The knowledge of edible mushrooms is useful to every mushroom picker. Edible mushrooms are those that are safe to eat and do not need special cooking. Edible mushrooms are divided into several types, the most famous of them: tubular, lamellar and marsupials. You can read more about edible mushrooms in this article.
Signs
Edible mushrooms are called that do not require special processing; they can be cooked and eaten immediately. Edible mushrooms do not contain any toxic substances that can harm the body, they are absolutely safe for humans.
The nutritional value of edible mushrooms is divided into four categories: from high-quality to low-grade mushrooms.
In order to distinguish edible mushrooms from inedible mushrooms, you need to know some common distinguishing features:
- edible mushrooms do not have a specific pungent odor;
- the color of edible mushrooms is less bright and catchy;
- edible mushrooms usually do not change color after cutting or breaking the hat;
- the flesh may darken during cooking or when broken;
- in edible mushrooms, the plates are attached to the leg stronger than in inedible ones.
All these signs are conditional and do not give an exact guarantee that the fungus is edible.
The video clearly shows how to distinguish edible mushrooms from poisonous ones using the most common mushrooms as an example. It also tells what to do in case of poisoning:
Conditionally edible
In addition to edible, there are also conditionally edible mushrooms. They are classified as a separate category because they secrete bitter juice or contain poison in very small quantities.
Such mushrooms must be subjected to special treatment before cooking, namely:
- soak (from 4 to 7 days);
- boil (15-30 minutes);
- scald with boiling water;
- to dry;
- salt (50-70 g of salt per 1 liter of water).
Among conditionally edible mushrooms, even with special processing, it is recommended to use only young specimens, without signs of aging or decay.
Some mushrooms can be inedible only if they are used with other products. For example, dung beetle is not compatible with alcohol.
Kinds
There are 3 species, which are divided into edible and conditionally edible.
Tubular
Tubular mushrooms are distinguished by the structure of the cap, which has a porous structure resembling a sponge. The inner part is penetrated by a large number of small tubes intertwined. Mushrooms of this species can usually be found in the shade of trees, where there is little sunlight, damp and cool.
Among tubular mushrooms, both edible and conditionally edible are common. Their fruits are very fleshy and have high nutritional value.
Among the edible tubular mushrooms there are many poisonous doubles. For example, a safe porcini mushroom can be confused with inedible bile. Before harvesting, you should carefully study the signs characteristic of edible fruits.
Most popular edible
Below are tubular mushrooms that can be eaten without any precautions:
1 White mushroom or boletus
White mushroom is the most famous representative of tubular mushrooms. If you pay attention to the hat, you can see that it is a little convex in shape, soft brown in color, with light areas. The inside of the cap is penetrated by white or yellowish pores, depending on the age of the fungus, with a mesh structure. The pulp is white, fleshy, juicy, has a mild taste. When boiling and drying, a rich mushroom smell appears. The leg is thick, brown.
Mushroom pickers are advised to look for boletus in the forests, in the shade of pines or birches. It is best to collect from June to September.
2 Oils
The hat is conical, brown, oily to the touch due to the mucus covering it. The inside of the cap is yellowish; in early mushrooms it is covered with a light mesh, which breaks through with time. The pulp is soft and light, closer to the leg it has a brownish tint. Leg is thin, light yellow.
Oilfishes usually grow in families. They can be found in a pine forest from July to September.
3 Flywheel
The color of the hat can be light brown or pale green, with a yellow inside. When cutting the pulp, the flywheel turns blue, but it does not belong to poisonous ones. The leg is dense, from 4 to 8 cm in height.
Mushroom grows in the forest, in loose soil, sometimes found near swamps. The optimal time for the Cathedral of the Mossians is considered to be the period from July to October.
4 Boletus
It features a convex wide hat of orange-red color. The pulp is porous, light, but with a break it becomes darker. The leg is dense, narrowed from above, covered with dark scales.
You can find the mushroom in a mixed forest, under aspens or near pines. Productivity is observed from August to September.
5 ordinary birch
The gray-brown hat has the shape of a semicircle. The lower part is light, soft to the touch. The pulp is white, but darkens during cooking. The leg is long, white, covered with dark scales.
It is recommended to collect young mushrooms. They should be cooked or dried right away, as the birch mushrooms quickly deteriorate.
The mushroom grows in families under birch trees. Harvest time is June-September.
6Polish mushroom
Similar to boletus. Has a brown hat. The pulp with wide pores, pale yellow, darkens when cut. Leg light brown, with a barely noticeable striped pattern.
When wet, the mushroom peel is more difficult to separate.
Often found under pine trees, on loose soils. You can go on a quiet hunt for Polish mushroom from July to October, inclusive.
7Boletin
The hat with a dull surface has thin scales. Color variation from brown to yellow can be observed. The pulp is yellow, has a pronounced mushroom smell. The leg is brown. In early mushrooms, a yellowish little ring on the leg can be seen.
It can be found in forests, in particular of mixed type or in deciduous. Usually collected from August to October.
8Bruise
This mushroom is the rarest of all. It has a wide flat hat, slightly concave inward along the edges. The surface of the cap is dry, grayish-brown. When pressed, it acquires a blue tint. The pulp has a brittle structure, cream-colored, but with a break becomes cornflower blue. It has a delicate taste and smell. The leg is long, thick at the base.
Some mushroom pickers mistake the mushroom as poisonous because of its ability to change color. However, it is not toxic and tastes good enough.
Most often seen in deciduous forests, from July to September.
The most popular conditionally edible
Special attention should be paid to conditionally edible mushrooms. Among tubular mushrooms, there are quite a lot of them. The most common ones are described below.
1 Olive Brown Oak
Hats are big, brown. The internal structure is porous, with time changing color from yellowish to dark orange. With a break, the color darkens. The leg is full, brown, covered with a reddish mesh. It is used in marinated form.
Usually grow near oak forests. Collect oak trees from July to September.
2 Motto
It has a wide hat, the shape of which is like a semicircle. The color mainly varies from brown to brown-black. The surface of the cap is velvety to the touch, it becomes darker when pressed. The flesh is red-brown in color, when broken, it changes color to blue. It is odorless. The leg is high, thick, on it you can notice thin scales. Speckled oak is eaten only after boiling.
It can be found in forests - both coniferous and deciduous. Gives a crop from May to October. Peak fruiting occurs in July.
Read more about oak trees here.
3 chestnut mushroom
The hat has a rounded brown shape. In young mushrooms, the surface is velvet to the touch, in older mushrooms, on the contrary, smooth. The pulp is characterized by a white color. Has a mild smell of hazelnut. The leg is close in color to the hat, thinner from above than below. Before eating, the mushroom must be dried.
It is found near deciduous trees from July to September.
4Kozlyak
The cap of this mushroom is most often flattened. The color is reddish-red-brown. The peel is difficult to separate from the cap. The pulp is dense, elastic, pale yellow. Turns pink when cut. After cooking, the mushroom acquires a mauve color. The leg is high, cylindrical in shape, usually curved. The color of the legs is similar to a hat. Most often boiled before eating, salted or pickled.
You can find it near the pine trees. Distributed from August to September.
5 pepper mushroom
The hat is round, convex. Flattened over time. The color is yellow-brown or red-brown. When wet, it can become sticky. The pulp is fragile, yellow in color. It has a pronounced pungent taste. These mushrooms have a short, moderately thin stalk. The color of the legs is almost the same as the hat, but lighter.
The mushroom is used as a powder seasoning as a substitute for pepper. In another form it is impossible to eat.
Pepper mushroom can be found in coniferous forests. Most often it is collected from July to October.
Lamellar
Leaf mushrooms are called because of the cap, the inside of which is penetrated by thin plates containing spores for reproduction. They stretch from the center to the edges of the cap along the entire inner surface of the fungus.
Leaf mushrooms are the most common and well-known species of mushrooms. A silent hunt for mushrooms of this species lasts from mid-summer to early winter. They can grow in both deciduous and coniferous forests.
Most popular edible
The most famous edible agaric mushrooms are listed on this list:
1 Chanterelle
It features a concave hat with curved edges, the color of the hat is yellow-orange. The pulp is a delicate yellow color, if you touch it, you can find that the structure is quite dense. In the chanterelle, the leg has the same color as the hat and continues it.
Distributed in deciduous and coniferous forests. It is necessary to collect from July to October.
Chanterelles have poisonous doubles. You should pay attention to the color of the hat; in harmful mushrooms, it is usually light yellow or pinkish.
2 Ginger
The hat is covered with rings, may be concave to the middle. It has a light orange color. The pulp also has a color almost orange, dense structure. The leg is small, identical in color to the hat.
You can find it in the coniferous forests, under the pines. Collected from July to October.
3 Autumn foil
The hat is convex, covered with thin scales. The color ranges from honey to pale green-brown. The pulp is dense structure, light. Attractive with its delicate smell. The legs are narrow, pale yellow, darker to the bottom, with a small ringlet under the hat.
Can be found in deciduous forests, on a woody surface. Wings are advised to search from September to November.
The honey agar also has a dangerous double - a false honey agaric. Its differences are the absence of a ring on the leg; its color is olive or almost black, more saturated.
We recommend reading an article about growing mushrooms on your farm - here.
4
In young mushrooms, hats are shaped like a hemisphere, in older mushrooms they become flat. Differs in light brown, pink-brown, pink color. The inner side is fragile, whitish, becoming darker with age. The leg has the shape of a cylinder, it is dense or hollow inside, which depends on the variety.
You can see Russula in mixed forests, from June to November.
5 May mushroom
The hat has a convex shape, cream color. The inside is white with a dense structure. It tastes like flour. The leg is long, white, an orange hue is noticeable at the base.
It grows in meadows and pastures. The fruiting time is from April to June.
6 ring cap
The cap of this mushroom resembles a cap in shape, for which it got its name. She has a warm, pale yellow color, sometimes close to buffy, with a striped pattern. Inside, soft, slightly yellowish in color. The leg is strong, long.
It can be found mainly under coniferous trees, sometimes under a birch or oak. They are usually harvested from July to October.
7 Wet felt
The shape of the hat is similar to a dome and has a tan hue. Pulp is the color of ocher. Leg is elongated; in earlier mushrooms it is covered with a white net.
Distributed in coniferous forests. Collected from June to October.
8
The hat is convex in shape. The surface is fibrous, the color varies from red to orange-yellow. The pulp is white, with thick plates. The leg is cone-shaped, white, covered with reddish scales. It is recommended to eat only fresh.
You can find it under the pine trees, from March to November.
9 Champignon
It has a round hat with inwardly turned edges, white or brownish in color, with the age of the fungus it opens. The pulp is light, with time changes its color to gray. Leg low, light, dense structure. When cooked, the mushrooms darken. They have a pronounced mushroom smell.
They grow in mixed forests or meadows. It is advised to collect from June to September.
10 oyster mushroom
The cap is ear-shaped, has curved edges. Usually light or pale gray. It has a smooth surface. The leg is short, thin, white. Pulp with wide plates, white or pale yellow. They have no pronounced smell. It is recommended to eat young, as old mushrooms have a rigid structure.
Relate to oyster mushrooms, usually grow in families on trees or rotten stumps. Usually it can be collected in warm time from August to September.
Champignons and oyster mushrooms are cultivated mushrooms. They are bred in artificial conditions for consumption. They are most often found on store shelves and supermarkets. Oyster mushrooms can be frozen.
The most popular conditionally edible
Among the lamellar mushrooms can be found conditionally edible. You will read about some of them below:
1 A real load
The hat is white, with faded yellow spots. Wrapped to the bottom. The pulp is dense, light, smells like fruit. The leg is white, cylindrical in shape. When cutting, the leg secretes caustic juice. Soak before use.
Gather in birch groves and coniferous forests. Harvest time is from June to October.
2Black black
The hat has a swamp green color. It differs in a semicircular shape, wrapped around the edges. The pulp has a delicate yellow color. The leg is short, full, pale yellow, if the mushroom is broken, caustic juice is released. You can eat after salting.
Distributed in coniferous forests, from June to October.
3Twinkle pink
In early mushrooms, the shape of the cap is convex, with the edges wrapped to the bottom. The old ones are flatter, the edges are even, concave in the middle. The skin is covered with thin villi, has a pale pink or almost whitish color. The pulp is white, dense, exudes burning juice when broken. The leg is firm, pale pink, narrowed to the top. Eat in a salted form.
The capella grows in birch and mixed forests. Collect should be from June to October.
4Howler
The hat is convex, gray-brown, covered with a whitish coating. The flesh has a pale white color, the smell is earthy. The leg is short, cream-colored. Before meals - boil for 25-30 minutes.
Grows in mixed forests. You can collect from March to April.
5 red
In this mushroom, the shape of the hat is curved, has a concave part in the middle. The structure is fragile, brittle. The color of the hat is brown, with a glossy surface. The lower part is light brown.The flesh tastes bitter. Leg is medium in length, brownish in color. This mushroom can be eaten after salting.
It occurs under beech or oak from June to October.
6 White headband
The hat is light, completely covers the leg. At the end of the cap there is a brown tubercle. The surface is covered with brownish scales. The pulp is white. The leg is long, white. The cops need to be prepared in the first 2 hours after cutting, after boiling.
You can find it in loose soil in pastures and meadows. It grows from June to October.
7 Valuy
The hat is round in young mushrooms, but with age it becomes flat. Color varies from yellow to brown. The surface of the shaft is shiny and slightly slippery, if touched. The pulp is light, quite fragile, bitter. The valuy has a barrel-shaped form at the leg, it is light, covered with brown spots. Before eating, the mushroom must be peeled, soaked in salted water or boiled for 15-30 minutes. Usually mushrooms are salted.
It grows in coniferous forests, found from June to October.
8 Serushka
The hat is semicircular, with a tubercle in the middle. The color of the mushroom varies from dark gray to brown with a purple tint. The pulp has a light color, it has a fruity smell. The leg is medium in height, hollow, has the same color as the hat. Mushrooms are soaked and salted.
It grows in clearings and forest edges. You can find from July to September.
9 Fiddle
These mushrooms have a wide, white hat, covered with small villi. The flesh of the violin is dense, solid, emits caustic juice. The leg is short, fleecy. Before salting, it is recommended to soak.
They grow in groups, under needles or birch. Harvested from July to October.
10Bitter
The hat has a bell-shaped form with the edges raised up. Outwardly resembles foxes, but differs in brown-red color. The surface is smooth, all in small villi. The color of the pulp is lighter than that of the hat, fragile, gives off caustic juice. Leg of medium length, reddish in color, covered with villi. The mushroom should also be soaked and salted.
Gather near conifers and birch groves. It is mainly found from July to October.
Marsupials
All mushrooms in which the spores are in a special bag (asuka) can be classified in this category. Therefore, the second name of this species of ascomycetes fungi. The bag of such mushrooms can be located both on the surface and inside the fruit body.
Many mushrooms of this species are conditionally edible. Among the absolutely edible can only be called black truffle.
The fruit body has an irregular tuberoid shape. The surface is coal-black, covered with numerous irregularities. If you press on the surface of the fungus, it changes color to rusty. The pulp has a light gray color in young mushrooms and dark brown or black-purple in old ones. Penetrated by white veins. It has a pronounced aroma and a pleasant taste.
Black truffle is considered a delicacy.
It grows in deciduous forests, at a depth of about half a meter. It is best to look for truffles from November to March.
Conditionally edible marsupials include:
1 Truffle white
Fruit bodies have an irregular shape, with numerous protrusions. The color ranges from light to yellowish. Old mushrooms are covered with reddish spots. The pulp is white, has a pronounced smell and nutty taste. When consumed, it needs additional cooking.
It is found among conifers in the cold season.
2 ordinary stitch
The hat is irregular in shape, dotted with numerous furrows. The color is most often brown, with a dark tint, but there are representatives of brighter colors. The pulp in its structure is quite brittle, it smells of fruit, it tastes good. The leg is full, bright.
Some authors attribute this mushroom to poisonous.
This mushroom should be boiled before eating, for 25-30 minutes. Most often, the line is dried.
It can be found in coniferous forests and under poplars. Fruits in April to June.
3 Edible Morel
The hat is round in shape, elongated at the end. Color may vary from yellowish to brown. The surface is uneven, covered with cells of different shapes and sizes. The pulp has a very brittle and delicate structure, it is cream-colored and tastes good. The leg is conical in shape. In young mushrooms, white, in older ones, the color becomes close to brown. Suitable for use after boiling or drying.
Grows in well-lit places, mainly in deciduous forests. It can be found in parks and apple orchards. You can collect from April to October.
What is the difference between morel and line - read here.
4 curly blade
The lobar fruits have an irregular shape, while the leg fuses with a hat. The foot is covered with small grooves. Fruits are usually light or cream in color. Eat after boiling.
It is advised to search in coniferous forests from July to October.
5Funny (donkey's ear)
The fruit body is a bowl with curved edges. The color may be dark orange or buffy yellow. Equipped with a barely noticeable false leg. Before use, boil for 20-30 minutes.
Distributed in deciduous forests from September to November. Mostly grows in moss or old wood.
Marsupials also include yeast, which is often used in confectionery.
It should be remembered that not all mushrooms are safe - there are many poisonous doubles, and without knowledge of the hallmarks it is difficult not to be mistaken. Therefore, it is better to eat only well-known edible mushrooms, use the advice of experienced mushroom pickers, and if in doubt, it is better not to take such a mushroom.