3265 preserving olives

[QUOTE=manopello][FONT="Book Antiqua"][SIZE="3"]
In February I picked soome small but juicy black olives off our trees in Abruzzo.I bought them back to the UK and put them into jars covered with salty water.5 weeks later the water was black but when I opened the jars they fizzed! I added a bit more salt then left them.They taste ok but I could do with somw more advice for instance the salt water ratio.

Also I'm a great mushroom picker in the Uk collecting Porchini, Chanterell,
Oyster Mushrooms etc.Its not hot enough here for me to dry them successfully and when I try preserving them in Olive Oil they start fermenting!!As our place is surrounded by woods I'm looking forward to picking some wild mushrooms ( maybe even truffles) and drying or pickling them to use in the UK.Has anyone done this successfully?If so how?

We pick the olives clean them without water,put them in large plastic washing buckets for 1-3 months completely covered in salt (sale grosso) after which we take them out from under the salt wash them off,put them in boiling water 30 seconds,then remove carefully dry them them and preserve them under our own oil.
PLEASE don't put funghi under oil it is potentially VERY dangerous (as all books will tell you) you risk getting botulin poisoning which can be mortal every year several people (italians) die from this.If you want to preserve the funghi you can either dry them threading them on to button thread and hanging them in streamers in a cool very dry place once dried you can store them in large dry clean jars they'll last indefinitely and can be resucitated in cooking and by soaking in water before use.IF you want to bottle funghi and put under oil YOU MUST first put them into a liquor based on INDUSTRIAL VINEGAR (at least 6% proof) there can also be wine and water in with the vinegar,you must keep a little to put in the jar too before topping up with oil.
Olive oil itself IS NOT A PRESERVER, and Botulin poison thrives in an anaerobic environment (eg. under oil) whilst the vinegar treatment is ESSENTIAL to kill off any risk of this This kind of procedure is INDISPENSABLE for ALL vegetable bottling with the exception of tomatoes which have a sufficiently high acid content to be safe.So please do not take any risks (my mother in law nearly died twice from this!!!)

Fantastic advice Sebastiano. Thank you so much a really informative post.
Grazie :)

I have a book called preserved by Nick Sandler and Johnny Acton -They say dry mushrooms in a drying box,(instructions how to make one) or rack on top of a radiator or in an exremely low oven with door ajar -also instructions for drying mushrooms on threads - and recipes for dried porcini and gruyere tarts and wild Mushroom pate!

[FONT="Book Antiqua"][SIZE="3"]I have a book by Peter Jordan which gives instructions on presetrving fungi called [B]The New Guide to Mushrooms[/B] in it he says
"mushrooms can be pickled in either oil or good vinegar"

He tells you to blanche the mushrooms first then put into a jar with oil garlic and peppercorns!!

As I have said my attemps always went off and I am very grateful to Sebastiano for his warning...although the fungi looks and smells quite revolting so who would eat it I dont know!

Becky[/SIZE][/FONT]

[QUOTE=manopello]He tells you to blanche the mushrooms first then put into a jar with oil garlic and peppercorns!![/QUOTE]

Surely blanching serves the same function as soaking in strong vinegar? Both would quickly kill any microrobes on the surface of the mushrooms and, depending on how long you let them cook or soak, also any nasties lurking in the flesh.

Does the book give explicit instructions on how to prepare the mushrooms before blanching and how long to leave them in the water?

Obviously, dunking twenty complete porcini into a small pan of boiling water for ten seconds will not have the same effect as immersing one thinly sliced mushroom in a big pan of water at a rolling boil for thirty seconds.

Is it possible that your mushrooms were more cooked than blanched, Becky? I suspect mine probably would be since I tend to work on the basis that erring on the side of cooking too much is always safest.

Al

[FONT="Book Antiqua"][SIZE="3"]I've tried both a quick dip in the boiling water and a longer soak!The problem is that Porchinis tend to be a bit slimey if you do over cook them...I think something firmer like an oyster mushroom or sliced 'chicken of the woods' may stand up to this method better?

I am now so worried about all this talk of botulism I think I will stick to drying them.Actually I do remember an old Mrs Beeton recipie for 'Mushroom Ketchup' which sounded quite nice and I wonder if theres an Italian equivilant? I like the sound of a preseved funghi recipie but dont like too much vinegar as its so overpowering.

Becky[/SIZE][/FONT]

Personally, I think it's impossible to be [I]too[/I] worried about something like Botulism. It's an extremely unpleasant way to go. And even if you do survive the acute phase, it can take months to fully recover.

According to Wikipedia, garlic preserved in oil has also been the source of botulism poisoning.

Oh, and the spores are everywhere. :eek: All they need is a bit of food in a non-acid, airless environment and they'll quite happily multiply away.

Since it's easy to dry mushrooms and they cope so well with the treatment, it really does seem the most sensible means of preserving them.

Al