Helpot sienet Easy mushrooms
Kitchen

Reseptit (recipes) & conserving

First store your harvest for later. Then cook simple Finnish-style dishes. Simple recipes below, with a link to a Finnish original when possible so you can learn kitchen words too.

Storage

Säilöntä (conserving mushrooms)

Fresh wild mushrooms do not keep long in the fridge (about 1–3 days). Clean them soon, then freeze or dry what you will not cook today.

Sliced herkkutatti on a tray in an electric fruit and vegetable dryer, with a bag of dried slices beside it
Herkkutatti slices in a fruit and vegetable dryer, ready when they snap. Photo: Jari Majaniemi.

Drying rule (all species)

If you dry mushrooms, keep the temperature at or below 50 °C. Hotter air can spoil the aroma and make the mushrooms tough. Use a dehydrator, a fan oven on its lowest setting with the door slightly open, or a warm, dry, airy room for thin slices.

Mushrooms are ready when they snap cleanly (not bend). Store in a dry jar away from light.

Kanttarelli: light sauté & freeze

Best method: dry-fry, then freeze.

  1. Clean mushrooms. Cut large ones.
  2. Heat a pan without fat. Add mushrooms and cook until most water has evaporated.
  3. Add a little butter or oil, fry briefly, salt lightly.
  4. Cool, pack in portions, freeze.

Drying is not optimal for chanterelles as they do not rehydrate well, but freezing keeps a softer texture for cream sauces.

Chanterelles can also be pickled using the simple "1-2-3" liquid (1 part vinegar, 2 parts sugar, 3 parts water). Blanch cleaned mushrooms in lightly salted boiling water for a couple of minutes, then drain and place in clean jars. Prepare the pickling liquid by boiling 1 part vinegar, 2 parts sugar, and 3 parts water. Add a few black peppercorns, mustard seeds, and a bay leaf if you like. Pour the hot liquid over the mushrooms in clean jars and seal. Cool and store in the fridge. Pickled chanterelles are served as a tangy side or on sandwiches.

Guide: Kanttarelli page

Suppilovahvero: freeze or dry

Best methods: sauté & freeze (great for pie), or dry for strong flavour.

Same dry-fry method as kanttarelli. They shrink a lot; that is normal.

Guide: Suppilovahvero page

Musta torvisieni: dry

Best method: drying (≤ 50 °C).

Split trumpets so the inside dries. Fully dry pieces become almost like spice: crush them into sauces, soups, and pasta.

To use: soak in warm water 20–30 minutes. Keep the soaking liquid; it is full of flavour.

Guide: Musta torvisieni page

Herkkutatti (porcini): dry or freeze

Best method: drying (the Italian pantry classic).

  1. Remove soft tube layers if needed. Slice about 5 mm thick.
  2. Dry at ≤ 50 °C until brittle.
  3. Store in jars. Soak for 20–30 minutes before cooking; use the liquid in risotto or soup.

Firm young pieces can also be sautéed and frozen.

Guide: Herkkutatti page

Vaalea orakas: light sauté & freeze

Best method: dry-fry, then freeze.

Scrape the spines off first so dirt and insect holes are easy to see. Chop, cook in a dry pan until the liquid is gone, then freeze in portions. Cook orakas thoroughly: that is how any bitterness fades.

Young, firm slices can also be dried at ≤ 50 °C.

Guide: Vaalea orakas page

Cooking

Ten basic recipes

Amounts are flexible, because wild mushrooms vary. Taste as you go. Finnish links open some original recipes elsewhere on the web.

1. Kanttarelli with onions and cream

Five-photo collage: chopped kanttarelli and onion, frying, adding cream, and the finished creamy sauce
Creamy kanttarelli sauce, from prep to pan. Photo: Jari Majaniemi.

The classic Finnish forest dinner: mushrooms, onion, cream, salt. Serve with potatoes or on toast.

For 2–3 people

  • About 4 dl cleaned kanttarelli
  • 1 onion, chopped · butter or oil · 2 dl cream
  • Salt
  1. Fry mushrooms and onion with little fat until water is gone.
  2. Pour in cream, simmer on high heat until reduced to get a creamy sauce. Season with salt to taste.

Finnish original: Valio: kantarellikastike

2. Porcini risotto (tattirisotto)

Italy’s favourite way to eat porcini works perfectly with Finnish herkkutatti. Use fresh or soaked dried mushrooms.

For 4 people (simplified)

  • 3 dl risotto rice · 1–2 onions · garlic · olive oil
  • ~400 g herkkutatti (or ~40 g dried, soaked)
  • ~8 dl hot stock (vegetable or chicken) · optional 1 dl dry white wine · Parmesan
  1. Sauté onion and mushrooms, take to side while starting with the rice.
  2. Add some olive oil to the pan, add rice, then wine if using. Let the rice to warm up, stirring.
  3. When the rice is warm, add the mushrooms and onion back to the pan, stir.
  4. Add hot stock ladle by ladle, stirring, let the rice soak it in, total ~15 minutes until the rice is cooked.
  5. Fold in with Parmesan at the end. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

You'd better off using an original Italian recipe from the net, but here is a Finnish original: Martat: tattirisotto

3. Suppilovahveropiirakka (funnel chanterelle pie)

A Finnish autumn classic. Piirakka means pie. Use fresh, frozen, or rehydrated dried funnel chanterelles.

  • Shortcrust or ready pie base from the store. Look for Piirakkataikina in the frozen section, but make sure that you get the savoury version (suolainen), not the sweet one (makea).
  • Sautéed suppilovahvero + onion
  • Eggs + cream · grated cheese (optional)· salt, pepper, herbs
  1. Let the pie dough thaw until you can press it flat on a pie plate with its sides raised up to hold the filling. Pre-bake the base briefly (if the recipe asks for it, usually not needed).
  2. Spread mushroom–onion mix on the base.
  3. Pour egg–cream mix, add cheese, bake until set (~200 °C).

Finnish originals: K-ruoka: suppilovahveropiirakka, Martat: sienipiirakka (both work with many forest mushrooms)

4. Torvisieni or mixed mushroom pie

Black trumpets give a deep flavour in pie. Mix with suppilovahvero if you have both. Same idea as recipe 3: sauté mushrooms and onion, pour egg–cream custard, bake.

Finnish base recipe: Martat: sienipiirakka

5. Chanterelle soup (kantarellikeitto)

Soft, mild, and welcoming after a cold walk in the forest.

  • Kanttarelli · onion · butter · stock · cream · optional potato for thickness
  1. Sauté onion and mushrooms.
  2. Add stock (and potato if using); simmer until soft.
  3. Blend partly or fully, finish with cream, season.

Finnish original: Valio: kantarellikeitto

6. Porcini soup (herkkutattikeitto)

Sauté onion, add chopped fresh or soaked dried porcini and cook for a few minutes. Stir in flour, then pour in water or stock and simmer for 10–15 minutes. Finish with cream and season with salt and white pepper.

Finnish original: K-ruoka: tattikeitto

7. Black trumpet pasta (mustatorvisienipasta)

Dried black trumpets work beautifully in this peppery pasta. Soak the mushrooms (if using dried), then chop finely. Sauté minced garlic in butter or oil, add the drained mushrooms, and cook for a few minutes. Add black pepper and a little cream, simmer briefly, then toss with cooked pasta. Finish with parsley and lemon juice.

Finnish original: Food by Twins: pippurinen mustatorvisienipasta

9. Forest mushroom barley “risotto” (metsäsieniohratto)

A very Finnish twist: barley (ohra) instead of rice. Excellent with kanttarelli. Creamy, filling, and cheaper than risotto rice.

Finnish original: Martat: metsäsieniohratto

10. Mushroom omelette (sienimunakas)

Fast lunch: leftover sautéed mushrooms + eggs. Works with any of the four species (or a mix).

  1. Warm cooked mushrooms in a pan with a little butter.
  2. Pour beaten eggs, cook gently, fold.
  3. Salt, pepper, herbs. Serve with bread.

Bonus risotto idea with kanttarelli: Valio: kantarellirisotto