Name: Pickled Chicken of the Woods Mushroom (in Olive Oil)
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 1485 min
Ingredients: 12.7 oz chicken of the woods mushrooms; 1¾ cups vinegar ((at least 5% acidity)); 1¼ cups white wine; 1½ cups olive oil; 2½ tbsp salt; 5 cloves garlic; 3 tbsp whole black pepper; 1 tbsp dry rosemary; 2 bay leaves (dry)

Pickled chicken of the woods in olive oil is an old-school way to preserve wild mushrooms, and it’s much milder than a classic vinegar pickle. The slices simmer in salty vinegar and white wine, dry for a day, then settle into jars with garlic, bay leaves, black pepper, and a generous pour of olive oil.

Give it a week. The oil tames the vinegar, the mushrooms soak up the garlic, and you get a jar of tender, garlicky mushrooms you’ll want to hide from the neighbors. Bonus: the leftover oil is too good to throw away.

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Pickled chicken of the woods mushrooms for people who don’t like pickles

A jar of pickled chicken of the woods in olive oil, with fresh chicken of the woods in the background.

My chicken of the woods grows on the same old pear tree every year, so I never have to go hunting for it. It just shows up, usually in amounts no family can eat in one week. That’s how we ended up with a whole collection of chicken of the woods recipes, and I keep adding new ones.

Like most wild mushrooms, it’s best young, and that goes double when you plan to preserve it. Young mushrooms are soft and slice easily. Older ones turn tough, and nobody wants to chew on a jar of wood. The good news: its sturdy body keeps in the fridge for about a week, so you don’t have to cook it all the day you pick it.

First up is always fried chicken of the woods in a seasonal salad. Then comes a hearty chicken of the woods soup and a traditional chicken of the woods phyllo pie.

But the one that’s non-negotiable every year, in big batches, is chicken of the woods dessert preserves, a Balkan “slatko” (sweet preserve), similar to black trumpet mushroom jam. We use it for cakes, puddings, or parfaits.

My chicken of the woods mushroom growing on an old pear tree.

When it comes to pickles, I admit it: too much vinegar makes my face fold in half. So I tried this Balkan recipe with olive oil, and we’ve been preserving mushrooms this way ever since.

The mushrooms still get their vinegar bath, but after about a week in the jar, they soak up the olive oil and lose the sour edge. Add plenty of garlic, and they beat classic pickles every time.

The process is simple, just slow. The mushroom slices cook in vinegar and white wine together with the garlic, then spend a full day drying on a kitchen towel. After that, they go into jars in layers with bay leaves, rosemary, and whole black pepper, and get covered in olive oil right up to the top.

And it’s not only for chicken of the woods: other wild mushrooms take to this method just as well. Even the leftover oil is a keeper, more on that below.

A jar of pickled chicken of the woods mushrooms in olive oil with black pepper, rosemary and bay leaf.

What goes into a jar of pickled chicken of the woods

CHICKEN OF THE WOODS MUSHROOMS – Young and soft only, and never from yew or other conifers. Pickle it the day you pick it, before it gets tough and grumpy. Other firm wild mushrooms can join the party.

VINEGAR – At least 5% acidity. I use homemade apple cider vinegar, but if you don’t know its strength, buy one labeled 5%. The acid is what keeps the jars safe.

WHITE WINE – A slightly sweet one softens the vinegar’s bite. What you do with the rest of the bottle is your business.

OLIVE OIL – Buy good, organic oil. You’ll taste it in every slice and reuse it once the jar is empty, so cheap oil lets you down twice.

Mise en place for pickled chicken of the woods preserves: chicken of the woods mushroom, olive oil, vinegar, white wine, bay leaves, salt, garlic, rosemary and whole black pepper.

GARLIC – 5 cloves per 24-ounce (710 ml) jar. If you’re planning to make the spread, add a few more. Nobody ever complained about extra garlic.

BAY LEAVES – Two dried leaves per jar.

ROSEMARY – Optional, fresh or dried, for a little freshness.

SALT & BLACK PEPPER – Salt goes into the pot to season the mushrooms as they cook. Use whole peppercorns in the jar so the oil stays clear and pretty.

Bay leaf in a pickled chicken of the woods jar.

How to make pickled chicken of the woods with olive oil

STEP 1: Clean the chicken of the woods mushroom and cut off the tough part where it grew into the tree. If your knife squeaks like it’s cutting styrofoam, that part comes off too. Slice the rest thinly and peel the garlic.

Sliced chicken of the woods mushroom on a wooden cutting board with garlic cloves.

STEP 2: In a large pot, bring the vinegar, white wine, and 2½ tablespoons of salt to a boil. Add the mushroom slices and cook for a full 20 minutes. No shortcuts here. Add the garlic cloves for the last 5 minutes.

Chicken of the woods slices boiling in a pot with vinegar, white wine and garlic cloves.

STEP 3: Drain everything well and discard the brine. Spread the slices and garlic on a clean kitchen towel with a little space between them, so air reaches every side.

Let them dry for 24 hours, flipping them once halfway. In a hurry? A dehydrator at 122°F (50°C) does it in 5 to 6 hours.

Chicken of the woods slices drying on a clean kitchen cloth.

STEP 4: The next day, sterilize the jars and lids in boiling water (or in the oven at 212°F / 100°C) for 10 minutes and let them dry completely. Layer in the mushroom slices, sprinkling each layer with whole peppercorns and a little rosemary. Tuck the garlic and two bay leaves somewhere in between.

Mushroom slices in a jar with spices, before adding the olive oil.

STEP 5: Don’t pack the jars too tightly. Pour in the olive oil and shake each jar a few times to chase out the air bubbles. Leave them open for at least an hour, since the mushrooms drink some of the oil, and top up as needed.

Top view of a jar with pickled chicken of the woods mushrooms in olive oil

STEP 6: Fill the jars to the very top so every slice is under oil, then close the lids. Now the hard part: wait at least a week before opening the first jar, so the oil and spices can soak into the mushrooms.

Pickled chicken of the woods mushroom recipe, stuffed in a mason jar with a bay leaf and pepper.

How to use the leftover oil and make a chicken of the woods spread

Once opened, keep the jar in the fridge. The oil may turn cloudy in the cold, which is normal. A few minutes on the counter and it’s clear again.

When the mushrooms are gone, don’t you dare pour out the oil. It’s full of mushroom and garlic flavor and perfect for salads, a mushroom risotto, or frying eggs.

Want something creamier? Blend the last slices with cream cheese, fresh parsley, and a couple of pickled garlic cloves. You get a chicken of the woods spread for homemade bread or crackers, and a very good excuse to open the next jar. A reader suggested I try this, and I’m glad he did!

a small bowl of pickled chicken of the woods mushroom spread with cream cheese.

Tips worth remembering

Boil for the full 20 minutes. Undercooked chicken of the woods can upset sensitive stomachs, and 20 minutes in vinegar and wine cooks it through and lets the acid soak in. The acid is what protects your jars, so set a timer and don’t cut corners. Then pour the brine away.

Pick young, cut off the tough bits. Young mushrooms are soft, old ones are chewy. Your knife will tell you which is which: if it sounds like you’re slicing styrofoam, that piece goes to the compost.

Slice thin. Thin slices soak up the vinegar evenly, pack neatly, and leave room for the oil.

Dry them completely, garlic too. Any water left on the slices ends up in the jar, and water in oil means mold. Give them a full 24 hours at room temperature, or 5 to 6 hours in a dehydrator at no more than 122°F (50°C).

Give them breathing room. Packed too tightly, the slices won’t all get covered, and any bit poking out of the oil is an open invitation for mold.

Don’t close the jars right away. The mushrooms keep drinking oil for a while. Shake out the bubbles, wait an hour or two, and top up until the oil reaches the rim.

An opened jar of pickled chicken of the woods mushroom on a rustic table.

How long pickled chicken of the woods keeps

Before the jars go anywhere, check one last time that the oil reaches the rim and every slice, clove, and bay leaf sits under it. Top up if needed, then close the lids tightly.

Stored in a cool, dark pantry, these jars keep for up to a year. That’s how they’ve been kept in the Balkans, but only when every step is done right: vinegar with at least 5% acidity, the full 20 minutes of boiling, mushrooms dried, and oil covering everything. For extra safety, keep unopened jars in the fridge, too. Once opened, they always go in the fridge.

Before opening any jar, give it a quick check. When in doubt, throw it out. And if you’d rather play it extra safe, the fridge works for unopened jars too.