they will be suitable…not meaty enough. Thks
Very Inspirational, I have always wanted to give this a try. A stupid question ….I am still feeling my way around the world in regards to food. What is a high quality vinegar or oil ? I take it you just mean any cider vinegar or E.V. Olive oil as apposed to say sunflower or grape vinegar ? If not could you recommend a brand. Also do you think this would work with Shimeji mushrooms. Thk you
Hi, every time I do this my mushies turn out inedibly salty. Not sure what the problem is… Very grateful for any advice!
Roj: Use less salt. Sounds snarky, but it is the only way. Salt tolerance is personal, and it sounds like you are more sensitive to salt than I am. Sorry!
Sorry I took so long to get back to you on the marinated COW. They worked well, the texture holds up beautifully. Mine turned out to be pretty salty, not sure why that might be as you said that should boil off in the vinegar. But the mushrooms were still gobbled up and I have been using the olive oil as dressing on arugula salads with shaved parmesan.
Do you really boil the vinegar? What about the fumes? https://www.google.com/amp/m.scmp.com/article/406155/two-dead-after-boiling-white-vinegar%3famp=1
Caitlin: Yes. Always have, always will. Boiling vinegar has been a part of canning and preserving since there was vinegar, which would be oh, about 3000 years. And reading that article, it was the coal that caused their deaths, not the vinegar. They died of carbon monoxide poisoning.
Hi Hank, awesome recipe. We always store enough mushrooms for winter. This year we’re storing enough for “nuclear winter” lol. This will help. One question. I see you save the vinegar, how about the salt? Is it possible to redry it and then maybe combine with the powder you’ve made from the tubes for some mushroom salt? My first batch is sweating now.
Eric: I don’t see why not.
How about the vinegar you use it in other recipes ? Mine is a nice Boletus vinegar taste good what are some good ideas for using ?
Judy: Yes, I save the vinegar and use it in dressings, etc.
How do you get all that salt (or most of it) off of the mushrooms before proceeding with the next steps? Shake it off? Wipe it off? Brush it off? Thanks.
Ed: You don’t. You then boil them in vinegar, which dilutes a lot of the salt.
Hi Hank,
What about boletes that stain blue/purple slowly (not immediately)after cut in half? I have read conflicting comments regarding the edibility of the boletes that stain. Any suggestions? Thanks!
Marc: Most that stain are no good, but there are exceptions. You need to learn each species.
Lori, have you taste-tested that COW? I’m going back for a beauty today and this sounds like the way to go with it!
They are in salt now. I will let you know how they turn out.
Have you done this with COW? I have a big bag full that I would love to marinate this way.
Lori: I personally have not done it with chicken of the woods, but my instinct tells me it would work. I do it with lobster mushrooms a lot, and they have a similar texture.
I’ve made these at least half a dozen times now. It’s one of my very favorites. Especially nice when I really hit the jackpot on porcini.
Just ate some lobster mushrooms that I marinated last fall. I sauteed them with some italian chicken sausages, garlic, and threw in some kale at the end. I poured it over some pasta and ground some black pepper over it.. So simple and good.
Whoa….. I found this way too salty! Did I let them sit in that phase too long?
Nan: Maybe. They are supposed to be salty, but not unpleasantly so.
Kate, I was wondering the same thing. I do lots of canning and would like to make a batch of several jars and have them around for a while. Please let me know if you attempted to do this, and if so, how they turned out. Thanks kindly.
Could these be canned after they’re packed in oil for a longer shelf life? how do you think the heat would affect the product?
Kate: Yes, but I have never done it and don’t know the details. Sorry.
Relying to questions about maitake and this way of preserving — works excellently! I’ve had to keep back some for the family. Our friends can’t stop with them.
Do you do anything with the salt after it’s absorbed the liquid? I’m thinking I might use it as a base to make a herb bouillon like this one. Any thoughts?https://fromscratchclub.com/2012/07/27/community-voices-homemade-veggie-bouillion/
Hi, is it OK to use dried or frozen mushrooms? Since we need to dehydrate them? Shall I start by boiling dried mushrooms in vinegar then?
Sezen: I have never tried this with dried mushrooms.
So what is the preferred way to serve them I just took them out of the fridge and it looks like the oil has kind of solidified? Thanks David Kielian
David: Yes, the oil will solidify in the fridge. Let it warm up and serve with pickles and charcuterie and cheese.
I am doing Armillaria mellea, Honey Mushrooms. I was told by an Italian friend to boil them in water for 15 minutes, dump the water, them dry..then boil 10 minutes in Wine vinegar then dry overnight then put in sterilized jar layer mushrooms and seasonings… to top but NOT to use olive oil as it would detract from the taste of the mushrooms. What do you think. I just boiled the mushrooms and they are cooling. Thanks Van possible mis spelled words hard to see my text..
My same question .i have already picked 20lb of hen of the woods which are the same as maitaki
Lou: No idea. I have not yet done this with that species of mushroom.
Will this work well with maitake?
1 cup of oil does not seem enough if I’m submerging a few lbs of mushrooms. Am I submerging in vinegar first then adding oil to top it off? I’m finding confusion there. Because I just used a shit ton of evoo and I’m going to be sad if I missed a step
Andy: Nope. You submerge in oil.
There is no way the oil and vinegar amounts are correct.
I had to add more vinegar towards the end of boiling to keep everything submerged. I used another pint over 3 batches of boiling.
1 cup of oil did not submerge 3.1# of COTW. I ran out of XVOO and Olive oil trying to submerge them, and that was about a pint. I used another cup or so of Canola oil (that’s all I had left in the pantry.) I got them coated well with some pooling in the bottom. I’m planning on tossing them everyday for a week. I didn’t use jars though, I used a small bucket. I still don’t think that 1 cup will cover that many shrooms.
Smells and looks great though, so thank you for the recipe.
Would it work to can them in a hot water bath so they don’t need refrigeration?
Heather: No. It doesn’t work that way. Sorry.
re: Chiles
What sort of chile?
Dan: I like little dried cayenne or Thai chiles, or arbol or tabasco.
re: Botulism
You mentioned botulism being an issue that is nipped in the bud by keeping the product refrigerated.
I have portobellos in mind for this recipe; the ones I have have a lot of dirt on them (I guess most mushrooms would at some point or another). Do you think it would be safe–as you said, because of the mere fact that they will be refrigerated–to use these portobellos? I just want to make sure.
Dan: You’re boiling and vinegaring and salting and slightly drying these mushrooms — all of this helps fight against botulism.
Great recipe. I made this with the chanterelles from above, and hands down the best marinated mushroom I’ve ever eaten! Can’t wait to make more!
My oil solidified in the fridge, what did I do wrong?
Jo: that’s a good thing. Just set the mushrooms on the counter a while before serving.
I prepared a large amount of Lobster mushroom by this method last summer which did last 6 months in the fridge in excellent shape. Will definitely do Lobsters again this year and currently have a good supply of the Sheep Polypore relative Albatrellopsis confluens which are large solid mushrooms which should work well though some claim this mushroom needs thorough cooking ( 10 min. medium heat) browned in frying pan is my usual. What are your thoughts on increasing the vinegar boiling time upward, do you suspect this may cause some negative issue to the end result, possibly 5 minutes could be enough for this mushroom as well? thanks
Gary: Give it a shot. I don’t like to boil the hell out of my mushrooms, but for thorough cooking and to kill any microbes I’d make an exception.
I noticed you left the gills on. Thanks for the tip on grinding the gills into powder. I’ve always wanted to do something with the gills. Let’s hope I can beat the bugs to the shrooms this year. (Let’s hope we get enough rain to pop some up)
I had found about 30 pieces of these just yesterday. They are drying on the sun at this moment and will be good with beefstew or pork chops. This happen at Beskydy, Czech Republic. Have a good one.
Four pounds of chanterelle are drying even as I type! They didn’t shrink down as much as I expected — had to use almost double the vinegar to cover them. They smell heavenly!
Quite the process but seems well worth it. Do you rinse the shrooms?
Debra: Nope. I don’t rinse them.
Off to the store.
Wow… that looks delicious!!
I will defiantly ask my girl friend to make this our next food project!
Thanks much. I have had this bookmarked for when I found some nice meaty mushrooms to work with so I am excited to try it out.
Would you remove the sponge from any polypore or just the boletes? I am going to test out the recipe on a berkeley polypore which they know say are rusulas.
Lori: Just the boletes.
Here in Washington state chanterelle season has come about a month and a half early. I picked nearly 6 lbs. of chanterelles last weekend and my guess is this recipe would work just fine with them! Thanks!
“I am not a fan of botulism” Does botulism have any fans? Great post. Time to hit the Asian mart for some king oyster shrooms.