Embrace winter flavours with homemade mushroom spread in jars

Mushroom spread is a staple in my pantry every year. Once I have enough marinated mushrooms, and the sauces and soups become repetitive, I quickly mix a few ingredients, transfer the prepared spread into jars, and pasteurize it. Thanks to this, in winter, I can surprise guests with a delicacy that leaves them truly impressed. My husband’s friend, a forester by trade and passion, always asks for a jar or two.

The mushroom spread should be pasteurized three times, meaning once every 24 hours for three consecutive days. This process reduces the likelihood that the mushrooms will spoil. Unfortunately, forest mushrooms can be tricky and often spoil in jars. The threefold pasteurization process, known as Tyndallization, kills all microorganisms in the jars, even in spore form.

Three-time pasteurization may seem tedious and could put you off making mushroom spread in jars. However, pasteurization doesn’t have to be done only using the traditional method in pots. Another method is pasteurizing in the oven (and even in a dishwasher, though for Tyndallization, we recommend the first or second method). Pasteurizing jars in the oven saves a lot of time, and the task is as simple as turning on the oven and placing the tray with the jars inside.

Ingredients:

• 3 kg of porcini mushrooms,
• 3 carrots,
• 2 onions,
• a tablespoon of butter,
• 350 ml of broth,
• 250 ml of dry white wine,
• 2 teaspoons of tomato paste,
• half a teaspoon of hot paprika powder,
• a teaspoon of sweet paprika powder,
• salt and pepper to taste,
• 125 ml of olive oil.

Preparation:

1. Thoroughly clean the mushrooms, rinse them under running water, and cut them into pieces.
2. Peel the carrots cut them into slices, and slice the onions into half-moons.
3. Transfer the mushrooms and vegetables to a pot and cover with broth. Begin to heat the mixture. After a moment, add the wine and cook on low heat for 45 minutes.
4. Once cooked, set aside to cool and blend the ingredients into a smooth mass.
5. Add olive oil to the mixture, bring it back to a boil, and cook for about 15 minutes.
6. Add tomato paste, sweet, and hot paprika to the mixture. Continue cooking to let some water evaporate, and the mass becomes thick.
7. Add salt and pepper to the thick paste, then transfer it to sterilized jars.
8. Screw the jars tightly and place them on a baking tray so they do not touch each other.
9. Place the tray in an oven preheated to 130°C (if the mushroom spread is cold, start pasteurizing from a cold oven, and count the pasteurization time from when the oven reaches the set temperature).
10. Pasteurize the jars for 30 minutes. Then turn off the oven and leave the jars inside to cool completely.
11. On the second day, after 24 hours, pasteurize the jars again for 20 minutes and allow them to cool in the oven. On the third day, repeat the same process.
12. Once the third pasteurization is complete, store the jars in a cool, dark pantry.