What family does the porcini mushroom belong to? White mushroom: varieties, places of growth. Beneficial properties of porcini mushrooms, vitamins and minerals

Porcini It is considered the king of mushrooms not only because of its impressive size, but also because of its taste and nutritional value. Another name for the porcini mushroom is boletus, less commonly, cow mushroom. It grows mainly in Eurasia and North America, and is sometimes found in Syria and Lebanon. The porcini mushroom can reach enormous sizes - caps up to 50 cm in diameter and legs up to 25 cm in height. So why is it called white? The fact is that, unlike other “black” mushrooms, it does not change its color when cut, cooked and dried. The rest of the mushrooms darken, turn brown or even turn black.

Porcini mushrooms are valued for their taste and nutritional properties. At proper preparation this is a real delicacy. This mushroom belongs to the first category mushrooms. This means that it is absorbed by the human body better than other mushrooms, and this is undoubtedly much more important than just the content of useful substances. But even with this porcini mushrooms Everything is fine. Porcini mushrooms contain more riboflavin than others, a substance responsible for the health and growth of nails, hair, skin and the health of the body as a whole. Riboflavin is especially important for maintaining normal thyroid function. Dried porcini mushrooms contain the alkaloid hercedine, which is used in the treatment of angina pectoris.

Porcini mushroom, like all mushrooms of the first category, is actively used in cooking, both fresh (fried, boiled) and dried, salted and pickled. Dishes made from porcini mushrooms can be prepared without additional (or after a very short - 10-15 minutes) boiling. Since porcini mushrooms do not darken when processed, they are often used in soups, where they provide a clear, clean broth.

If we talk about preparations for future use, then best method preserving porcini mushrooms - drying. It is in dried mushrooms that they are best preserved useful material. The collected mushrooms are cleared of soil and debris. For large mushrooms, the stems are separated from the caps; if the mushrooms are very small, they are left whole. You can dry porcini mushrooms in drying chambers or ovens. At the beginning of drying, a temperature of 50-60° is recommended, at the end - 70-80°. Mushrooms can be dried in dehydrators or ovens in 4-6 hours. Dried porcini mushrooms retain their taste and nutritional properties in the best way; they can be eaten as crackers without additional processing. A wonderful, aromatic mushroom soup can be cooked in winter by first soaking dried mushrooms in water for 20-25 minutes. Then boil a little in the same water, cut into the necessary pieces and add to the prepared dish. The water in which dried porcini mushrooms were soaked or boiled can be used for sauces.

In addition to drying, porcini mushrooms can be frozen (the second easiest method after drying for those who have freezers), as well as pickled and salted. Heat treatment of mushrooms for harvesting is, of course, good, but all the “salt” is in the fresh mushrooms. Their aroma and taste are much superior to pickled and salted mushrooms. There are many folk and original recipes for dishes made from fresh porcini mushrooms. In addition to Russian cuisine, porcini mushrooms are very popular in French and Italian cuisine.

Recipes for dishes with porcini mushrooms

Ingredients:
1 cup pearl barley,
2-3 potatoes,
2-3 carrots,
1-2 onions,
250-300 g of porcini mushrooms,
butter, sour cream,
herbs, seasonings and salt - to taste.

Preparation:
Pearl barley simmer for about 3-4 hours over low heat until the broth becomes thick. Cut the mushroom stems into slices and fry with onions over low heat. It is better to fry in a frying pan with thick walls to “simmer” the contents. Add some salt. 20 minutes before the end of cooking, add the grains cut into pieces. average size potatoes, carrots and mushroom caps. Then add the contents of the frying pan into the soup and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Add seasonings to taste. TO mushroom soup black allspice works well and Bay leaf. Add a spoon butter. Cover with a lid and let sit for 20-30 minutes. Serve the soup in deep bowls, adding a spoonful of sour cream and sprinkling with parsley and dill.

Ingredients:
approximately equal amounts of potatoes and porcini mushrooms,
butter, sour cream - to taste,
bay leaf, coriander, allspice - to taste.

Preparation:
Cut adult mushrooms (with slightly greened core) into cubes. Cut the potatoes into the same cubes. Place them in cold water, bring to a boil, add salt, add spices and cook until the potatoes are ready, plus another 10 minutes - the potatoes should soften a little. The resulting result in the form of a puree soup is served with pieces of butter and sour cream to taste. It is important to maintain strict minimalism in the recipe and not add onions or strong-smelling seasonings “for potatoes” or “for mushrooms”. What is important in this dish is the balance of mushroom and potato flavors.

Ingredients:
400 g finely chopped porcini mushrooms,
300-400 g chicken broth with rosemary, pepper or other spices,
50 g chopped nuts (hazelnuts or pecans)
50 g leeks,
2 tbsp. butter,
2 tbsp. rice flour,
1 tbsp. sherry (or other wine),
sour cream to taste.

Preparation:
Cook the mushrooms in the broth for 20-25 minutes, add the nuts and cook for another 15-20 minutes until the mushrooms soften. Cool and grind everything in a blender. Lightly fry the leeks in oil and add rice flour. Stirring constantly, add the chopped nut-mushroom mixture and sherry and simmer for 15-20 minutes. At this point, the dish can be cooled and stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 days to smooth out the flavor. Next, add sour cream and heat over low heat, avoiding boiling. Garnish with nuts before serving.

Ingredients:
100 g porcini mushrooms,
200 g chanterelles,
1 tbsp. garlic,
100 g fresh tomatoes,
2 tbsp. fresh basil,
3 tbsp. olive oil,
3 tbsp. lemon juice,
1 tbsp. wine vinegar,
parsley, dill - to taste.

Preparation:
Cut the mushrooms into cubes, the tomatoes into slices and remove the seeds. Preheat the oven, grease a baking sheet with olive oil, place mushrooms and garlic on it, stir and bake for 15-20 minutes until light brown. Let the mushrooms cool and mix with other ingredients.

Ingredients:
fresh porcini mushrooms,
flour,
olive oil.

Preparation:
Cut the mushrooms into slices and roll them in flour. To moisten the flour and crisp the mushrooms, dip each slice in cool water and fry in hot oil until golden brown. Dry the mushrooms in absorbent paper, add salt and serve hot.

Ingredients:
200 g dry white wine,
100 g Marsala wine,
200 g dried porcini mushrooms,
400-450 g of various cheeses (Parmesan, Fontina, Emmentaler),
2-3 tbsp. flour,
1 clove of garlic,
black pepper to taste.

Preparation:
Heat Marsala to a boil, pour over dried mushrooms and leave for an hour. Grind the cheeses and mix with flour. Rub an enamel saucepan or fondue pot with garlic, pour in white wine and place over low heat. When the wine is almost boiling, add the cheese in small portions, making sure it has time to melt before adding the next portion.

Squeeze the mushrooms from the wine and cut them into small pieces. Add mushrooms and freshly ground pepper to the fondue. Serve the fondue with several types of bread and sausages.

Good day, dear visitors of the project “Good IS!” ", section " "!

With this article, I will begin to publish information about mushrooms on the site, and I will start, perhaps, with one of the most famous edible mushrooms – porcini mushroom!

Porcini ( lat. Boletus edulis ) , or boletus - tubular edible mushroom of the genus Boletus (lat. Boletus), families Boletaceae (lat. Boletaceae).

Spreading

The porcini mushroom is widespread in forest zones all over the world, except Australia, mainly growing in birch, pine, oak and spruce forests.

The main areas of distribution of porcini mushrooms: almost all of Europe, and North and Central America, North and South Africa, in Asia it is known in Turkey, Transcaucasia, northern Mongolia, China, Japan, in all regions of Siberia and the Far East, sometimes it can be found in Syria and Lebanon on old oak stumps . IN South America(Uruguay) was introduced with plantings of mycorrhizal trees. Grows in Iceland and the British Isles.

The porcini mushroom is one of the species that penetrates the farthest into the Arctic zone; only a few boletus mushrooms go further north than it. In Russia it is found from the Kola Peninsula to the Caucasus and from the western borders to Chukotka, but is unevenly distributed. It is very rare in the tundra, known only in the mountain tundras of the Khibiny, Kamchatka and Chukotka; it is also rare in the forest-tundra, but in the northern taiga, directly adjacent to the forest-tundra, it can already be found very abundantly. The abundance of porcini mushroom decreases in the direction from west to east from the European part of Russia to Eastern Siberia, to Far East it can also occur abundantly. In the forest-steppe, its abundance decreases sharply, but the fungus completely disappears only when moving to the steppe zone. In mountain forests it is less common and usually less abundant than in lowland forests.

The porcini mushroom is considered a light-loving species, but in some forests it can also be found in heavily shaded places, under dense crowns. It has been established that in good years the number of mushrooms does not depend on illumination, and under unfavorable conditions (waterlogging of the soil, low daily temperature) mushrooms appear mainly in open, well-warmed areas.

The optimal fruiting temperature in July and August is 15-18°C, in September 8-10°C. Large differences in day and night temperatures and a large number of precipitation prevents the development of fruiting bodies. The optimal meteorological conditions for the mass appearance of porcini mushrooms are short-term thunderstorms and warm nights with fog.

The porcini mushroom is well adapted to any type of soil, except swampy and peaty, growing singly or in groups. It grows best in well-drained but not waterlogged soils.

Description of white mushroom

The cap of a mature porcini mushroom reaches a size of 7-30 cm in diameter (sometimes up to 50 cm), convex, in old mushrooms it is flat-convex, rarely spread out. The surface is smooth or wrinkled, may crack in dry weather, bare, may be thin-felt (especially at the edge), rarely fibrous-scaly. In wet weather the surface is slightly slimy, in dry weather it is matte or shiny.

The color of the skin is from red-brown to almost white, darkens with age, it can also be lemon-yellow, orange, purple tones, often the color is uneven, with light edges, sometimes with a narrow pure white or yellowish rim. The skin is adherent and does not separate from the pulp.

The pulp is strong, juicy-fleshy, fibrous in older specimens, white in young mushrooms, turns yellow with age, does not change color after cutting (a slight change in color to pink or blue is extremely rare), under the dark-colored skin there may be a layer of brown or red-brown shade. The taste is mild, weakly expressed, the smell of raw pulp is faintly distinguishable, a strong pleasant mushroom smell appears during cooking and especially during drying.

The leg is 8-25 cm tall (usually up to 12) and up to 7 cm thick (rarely 10 or more), massive, barrel-shaped or club-shaped, elongates with age and can become cylindrical, widened or narrowed in the middle, the base often remains thickened. The surface is whitish, brownish, sometimes reddish, and may have the same shade as the cap, but lighter. Covered with a mesh of white or lighter veins. The mesh is usually in the upper part of the leg, but it can also go down to the base; much less often it is absent or weakly expressed.

The tubular layer with a deep notch near the stem, easily separates from the flesh of the cap, is light, white in young mushrooms, later turns yellow, then acquires an olive-green color, very rarely at a young age it has a pinkish-red tint. The tubes are 1-4 cm long, the pores are small and round.

There are no remains of the bedspread.

Spore powder is olive-brown. Fusiform spores the average size- 15.5 × 5.5 µm, dimensions can vary quite a lot even for the same sample (11-17 × 4-5.5 µm), occasionally very elongated ones are found, up to 22 µm, but their width does not exceed the usual .

Cystids are found in large numbers in young mushrooms, mainly on the surface of the hymenophore (cheilocystids), standing in a palisade, forming a felt-like layer, which determines the white color of the young porous surface. After the pores open, the cystids are concentrated along the edges of the tubes. There are also cystids on the threads of the reticulate pattern of the stalk (caulocystids) and on the surface of the cap (pyleocystids).

Beneficial properties of porcini mushroom

The porcini mushroom is an edible mushroom, and in Eastern European countries it is considered one of the best mushrooms in taste, but there are some types of mushrooms that are somewhat similar in appearance to white ones, but in fact, they are not only inedible, but are also dangerous mushrooms, for example – satanic mushroom.

Popularly, the porcini mushroom is considered one of the so-called “noble mushrooms” and is called the “king of mushrooms.”

Porcini mushrooms found in spruce and birch forests are considered the most delicious. Porcini mushrooms collected in pine forests do not have a strong aroma and are distinguished by looser pulp.

Porcini mushroom is used in fresh (boiled and fried), dried and pickled forms. When dried, mushrooms do not darken and acquire a special smell. In the form of mushroom powder (dried and ground) used for dressing different dishes. In Italy, it is consumed raw in salads, seasoned with oil, spices, lemon juice and Parmesan cheese. Porcini mushroom sauces go well with rice and meat dishes.

In addition to its taste, the nutritional value of the mushroom is explained by its ability to stimulate the secretion of digestive juices. Studies have been carried out on the juice-containing properties of various mushrooms (white mushroom, boletus, boletus, oak, chanterelle), which showed that the white mushroom is the best stimulant of digestion, superior even to meat broth.

At the beginning of the 20th century, studies were conducted that showed that the protein of freshly prepared edible mushrooms is very difficult to digest, as it is enclosed in chitinous walls that are not affected by digestive enzymes. Later it was found that after drying, the protein becomes available to the digestive system, and up to 80% of the protein of dried porcini mushrooms is absorbed.

Types of porcini mushroom

White birch mushroom (Boletus form betulicolus) or Boletus edulis form betulicola . It is distinguished by its light to almost white cap color and its growth under birch trees.

. The edge of the cap is leathery and sharp. The cap is convex on top and brown in color. The tubular surface is light yellow or olive yellow. The length of the tube is 1-4 cm. The leg is dense, club-shaped, and has a mesh pattern in the lower part. The pulp is dense, white, does not change color when cut, and has a pleasant smell.

White pine mushroom (Boletus form pinophilus) , or variety boletus (Boletus edulis form pinicola) . This form has a large dark cap, sometimes with a purple tint. The flesh under the skin is brownish-red.

White mushroom dark bronze , or hornbeam (Boletus aereus or Boletus edulis form aereus) . A very dark-colored mushroom, almost black, grows in beech and oak forests. Found in Europe, more western and southern regions(from Spain to Western Ukraine) and in the USA.

White mushroom (Boletus reticulatus) or Boletus edulis form reticulatus . This form has a light-colored brownish or ocher cap and a short cylindrical stem, resembling a moss fly in appearance. Grows with beech and hornbeam in Europe, Transcaucasia, North America and North Africa. Occurs in June - September, not often and not abundantly.

. The oak form of the porcini mushroom is more heat-loving and is found en masse in summer in broad-leaved oak forests. The color of the cap is grayish-brown with whitish spots, the stem is quite long, thickened towards the base, the same color as the cap with a weak mesh along the entire length of the stem. In oak forests, a bronze form also grows with a finely wrinkled bronze-brown cap with a darker top, with a gray-fawn stem and an inconspicuous mesh pattern along almost the entire thin stem.

Record sizes

— In 1961, a white mushroom weighing more than 10 kg with a cap diameter of 58 cm was found, as reported by Moscow Radio on September 20, 1961.

— In 1964, a white mushroom weighing 6 kg 750 g was found near Vladimir (newspaper report “ Soviet Russia"July 28, 1964)

What to do with porcini mushrooms?

Porcini mushrooms can be:

- fry;
- dry;
- preserve;
- to freeze;
- cook;
- marinate.

Well, dear readers, now I believe that many of you who have not been on a mushroom hunt, i.e. mushroom hunter, now armed with knowledge about porcini mushrooms, and gathered for them. Right now there’s just a sea of them in the forest, I was there a couple of days ago, and I’m going again. But if you are going for mushrooms for the first time, then you may additionally need information about, which I recently published on the site in a previous article.

In general, good luck to you, and more edible and tasty mushrooms!

The porcini mushroom, which is also called boletus, belongs to the Boletaceae family. The porcini mushroom has a lot folk names. It is called belovik, bebik, belevik, cow-cow, zheltyak, medvezhanik, pechura, borovik, cow, cow, truthful, dear, undercow and other names. This is one of the most valuable mushrooms.

Appearance

The cap of the mushroom has an adherent skin; its color can range from brownish-red to almost white. With age, the color of the cap becomes darker.

Young boletus mushrooms have a convex cap, and as the mushroom ages it turns into a flat-convex one (rarely prostrate). The diameter of the cap can reach 10-25 centimeters. The surface of the cap can be both smooth and wrinkled. The tubular layer is 1-4 centimeters thick and has a notch near the stem. It is distinguished by its light color, the presence of small round pores and is easily separated from the pulp.

The stem of the mushroom is quite massive, at first it is club-shaped or barrel-shaped, but as it grows it becomes elongated. Its height is 10-20 centimeters, and its thickness is from 3 to 10 centimeters. The outside of the leg may be white, brownish, or less commonly reddish. Most often, on its surface there is a network of veins of a lighter shade.

The pulp of the porcini mushroom is fleshy and juicy; in young mushrooms it is white, in older mushrooms it is yellowish and fibrous.

The average weight of boletus is about 200 grams, but huge mushrooms weighing several kilograms can also be found.

Kinds

Depending on the type, porcini mushrooms differ in mycorrhiza, fruiting season, growth characteristics and other characteristics. There are four independent types of boletus and many forms.

The types of porcini mushroom are:

Spruce - the most common, with an elongated stem and a brown cap, grows in the spruce forest, fruiting bodies appear from June to October.
Birch - a lighter (almost white) cap, distinguished by its growth under birch trees.
Oak - brown caps with a grayish tint, mushrooms with loose flesh, grow in oak forests.
Pine - a large cap of a dark color, often with a purple tint.

Among these species there are subspecies, the most common of which are:

Maiden;
Polish;
Reticulate;
Beautiful.

Porcini mushrooms have the following forms:

early (appears in May),
late (begins to appear in August),
smooth-legged (without meshes on the legs),
pink-footed,
lemon yellow
olive brown,
special (purple hats),
bluish (when pressure is applied to the tubular layer, a slow bluish appearance appears),
orange-red,
light bronze,
dark bronze,
false purple,
Arctic,
mesh.

Where does it grow

White mushroom is widespread in Russia. It grows well on sandy, loamy or sandy loam soil, that is, on soils that drain well and are not waterlogged.

Porcini mushrooms are found on all continents of the northern hemisphere.

Fungi typically form mycorrhizae with trees such as oak, pine, spruce and birch.

You can find porcini mushrooms in coniferous, mixed and deciduous forests. In summer it is found in young groves and plantings, and in autumn - deep in forests, next to abandoned roads, paths and old trees.

Porcini mushrooms do not like damp places, but prefer the presence of lichen or moss cover. Most often, boletus mushrooms grow in forests where the trees are more than 20 years old.

It is believed that boletus mushrooms love light, but mushrooms can often be found in a very dark place. If the year is fruitful, then the amount of light does not affect the porcini mushroom, and in years when unfavorable conditions prevent a large harvest (for example, heavy rainfall, low temperatures at night), many boletus mushrooms can be found on open areas, which warm up well.

How to find in the forest

You can go into the forest for porcini mushrooms as early as June and look for boletus mushrooms until mid-September.

Early forms of boletus may appear in early May, and in warm climates, fruiting bodies appear not only in September, but also in October. You can find porcini mushrooms after rain, but boletus mushrooms are often hidden from the eyes of mushroom pickers in fallen leaves and mosses. You can find porcini mushrooms in damp, warm places and on illuminated lawns warmed by the sun.

If you find a boletus and have already put it in a basket, do not rush to leave, but rather carefully examine everything around, because such mushrooms very often grow together with a “family” of up to 20-40 pieces.

Carefully inspect areas near spruce, pine, oak, birch and hornbeam trees. Anthills and red fly agarics can also tell you about the close proximity of boletus mushrooms. These are frequent companions of the porcini mushroom.

Watch the video to see how porcini mushrooms grow in families. It is extremely rare to find such a quantity of porcini mushrooms in a small area.

Features of collection

Fruiting of porcini mushrooms is divided into three stages:

Rarely and singly they are found already at the end of June (they are called spikeworts).
The second stage is the mushroom harvest in mid-July (such porcini mushrooms are called stubble mushrooms).
Mushrooms also appear en masse towards the end of August and early September (these mushrooms are deciduous).

The optimal temperature for the appearance of boletus mushrooms in summer is +15+18 degrees, in autumn - +8+10 degrees. Both significant precipitation and night/day temperature changes prevent the development of porcini mushroom. The most favorable conditions for the appearance of fruiting bodies are short thunderstorms, warm nights and fog in the morning.

How to choose and where to buy

You can buy porcini mushrooms in stores, markets, and also from mushroom pickers.
Try not to buy mushrooms in a dubious place, for example, near the road, because you will not be sure where they were collected and whether they contain harmful substances.
When buying boletus mushrooms, inspect the cap, stem, plates, skin and pulp.
If you notice wrinkles, suspicious plaque or mold, postpone your purchase.
Fresh mushrooms are distinguished by their smoothness, uniformity inside, and tight fit of the cap to the stem.
Smell the mushrooms - they should not have an unpleasant odor.

Characteristics

Porcini mushroom is one of the best mushrooms eaten.
The most massive growth of mushrooms in temperate climates is observed in August.
Boletus mushrooms have the property of stimulating digestion.
Also, the substances contained in the porcini mushroom have antitumor properties.

Nutritional value and calorie content

In 100 gr. fresh mushroom contains:

34 kcal;
3.7 g protein;
1.1 g carbohydrates;
1.7 g fat.

Chemical composition

The composition of the porcini mushroom is quite complex and provides it with healing properties.

The fruiting bodies contain a lot of:

Belkov
Polyunsaturated fatty acids
Dietary fiber
Polysaccharides
Lecithin
Vitamins (PP, carotene, C, B1, D, E, B9, PP, B2, B6)
Mineral salts (sodium, calcium, potassium, sulfur, zinc, phosphorus, iron, etc.)
Antioxidants and other active substances.

One of the alkaloids of the porcini mushroom is hercedin, known for its anticancer effect and ability to resist angina pectoris. This substance reduces heart pain and strengthens the immune system.

Beneficial features

Porcini mushrooms have the following medicinal properties:

Pain reliever;
Bactericidal;
Tonic;
Antitumor;
General strengthening;
Wound healing;
Antifungal;
Anti-inflammatory;
Antiviral.

In addition, they affect the body in the following ways:

Dilatation of blood vessels;
Decreased blood clotting rate;
Cleansing blood vessels from plaques in atherosclerosis;
Blood thinning;
Reduced blood pressure;
Reducing pain during angina pectoris;
Restoration of impaired metabolic processes;
Removal of harmful substances, for example, carcinogens and heavy metal salts;
Improved digestion.

Harm

You should not eat porcini mushrooms if:

Acute diseases of the digestive system
Gout
Under 7 years of age

Mushrooms take a long time to digest, so it is recommended to eat them in small quantities, supplemented with vegetables.

Since any mushrooms absorb substances from the soil, you cannot collect porcini mushrooms in industrial areas and near highways.

Application

In cooking

The fruiting bodies of the porcini mushroom have very high nutritional and taste qualities.
These mushrooms have been used in cooking since ancient times.
They do not need to be boiled first.
You can use the mushroom fresh, adding it to first and second courses.
Porcini mushrooms are also dried, salted, pickled and frozen.

Prepared with porcini mushrooms:

snacks;
soups;
pie fillings;
salads;
mushroom caviar;
second courses;
casseroles;
sauces (go great with rice and meat).

How to clean

Before cleaning, soak the mushrooms for about an hour. cold water, this way you will partially get rid of forest debris. When catching mushrooms from the water, clean them of contaminants and cut off dark areas. When cutting mushrooms in half (small) or into several pieces (large), check that they are clean inside.

Dried

The maximum beneficial properties are preserved in dried mushrooms, which is why this form of porcini mushroom is most often used in the treatment and prevention of many diseases.

Dried mushroom powder is added to various ready-made dishes.

When dried, porcini mushrooms do not lose their color and aroma. Such mushrooms can be stored for a very long time, and their nutritional value surpasses all other methods of preparing boletus mushrooms.

The calorie content of dried mushrooms is higher than that of fresh ones - 100 grams of mushrooms contain about 282 kcal.

Dried porcini mushrooms are very healthy. Of these, up to 80% of proteins are absorbed by the body. Such mushrooms are rich in riboflavin, carotene, vitamins D, B1 and C. Dried mushrooms also contain a lot of hercedin and other beneficial substances that give dried boletus mushrooms antitumor properties and the ability to treat angina pectoris.

Dried mushrooms are hygroscopic, so they require storage in a dry and ventilated place where there are no temperature changes, otherwise there is a risk of getting a damp and moldy product. It is best to place such mushrooms in cardboard containers or paper bags.

Dry mushrooms should not be stored together with pickles, fermented foods, nuts, fruits and fresh vegetables. Damp mushrooms need to be cleaned of spoiled ones and then dried.

Dried porcini mushrooms can be stored for up to a year, but they can be placed in the freezer, which will extend this period. The use of dry mushrooms includes boiling, stewing, frying, adding to soups, sauces, main courses, and fillings.

You can dry porcini mushroom:

In the microwave. After placing the chopped mushrooms on a dish, set the power from 100 to 180 W. Turn on the cooking mode for 20 minutes, then ventilate the oven for 5 minutes and repeat cooking two or three times.
In the oven. Place the chopped mushrooms on parchment and dry them with the oven door slightly open at +50 degrees for about 6-7 hours.

Please note that in the second case the oven door must be slightly open. When the door is closed, the mushrooms will give out juice and it will not be possible to dry them properly.

Another way is to dry it over the hob. For all the details, see the following video.

Pickled

To marinate mushrooms you will need:

2 kg fresh boletus
500 ml water
120 ml 6% vinegar
10 bay leaves
Head onions
1/2 tsp. spoons of black peppercorns
2 table. spoons of sugar
4 table. spoons of salt
Cloves and pepper

After cleaning, washing and cutting the mushrooms into equal parts, boil them in water to which a bay leaf has been added for about half an hour. After placing the mushrooms in a colander, add spices, sugar and salt to the remaining broth. Put the broth on the fire, and when it boils, add vinegar and return the mushrooms. Cook for another 10 minutes, remembering to remove the foam. In prepared jars (scalded), place onion, cut into rings, at the bottom, and then mushrooms. Fill the containers with marinade, close the lids and store in the refrigerator.

You can watch the recipe for pickled porcini mushrooms in the following video.

Fried

When the water boils, cook the porcini mushroom for about 20 minutes. After placing them in a colander, let the liquid drain from the mushrooms, and then place the mushrooms in a heated frying pan. You can pre-sauté the onion. You need to fry the boletus mushrooms for about 15 minutes.

Frozen and how to freeze

Porcini mushrooms tolerate freezing well and, when frozen, are used to prepare soups, caviar, pies and other dishes. There is no need to defrost the mushrooms at all. They are poured into a frying pan and kept covered until they are defrosted.

How to freeze

There are several ways to freeze boletus mushrooms:

Peel and chop the washed fresh mushrooms, then place in a colander or sieve, place in bags or containers and place in the freezer.
First boil the mushrooms in unsalted water for 5 minutes. After draining the water and keeping the mushrooms on a sieve, wait until they are completely cooled and place them in the freezer.
Pre-fry the mushrooms in vegetable oil. The mushrooms in the frying pan will lose excess moisture and turn golden brown, then you need to wait for them to cool, put them in trays or bags and send them to freeze.
Pre-fry the mushrooms in the oven. No oil, salt or other ingredients are needed for frying on a baking sheet.

Some more tips for freezing porcini mushrooms:

Cut the mushrooms into slices about 5 mm thick.
Make sure the mushrooms are well dried before placing them in the freezer. If you freeze them wet, the mushrooms will stick together and turn into an icy lump, which will affect their aroma and taste.
To avoid having to freeze mushrooms several times, immediately lay them out in portions - in each container or each bag, put mushrooms for one preparation.
Lay out the mushrooms in a not very thick layer.
If you freeze mushrooms in a container other than a bag, fill it completely to leave a minimum of air inside.
Do not store porcini mushrooms near frozen fish or meat.
Mushrooms can be stored for up to a year. The defrosted product is used immediately.

Boiled and how to cook

Before cooking, boletus mushrooms are cleaned and washed well. Then they are placed in a saucepan and filled with water, which will completely cover the mushrooms.

How long to cook porcini mushroom? Approximately 35-40 minutes, removing foam periodically.

If the mushrooms are dried, then first they are soaked for two to three hours, taking a glass of water for each handful of raw materials, and then boiled for about 20 minutes. In a double boiler and multicooker (baking mode), boil the boletus mushrooms for about 40 minutes.

Grilled mushrooms marinated in parsley

You will need:

600 grams of porcini mushrooms
Two or three sprigs of parsley and thyme
50 ml olive oil
20 ml lemon juice
2 cloves garlic
Pepper and salt
100 g lettuce leaves

Fry peeled and sliced mushrooms in olive oil (20 ml) on a grill pan on both sides. Place the fried mushrooms in a container, where you add the rest of the ol. oils, thyme and parsley (chopped), garlic (chopped), lemon juice, pepper and salt to taste. Leave the mushrooms to marinate for two hours, and then serve, adding a green salad to the dish.

Salad

Take:

120 g green salad
300 g porcini mushrooms
100 g tomatoes
50 ml olive oil
30 g butter
80 g parmesan
Garlic clove
sprig of thyme

Wash and dry the lettuce leaves, tear them with your hands, and season with olive oil. oil, add tomatoes cut into slices. Wash the peeled mushrooms and boil for 5 minutes in salted water, then cut into cubes and fry to drain. oil, adding garlic and thyme to the pan. Add the mushrooms to the salad and tomatoes, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese before serving.

Cream soup

For creamy cream soup you will need:

150 grams of fresh porcini mushrooms, oyster mushrooms and champignons
200 g potatoes
100 g onions
200 ml cream
40 ml vegetable oil
1 liter of water
Garlic clove
Pepper and salt

Peeled potatoes, cut into cubes, place in a saucepan with vegetable oil and fry a little. Add peeled and chopped onions to the potatoes. After 5 minutes, add mushrooms and a clove of garlic, cut into large pieces, into the saucepan. After frying for another 5 minutes, add water and boil for 15 minutes. Next, you need to grind the dish with a blender, return it to the saucepan, add salt, pepper and cream to the soup, and then bring to a boil.

Baked mushrooms with cheese sauce

Take:

200 grams of porcini mushrooms
150 g cheese
4 egg yolks
2 sprigs thyme
1 sprig green basil
Garlic clove
50 ml olives oils
Pepper and salt

Boil the washed, peeled mushrooms in water with salt until tender (10-15 minutes), then cut into thin slices and fry for about 1 minute. oil, adding thyme and garlic to the pan. First place the mushrooms in the baking dish, and then the cheese mixed with the yolks. Bake everything in the oven until golden brown. To serve, garnish with basil.

In medicine

Porcini mushroom can be used in the treatment of:

diseases of the cardiovascular system, for example, angina pectoris and hypertension;
intestinal infections;
impotence;
weakened state;
headaches;
pulmonary tuberculosis;
vein diseases;
tumors of the female reproductive system.

Consumption of porcini mushroom is a good prevention of the development of malignant tumors, stroke and heart attack. This mushroom is especially recommended during the recovery period after surgery, fatigue or illness.

Extract

Using an aqueous extract of porcini mushrooms, applied externally, you can treat various skin diseases, such as ulcers, frostbite, burns and others. This extract is also good for skin care - when you treat your face with it, you will notice that the skin cleanses, becomes velvety, and wrinkles are smoothed out.

Powder

Powder from dry porcini mushrooms effectively copes with long-term non-healing wounds, bedsores, ulcers and similar skin problems. The affected areas should be sprinkled with powder several times a day until recovery.

To strengthen the body

To get a remedy from porcini mushroom that helps with weakening of the body and sexual disorders, take 500 grams of dried raw material and grind it into powder. Add sugar (50 grams) and vodka (30 ml) to the mushrooms, dilute with a little water. This product should be stored in the refrigerator. It is recommended to take it before meals twice a day - at morning time and in the evening. A single serving of the mixture is a tablespoon.

Alcohol tincture

It is effective for all diseases mentioned above.

Preparation:

The caps of porcini mushrooms need to be washed and dried, and then placed in a liter jar, filling it to the top.
Mushrooms are poured with vodka, tightly closed and left for 14 days in a dark place.
The product is filtered and squeezed out, after which it is stored in the refrigerator.

To take this tincture, you need to dilute one teaspoon of it in cold boiled water. Take before meals twice daily for 1-3 months. If you need to treat thrombophlebitis or varicose veins, the tincture can also be rubbed into problem areas.

How to grow

Boletus mushrooms are not grown commercially. Such mushrooms are grown only by amateurs in their garden plots with coniferous and deciduous trees or in a designated area of the forest.

To grow porcini mushroom, you need to create conditions in which mycorrhiza forms. It is optimal to grow mushrooms in young plantings and groves (5-10 year old trees) with oak, spruce, pine or birch trees:

To get the spores, you will need overripe mushrooms. They are placed in water for a day, and after mixing and filtering, the resulting liquid with spores is watered over the areas under the selected trees. The harvest with this cultivation will appear in the second or third year. Also, for sowing, you can remove the tubular layer from mature boletus mushrooms, dry it a little and place it in the soil in the form of small pieces.
Another way to grow porcini mushrooms is to use soil containing mycelium taken from the forest. Having found a boletus in the forest, you need to use a sharp knife to cut a square of soil around it with a side of 20-30 centimeters and remove it to a depth of 10-15 centimeters. You can also purchase mycelium that has been grown artificially. In both cases, you need to remove a layer of soil from the site, fill the hole with several layers of humus, interspersing them with soil (horse manure, rotten oak wood and fallen oak leaves are used for humus). The mycelium or soil with mycelium is placed on a bed at a depth of 5-7 cm, after which it is watered and covered with leaves.

Watch the following video about growing porcini mushrooms at home.

Mushrooms are allowed to be eaten during Lent, so in Catholic countries, dishes with mushrooms are more in demand than in Protestant countries.
In Italy, it is prohibited to independently collect porcini mushrooms in the forest; to do this, you need to obtain a special permit.
In 1961, a boletus was found that weighed more than 10 kg. The diameter of his cap was 58 centimeters.

The porcini mushroom is considered the king of mushrooms not only because of its impressive size, but also because of its taste and nutritional value. Another name for the porcini mushroom is boletus, less commonly, cow mushroom. It grows mainly in Eurasia and North America, and is sometimes found in Syria and Lebanon.

The porcini mushroom can reach enormous sizes - caps up to 50 cm in diameter and legs up to 25 cm in height. So why is it called white? The fact is that, unlike other “black” mushrooms, it does not change its color when cut, cooked and dried. The rest of the mushrooms darken, turn brown or even turn black.

Porcini mushrooms are valued for their taste and nutritional properties. When properly prepared, porcini mushroom is a real delicacy.

This mushroom belongs to the first category mushrooms. This means that it is absorbed by the human body better than other mushrooms, and this is undoubtedly much more important than just the content of useful substances. But porcini mushrooms are fine with this too.

Porcini mushrooms contain more riboflavin than others, a substance responsible for the health and growth of nails, hair, skin and the health of the body as a whole. Riboflavin is especially important for maintaining normal thyroid function.

Dried porcini mushrooms contain the alkaloid hercedine, which is used in the treatment of angina pectoris.

In Russian forests, the porcini mushroom is found frequently, in some places even abundantly. It grows mainly in birch, pine, oak and hornbeam forests and is very fond of sandy soil in pine forests. Grows in groups or singly.

According to the place of growth, the porcini mushroom is divided into:

White birch mushroom

It is distinguished by its light-colored cap, sometimes almost white. The mushroom grows in birch groves, on forest edges, along forest roads, but always under birch trees.

The first mushrooms appear when the rye begins to spike, so in some areas of central Russia they are also called spikelets.

The first mushrooms usually stand alone among the young grass; from mid-summer they are found in groups. The stem of the mushroom is thick and short.

White pine mushroom

Other names for this mushroom: pine, boletus.

Habitat: pine porcini mushroom, as its name suggests, grows almost exclusively under pine trees, loves white moss and sandy soils, and is found quite often.

There are two main “layers” of these mushrooms: the first in June, and then the second, more abundant one in the fall.

Spruce porcini mushroom

Habitat: spruce porcini mushroom grows in spruce and mixed with spruce forests, singly or in small groups, from July to October. The time of main growth is from the end of August. Its cap rarely reaches a diameter of 20 cm. The surface of the mushroom cap is usually uneven, lumpy, unevenly colored (there are darker and lighter areas), the color of the cap is brownish or brownish-brownish.
The tubular layer is white when young and turns yellow in adulthood. Pulp: dense, white, with a pleasant mushroom smell and sweetish taste, does not change color when broken.
Olive spore powder. Leg: relatively long, up to 18 cm, strong. Young mushrooms have an impressive thickening at the base; sometimes the stem is very deeply immersed in the soft forest floor; the stem has a pattern in the form of a light mesh.

White oak mushroom

The earliest type of porcini mushroom appears in May.

The cap of the white oak mushroom is initially grayish, later brown, light coffee-colored, smooth or wrinkled, gently velvety.

The mushroom bears fruit in layers until October. Loves deciduous forests with oaks and beeches, as well as hornbeams, lindens, and in the south - edible chestnuts.

Prefers a warm climate, more often found in mountainous and hilly areas.

White mushroom reticulate

The cap is initially hemispherical, later strongly convex, with a diameter of 6-30 cm. The skin is light brown, matte, velvety, dry, and with age it can become covered with a network of cracks. The pulp is dense and fleshy, white, does not change when cut, and may acquire a yellowish tint under the tubes.
It has a mushroom smell and a sweet or nutty taste. The leg is thick, fleshy, narrower in the upper part, brownish or brownish in color, covered with a large mesh pattern of lighter veins.
It often grows in forests with beech and hornbeam trees. Found in Transcaucasia, Europe, North Africa and North America. Season from June to September, not often and not abundantly.

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The mass collection of porcini mushrooms in the European part of Russia begins in the second half of August and lasts until the first half of September, however, porcini mushrooms can be found at other times. Usually, porcini mushrooms are collected while they are not too large (with caps 5-10 cm in diameter).

If we talk about preparations for future use, the best method for preserving porcini mushrooms is drying. It is in dried mushrooms that nutrients are best preserved. The collected mushrooms are cleared of soil and debris. For large mushrooms, the stems are separated from the caps; if the mushrooms are very small, they are left whole.

You can dry porcini mushrooms in drying chambers or ovens. At the beginning of drying, a temperature of 50-60° is recommended, at the end - 70-80°. Mushrooms can be dried in dehydrators or ovens in 4-6 hours. Dried porcini mushrooms retain their taste and nutritional properties in the best way; they can be eaten as crackers without additional processing.

A wonderful, aromatic mushroom soup can be cooked in winter by first soaking dried mushrooms in water for 20-25 minutes. Then boil a little in the same water, cut into the necessary pieces and add to the prepared dish. The water in which dried porcini mushrooms were soaked or boiled can be used for sauces.

Recipes for dishes with porcini mushrooms

Mushroom soup (Russian folk recipe)

Ingredients:
1 cup pearl barley,
2-3 potatoes,
2-3 carrots,
1-2 onions,
250-300 g of porcini mushrooms,
butter, sour cream,
herbs, seasonings and salt - to taste.

Preparation:
Cook pearl barley for about 3-4 hours over low heat until the broth becomes thick. Cut the mushroom stems into slices and fry with onions over low heat. It is better to fry in a frying pan with thick walls to “simmer” the contents. Add some salt. 20 minutes before the end of cooking the cereal, add potatoes, carrots and mushroom caps cut into medium-sized pieces. Then add the contents of the frying pan into the soup and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Add seasonings to taste. Black allspice and bay leaves go well with mushroom soup. Add a spoonful of butter. Cover with a lid and let sit for 20-30 minutes. Serve the soup in deep bowls, adding a spoonful of sour cream and sprinkling with parsley and dill.

Cream soup with porcini mushrooms and champignons

Preparation:
Thaw white mushrooms and cut into pieces.

Chop the leeks and fry in half the heated olive oil in a saucepan until golden color. Add porcini mushrooms and cook, stirring, for 6-7 minutes.
Cut the champignons into slices and fry separately in the remaining olive oil for 5-6 minutes.
Pour 1 liter of water into the pan with porcini mushrooms, add half the champignons and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. Puree the soup in a blender, return to the pan, and bring to a boil. Add cream, salt, pepper and cook for another 4 minutes. Pour into plates and garnish with remaining champignons.

“Gribnitsa” (an old Russian recipe)

Ingredients:
approximately equal amounts of potatoes and porcini mushrooms,
butter, sour cream - to taste,
bay leaf, coriander, allspice - to taste.

Walnut and mushroom soup (Welsh recipe)

Ingredients:

Stirring constantly, add the chopped nut-mushroom mixture and sherry and simmer for 15-20 minutes. At this point, the dish can be cooled and stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 days to smooth out the flavor. Next, add sour cream and heat over low heat, avoiding boiling. Before serving, decorate with nuts or herbs.

Alpine mushroom salad

Ingredients:

100 g porcini mushrooms,
200 g chanterelles,
1 tbsp. garlic,
100 g fresh tomatoes,
2 tbsp. fresh basil,
3 tbsp. olive oil,
3 tbsp. lemon juice,
1 tbsp. wine vinegar,
parsley, dill - to taste.

Crispy porcini mushrooms Italian style

Ingredients:

fresh porcini mushrooms, flour, olive oil, salt.

Preparation:
Cut large mushrooms into slices, and small ones can be whole. Roll them in flour.

To moisten the flour and crisp the mushrooms, dip each slice in cool water and fry in hot oil until golden brown.

Dry the mushrooms in absorbent paper, add salt and serve hot.

Mushroom fondue Italian style

Ingredients:

200 g dry white wine,
100 g Marsala wine,
200 g dried porcini mushrooms,
400-450 g of various cheeses (Parmesan, Fontina, Emmentaler),
2-3 tbsp. flour,
1 clove of garlic,
black pepper to taste.

Squeeze the mushrooms from the wine and cut them into small pieces. Add mushrooms and freshly ground pepper to the fondue. Serve the fondue with several types of bread and sausages.

How to fry porcini mushrooms with onions

Ingredients: 2 onions, 300-500 g mushrooms, black pepper, salt, 3 tbsp. spoons of vegetable oil.

Wash the sorted mushrooms, pour boiling water over them and cut into slices along the stem. Then salt and pepper them. Place the mushrooms in a heated frying pan with vegetable oil. Fry them for 10-15 minutes, stirring gently. Meanwhile, fry the onion sliced into rings until golden brown in a separate frying pan. Mix fried porcini mushrooms with fried onions and serve.

How to fry porcini mushrooms with sour cream

Ingredients: 1 teaspoon of flour, 0.5 cups of sour cream, 300-400 g of porcini mushrooms, 3 tbsp. spoons of vegetable oil.

Fry the mushrooms as in the recipe with onions, and when the mushrooms turn golden, add flour and sour cream to the pan with the mushrooms and stir. Bring the mushrooms with sour cream to a boil and fry over low heat, stirring, for another 5-7 minutes.

How to dry porcini mushrooms

To do this, the mushrooms are not washed, but only cleaned of debris and cut lengthwise into two or more parts (this depends on the size of the mushroom). Dry in the oven on a wire rack at a temperature of 50–70 degrees for 7–12 hours. They should be stored in a dry place in a tightly closed container. Dried porcini mushrooms retain their taste and nutritional properties in the best way; they can be eaten as crackers without additional processing.

The biggest advantage of dried porcini mushroom is that it can be cooked all year round, namely: cook soups, fry, use as a filling for pies. Since when dried, the porcini mushroom does not lose its beneficial properties and unique aroma.

For soups, dried mushrooms are soaked in warm water, washed and soaked in a second water until completely swollen. After this, the mushrooms are cut into small pieces, and the water is used for broth.

How to pickle porcini mushrooms

Ingredients: 1.5 kg of porcini mushrooms; 1 liter of water; 1.5 - 2 tbsp salt; 1 tbsp. spoon of granulated sugar; 2-3 bay leaves; 4-6 peas of allspice; 1 teaspoon – 70-80 percent vinegar essence; a little clove.

Cook the washed porcini mushrooms in a saucepan for about 15-20 minutes. Drain the water. Pour boiling marinade of water, salt, sugar and vinegar over the mushrooms. Cook the mushrooms in the marinade for another 3-5 minutes.

Add black pepper - peas, bay leaf, cloves - to a dry, prepared, sterilized jar. You can add garlic, basil, parsley and other spices and herbs.

Carefully transfer the mushrooms into a jar and pour in the marinade, and close the jar tightly.

How long to cook porcini mushrooms

Fresh porcini mushrooms are cooked for 15-20 minutes until tender. Dried porcini mushrooms must be soaked in cold water for several hours before cooking, and then cooked until they settle. Place frozen mushrooms in boiling water and cook for 20 minutes.

Calorie content and nutritional value of porcini mushrooms

The calorie content of porcini mushrooms is 34 kcal. The nutritional value porcini mushrooms: proteins - 3.7 g, fats - 1.7 g, carbohydrates - 1.1 g

All fans of mushroom growing probably know what a porcini mushroom looks like, but for those who do not know how to distinguish edible from inedible, this article will be useful, which describes the porcini mushroom in detail, provides its photos and main types.

Using the information from this article, you will learn to distinguish edible mushrooms from false ones, learn about the main types and characteristics of porcini mushrooms, and learn where and when it is best to collect them.

What does a porcini mushroom look like?

Porcini mushrooms are considered the most delicious and aromatic, in addition they also have high nutritional qualities. This favorite of mushroom pickers is easily recognized by its large, fleshy cap and thick stem (Figure 1).

Note: Depending on the age and place of growth, the color of the cap can vary from light, yellowish to dark brown. The surface of the cap is pleasant to the touch; its upper skin is tightly attached to the pulp, so it is quite difficult to separate it.

In dry weather, the cap dries out, becoming covered with a network of deep wrinkles, and during rain, a thin layer of mucus forms on it.

Figure 1. Appearance of boletus mushrooms depending on age

A ripened specimen has dense, juicy white pulp, which with age becomes fibrous and acquires a yellowish tint. A distinctive feature is its barrel- or club-shaped leg, which becomes cylindrical as it matures. As a rule, at the base of the cap, the stem is covered with a network of light veins that almost merge with the main background of the skin. In this case, the leathery ring on the leg is missing.

You will find collection tips in the video.

What are the types?

Among the wide variety of porcini mushrooms, both edible and poisonous species. Experienced mushroom pickers are well aware of these edible species(Figure 2):

Dark bronze;
Summer white;
Birch;
Borovik;
Dubovik;
White pine mushroom.

The most popular types of porcini mushrooms with photos and descriptions will be given below.

Characteristic

Experienced mushroom pickers know what a porcini mushroom looks like, but for beginners in this business it makes sense to give detailed description and external features of each type.

Dark bronze gets its name from the color of the cap, which in a young specimen has a dark chestnut tint, changing with age to bright chestnut or copper brown. The skin of the cap is never slimy, even in damp weather.

Note: The leg when young is painted in pale pink tones, when mature it darkens to wine pink and pink-brown shades.

The flesh of the cap of young specimens has the same wine shades, the flesh of the leg darkens slightly when cut, but does not turn blue, it has a pleasant mushroom smell and a sweetish taste.

Cap color summer look has many shades: from coffee to ocher, sometimes with light spots. The hat itself is soft suede to the touch; when it dries, it becomes covered with deep cracks, forming a mesh pattern on the surface. The leg is light brown, light coffee in color with a brownish mesh pattern at the bottom, fluffy and white at the base. The flesh of the leg does not change color when cut and remains creamy (white). It has a pleasant aroma and sweetish taste.

Birch has a smooth cap of yellow-brown, often uneven color, which becomes slimy in rainy weather and becomes dull when dry. The skin of the cap is firmly attached to the flesh, so it is impossible to remove it. The dense leg is fleshy, decorated with a pale mesh pattern in its upper part, and does not change color when pressed. The pulp is white, juicy, fleshy, has a pleasant smell and sweet taste.

Figure 2. Main types of porcini mushrooms: 1 - dark bronze, 2 - birch, 3 - boletus, 4 - pine

The boletus is distinguished by a bare, sometimes thin felt cap, the color of which can vary from almost white to brown.

Note: In damp weather it becomes covered with a thin layer of mucus, in dry weather it becomes dull or shiny. The base of the leg always remains thickened, and its general color can match the color of the cap, being only a shade lighter.

In addition, in its upper part it has a clearly defined mesh. The boletus pulp is strong, fleshy, and does not change when cut. In its raw form, boletus does not have a pronounced specific odor, which only appears when dried and cooked. The taste is also weakly expressed.

Dubovik has an unevenly colored velvety cap that is sticky in wet weather. Within one cap, different shades can be combined: from yellow-brown to brown-gray. The surface skin of the oak tree is not removed. The leg bears a brownish-red mesh pattern with elongated loops on a general yellow-orange background. You can often see red spots on the middle part of the leg and green spots at its base. The pulp is fleshy, yellowish in color, acquiring a bright blue-green hue when cut, which gradually turns black. Dubovik has neither a special smell nor an unusual taste.

The thick and short pine-like stem is crowned with a cap, which can be either smooth or scaly, wrinkled or lumpy, becoming slightly slimy in wet weather and matte in dry weather. The color of the cap ranges from dark brown to chocolate brown with a purple tint. Usually the cap is lighter around the edge (from pink to white), the skin is not removed from it. The leg is covered with a reddish mesh, clearly visible in the upper part. The pulp is juicy, white, pinkish under the skin of the cap, has a pleasant mushroom smell or resembles the smell of a toasted nut. When cooked, the sweetish taste is slightly pronounced.

Peculiarities

Porcini mushrooms are quite widespread almost all over the world, even in hot Africa. Thus, the dark bronze boletus can be found in oak and beech, hornbeam and chestnut forests in Europe, North America and Africa. In our country, boletus mushrooms prefer the Transcaucasus, growing there from June to September.

Note: The names of some species directly indicate their habitat. Thus, birch grows exclusively under birch trees, both in forests and groves, and along roads throughout Russia from June to October. Pine grows, respectively, in pine forests; it is less common in spruce and deciduous forests in the northern regions of the European part of Russia and in Siberia. Oak trees feel comfortable in oak forests in the Caucasus and Primorsky Territory, as well as in the central zone of the Russian Federation and in the southern regions, while spruce trees prefer fir and spruce forests, where they appear in June and bear fruit until autumn.

As is known, they have a variable growth cycle, which depends on climatic conditions and places of growth. In regions with a warm climate, they appear as early as June and bear fruit until November. In the northern regions, their harvest can be harvested in June - September, while they appear en masse only in August. Representatives of the genus grow in entire families or colonies. You should know that they all quickly lose their beneficial features after cutting. Therefore, it is necessary to carry out processing as soon as possible after collection in order to preserve the maximum amount of micro- and macroelements.

Biological description

The porcini mushroom is a representative of the Borovikov genus. Its tubular stem is barrel-shaped, always thickened at the base. The surface of the leg is painted white, sometimes with a brown or red tint; it is covered with a network of white veins, more noticeable in its upper part.

Depending on the age of the mushroom, the shape of its cap changes:

In young specimens it is convex, and in mature specimens it is spread out.
The cap is smooth to the touch, slightly wrinkled. In damp weather it becomes slightly slimy, in dry weather it becomes dull and slightly cracked.
The color of the cap can vary from light to brown shades. The older the specimen, the darker its cap.

They have juicy fleshy pulp, which grows into fibers with age. Its color is white, yellowish with age, and does not change when cut. This species is also characterized by a faint odor and a slightly pronounced taste, which are more pronounced during cooking.

Where does the porcini mushroom grow?

Porcini mushrooms can be found on almost all continents except Antarctica and Australia. They grow in deciduous, coniferous and mixed forests (Figure 3). Most often they can be found under oaks, birches, beeches, hornbeams, spruces, pines, fir trees, as well as on mosses and lichens.

Figure 3. Main growing areas

They are found extremely rarely in the tundra and forest-steppe, and are completely absent in the steppe. They take root well different types soils, excluding swamps and peat bogs, where the ground is waterlogged. They love places well lit by the sun, although they can grow in partial shade, but at low daily temperatures their growth slows down.

False white mushroom: photo and description

It happens that the baskets of inexperienced lovers of “silent hunting” end up with specimens that are very similar to white ones, but in fact are their poisonous “doubles”.

Without sufficient experience and the necessary amount of theoretical knowledge, it is quite easy for a person to make a mistake. After all, false whites grow in the same places as edible ones, and in close proximity to them. That is why it is necessary to learn to distinguish between real species and their poisonous “doubles” (Figure 4).

Characteristic

To learn how to accurately recognize inedible doubles, you need to familiarize yourself with the photo and description of the false mushroom and its main types.

The most dangerous to human health and life are bilious and satanic (Figure 5). Gall , called bitterling, it is found on well-warmed sandy or loamy soil at the edges of coniferous forests. Therefore, it is easy to confuse it with pine, although it looks like oak.

Note: It received its second name as a result of the fact that earlier mushroom pickers tested its edibility by tasting it, because a specific bitterness appears within the first ten seconds, and during heat treatment it intensifies many times.

And yet, if you doubt its edibility, learn to test it using less risky methods. Pay attention to its appearance. The gallstone looks impeccable because due to its bitter taste, neither animals nor insects eat it.

Figure 4. The main boletus twins and their characteristics

Satanic is similar in appearance to oak, and can be found in warm oak forests, next to linden and hornbeam trees. And although the scientific literature classifies it as conditionally edible, you should know that consuming it raw is extremely dangerous, since even a young specimen produces a sufficient amount of poisons to harm human health and life.

Description

In addition to the same place of growth, the gall mushroom is similar in appearance to the edible one. It has the same convex brown cap and a thickened stem at the base. cylindrical with a network of veins. The difference lies in the color of the tubular layer: in the gall layer it is pinkish or dirty white, which is not at all characteristic of the present one. Yet the main difference is the very bitter taste.

As for the Satanic one, its cap is quite pleasant to the touch and can be colored either gray or olive green. brown colors. Just as in the case of bittergrass, you should pay attention to the color of the tubular layer.

Note: In the poisonous satanic one, it is painted in bright colors: orange, red. Also a characteristic feature is the bright red color of the mesh on the leg.

In addition, the flesh changes color when cut - from yellow or white it turns blue within a few minutes, and it is advisable to check the mushroom right in the forest. The unpleasant smell of rotting onions, characteristic of overripe specimens, should also alert you.

What is the difference

Although edible whites are represented by several species, each of which has its own notable characteristics, there are a number of characteristics common to all true species:

Their tubular layer can only have a white, yellow or olive color, while the bitterling plates are colored in pinkish tones, and the tubular layer of the satanic has bright orange-red shades.
Edible specimens have dense pulp without a pronounced taste or smell; in poisonous specimens it is watery.
The pulp does not change its color at the break even during heat treatment. But the pulp on the cut of the gall fungus acquires a pinkish-brown tint. Satanic changes the cut color to purple.
Among other mushrooms, forest dwellers often leave traces of their vital activity on white mushrooms, using them as food or as a place to breed offspring.

Figure 5. The main types of inedible porcini mushrooms: 1 and 2 - gall, 3 and 4 - satanic

No matter how large the mushroom is, give preference to smaller, but younger specimens, because it is well known that the older the mushroom, the more dangerous substances it accumulates.

Polish white mushroom: photo and description

The Polish white mushroom is quite rare, and therefore is extremely popular among mushroom pickers. In addition, it contains a very large number of useful elements.

Using the photo and description of the Polish mushroom, you will learn to easily find it in the forest (Figure 6). to his appearance it is similar to the usual one: the same brown cap of different shades, slimy during the rainy season and dry the rest of the time; its skin is also difficult to separate, and the cap itself in mature specimens has an outstretched shape. Upon closer examination, you can notice some differences, for example, small clusters of tubes yellow color on a stalk, which, in turn, is colored in tones from light brown to red.

Characteristic

Lovers of Polish mushrooms know that when harvested they can change the color of the cap and stem from brown to bluish. This occurs when pressed and is absolutely safe.

In addition, you should know that there are no poisonous counterparts of this species in nature. Even the dangerous satanic mushroom has such obvious differences that it is impossible to make a mistake when collecting Polish mushrooms.

Peculiarities

A remarkable feature of the Polish mushroom is the fact that it grows only in forests with a clean ecology, therefore, even growing to large sizes, it does not accumulate radiation and toxic substances. For this reason, even overgrown representatives of this species do not pose a danger to human health and life.

Figure 6. External features of the Polish mushroom

They are found singly or in groups in the European part of Russia, the North Caucasus, as well as in the Far East and Siberia. They prefer coniferous, less often deciduous forests, where they grow mainly on sandy soils next to pines, spruces, beech, oak, and European chestnut. The harvest can be harvested from June to November, when other tubular species are practically no longer found.

Borovik: photo and description

Often all porcini mushrooms are called boletus mushrooms. Their distinctive feature is massive fruiting body, where the cap looks like a pillow, and the leg has a thickening in the middle or at the bottom (Figure 7).

The surface of the cap can be either completely smooth or velvety, and the surface of the stem can be fibrous or covered with scales. Boletus has white flesh, which may turn blue (red) or remain white when cut.

Characteristic

Thanks to his useful composition(vitamins A, B1, C, D, iron, calcium) boletus is widely used in medicine and pharmaceuticals.

Powder made from boletus is used to treat diseases of the musculoskeletal system, anemia, as well as for the normal functioning of the heart muscle and improve immunity, vitamin deficiency and chronic fatigue syndrome.

Peculiarities

Boletuses are common on almost all continents. They can be found in both deciduous and coniferous forests near oaks, hornbeams, beeches, pines, and spruces. Moreover, they can grow either singly or in entire colonies. It is noteworthy that the weight of individual solitary boletus mushrooms can reach up to 3 kg, although they bear fruit for a fairly short period of time - only 1 week.

Figure 7. What boletus looks like and where it grows

You should know that in young specimens the cap and stem are valued equally, while in older specimens the stem becomes coarser and loses its nutrients, so only the cap is suitable for cooking.

More information about porcini mushroom, its types and search features is in the video.