the storage of mushrooms

Former Member

I know i could search...i have and theyve not given me a simple and straight answer....so, to the resident gurus of everything: How long can mushrooms (wet) be kept before they go off? and in what conditions should they be kept?

Also, "going off" - do they just rot? or do they become dangerous to eat or something?

Thanks gurus

Peace

Former Member

couldn't you dry them?

Former Member

well yeah....but aside from possible legal issues....doesnt it change the dosage on them? I'm lookin at 30g split three ways wet....which is fine....10g being a mild dosage and so on....but what happens if theyre dry? are they stronger?

Peace

Former Member

yes they slowly rot, as with any vegetable..........would you eat a rotten vegetable? lol its a fungus anyways i wouldn't push your luck........from experience how long they keep depends on how you store it.......i usually bought them off a site so not sure how fresh they were by the time they reached me, could be delayed in transit etc........in my experience they keep better in the fridge, don't leave them in a plastic bag cos they sweat a lot, wrap them up in paper, and don't leave it more than 3/4 days to be safe........but i usually buy them dry, fresh is hassle and they usually look mank.........im not sure what the drying process entails.......

ETA: yeah they lose loads of weight when they dry out, 25g can be considered an average dose wet, whereas i've never done more than 2g dry.........obviously the strength varies wildly with variety, that's just a rough estimate.....

Former Member

Okey dokey then, drying them it is.

Methods?

Quick and easy would be apreciated as the last thing i need is my mum wondering whats slowly baking in the oven . lol

Peace

Former Member

I know nothing about these things, but couldnt you freeze them...?

(if you dont want to dry them, that is)

Jaded

Can I just point out that once mushrooms are prepared for human consumption they become a Class A substance? The law is currently a bit hazy on this one, but that could be anything from picking them to making tea, and most definetely includes drying them. There is more information in theSite's Magic Mushooms and the Law factsheet, including some links at the end that may be useful.

Former Member

...this is all for personal research only....:) im just a curious citizen hoping to find out information on a subject he knows nothing about for no personal use whatsoever

Peace

Former Member

AlmightyBob wrote:

I know i could search...i have and theyve not given me a simple and straight answer....so, to the resident gurus of everything: How long can mushrooms (wet) be kept before they go off? and in what conditions should they be kept?

Also, "going off" - do they just rot? or do they become dangerous to eat or something?

Thanks gurus

Peace

Just make sure you take them before they turn blue :yes: .

Former Member

on shrooms - you shoud always dry them out - other wise they will go to shit on you in no time. if youy leave them wet - they will turn to a black mush full of maggots that has no trippy effect what so ever. refridgeration is an option if you want to keep them fresh, but not for most people.

freezing them is not a great idea - when they thaw the resulting juices will contain a lot of the good stuff so unless you want to thaw them in a glass and then drink the juice - i wouldnt bother with this. the juice is revolting by the way - it should be used at iron stomach contests.

to dry them out - get some newspaper, base of shoe box or the likes. lob the shrooms in - don't stack them put them in one shroom high. leave them in a dark dry place. check them every day and if they start going off ( i.e. turning to black mush and maggots everywhere) dump them. a few maggots here or there is perfectly acceptable - but remove maggots to prevent them from ruining your shrooms.

they should dry out in about a week - maybe more. keep an eye on them though - i lost 400 shrooms two seasons ago as i went away for a week after i had picked a load of them and came home to a shoe box full of mushy maggot crap.

as regards the potency of the shrooms when they are dried - i took shrooms about 6 weeks ago that were picked last September. they were incredibly potent and 15 shrooms had a very strong effect. in saying that - every batch is differenct - last years batch here in Dublin was particularly strong - people freaking out everywhere.

they do not seem to loose any strength when dried - (these are liberty bells i am talking about - i cant vouch for any other types of shrooms)

happy shrooming

Former Member

Cheers bananaman....very helpful in my quest for knowledge. hehe.
I theoretically have them in a dark, dry, warm place....how would you know when they were fully dried? i mean, are we talking like...cardboard dry?

Peace

Former Member

warm is not so good - not for long periods. maggots etc will breed. best location would be on some dry newspaper under a bed say, or in a wardrobe. they need air to dry them out - so dont cover them with anything. i would say a week, maybe a bit more to dry them out. you'll know cause they will be a bit more wrinkly than before and maybe not cardboard dry - but dry anyway. it's worth the effort to make sure they are dried properly, cause if they're not - they'll go off on you. if i have loads, and want to be sure they are dried fully - i will leave them for weeks, keeping an eye on them regularly cause if they start to go off - you can maybe save a few. one great idea a friend of mine had was this - dry the shrooms out completely - waiting weeks to ensure they are done properly. then get about 15 of them and with a pestal and mortar, grind them down to a powder. get a detachable tablet - like a painkiller and pull it apart - remove pain killing stuff and lob in the ground up dry shrooms. they will then keep for a long time, and are very easy to store and also to ingest - as most people hate the taste of shroom tea. brilliant!

anyway - you will know when they are dry by look - they will be more grey and withery.