Contents
Bolet bronze – suitable for consumption, but rather rare mushroom with autumn fruiting. To correctly distinguish a bronze boletus in the forest, you need to study its description and photo.
What do bronze bolts look like?
The bronze bolt has a fairly large cap, on average, about 17 cm in diameter, the cap is up to 4 cm thick. At a young age, the shape of the cap is convex and almost spherical, but with time it straightens and becomes prostrate. In young fruiting bodies, the surface of the cap is smooth; with age, uneven depressions appear on it, located mainly closer to the edges.
The bronze bolete has a dark chestnut, almost black cap at a young age. At the same time, there are areas with a whitish coating on it, this feature is characteristic of the bronze boletus. As it matures, the cap lightens a little and becomes chestnut or brown with a copper tint. You can also recognize a bronze bolet by the fact that his hat is always dry. It does not become mucous even with high humidity.
The underside of the cap is covered with tubules with small angular pores. In young fruiting bodies, the tubular layer is white or grayish white, with age it becomes pale yellow or cream, and in old age it becomes olive yellow. If you press on the tubular layer, then a dark spot will quickly appear at the place of contact.
The bolet can rise 12 cm above the ground, the thickness of the leg is 4 cm. The shape of the leg is thick, with a seal at the bottom, club-shaped or similar to a tuber, while with age it acquires a cylindrical shape. The surface of the leg is wrinkled, it is hard to the touch. Young mushrooms have almost white stalks, but with age, the color changes to pinkish-beige or olive-beige, with a brown underside.
If you cut the bolet along the cap, then its flesh will turn out to be dense and uniform wine-red in color, if the fruiting body is young. In old fruiting bodies, the flesh is almost white, yellowish closer to the tubules and softer. At the break, the flesh quickly darkens, the bolete has a neutral smell and taste.
Where do bronze mushrooms grow
It is rare to meet a bronze boletus in Our Country. It mainly grows in the southern regions with a warm climate on moist humus soils. It grows mainly in mixed forests with the presence of beech or oak, and also comes across under pines. You can see the bolet both alone and in small groups of 2-3 specimens.
Is it possible to eat bronze bolts
Bronze boletus belongs to the edible category. It is actively eaten in the Mediterranean countries, where the bronze bolete is not uncommon. It is suitable for all processing methods, it can be consumed boiled, fried, dried and frozen.
The taste of the mushroom hurts bronze
Borovik of this species is classified as a delicacy category. According to gourmets, its taste surpasses even the taste of white fungus in terms of brightness and saturation.
False doubles
The bronze bolet does not have toxic inedible twins. But this mushroom can be confused with some edible varieties.
Polish mushroom
The bolete has a certain similarity with the edible Polish mushroom – in adult fruiting bodies there is also a cylindrical dense leg, crowned with a hemispherical or cushion-shaped hat of a red-brown, chocolate or chestnut hue.
The varieties can be distinguished from each other mainly by the absence of a mesh on the leg of the Polish mushroom. In addition, if you cut the fruiting body, then its white flesh will turn blue very quickly from interaction with air.
Semi-bronze bolt
A semi-bronze boletus has a strong resemblance to a bronze bolt. The varieties are very similar to each other in structure and size, have the same hat shape. The main difference is in the shade of color – the semi-bronze bolet is lighter, its hat is usually gray-brown, with yellowish spots.
Pine porcini mushroom
The edible white pine mushroom is often confused with other representatives of mushrooms, including the bronze boletus. But unlike the bronze boletus, white pine grows only in coniferous forests and is not found in deciduous. In addition, his hat is wine-red or brown-red, and in terms of the size of his hat and legs, he is larger than a bronze bolet.
gall fungus
Very often mushrooms, including bronze ones, are confused with gall fungus in Our Country. Gorchak has a very similar structure and can be almost indistinguishable from a bronze bolt. But you can recognize it by the unique structure of the stem – in the bitterling, it is covered with pronounced vascular veins.
Although the gall fungus is not poisonous, it is not suitable for human consumption. The bitter taste of the mushroom can spoil any dish, and bitterness is not eliminated either by soaking or boiling.
Collection rules
You should look for pain in the forests closer to autumn, in mid-August or even early September. At this time, it is most common, although it still remains rare and comes across only in the southern regions.
You need to choose only clean, located at a distance from the roads of the forest for the collection of boletus. Near highways and industrial facilities, mushrooms absorb too many toxic compounds – it becomes unsafe to eat them.
When collecting a pain, you need to use a sharply sharpened knife or twist the fruiting body out of the ground and try not to damage the mycelium. If you simply pull the bolet out of the soil, then later it is unlikely to grow in the same place.
Use
Edible bolete is suitable for eating in any form. It cannot be eaten raw, but after boiling it can be added to other dishes or subjected to frying and pickling. Also, boletus can be dried, which will preserve its taste and useful properties for many months.
Before frying or pickling, the bolete is subjected to a short processing. The pulp must be cleaned of all adhering debris, rinsed with cool water and cut off the lower part of the leg. After that, the bolete is soaked in cold water for 15 minutes, and then boiled with salt for 20 minutes if the mushrooms are planned to be fried, and 40 minutes for pickling or eating boiled.
Conclusion
Bronze boletus is an edible mushroom that can be found in the southern regions of Our Country. According to gourmets, it is even tastier than the famous porcini mushroom, and brings great health benefits when consumed.
