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White podgrudok, or as it is also called, dry breast, is found in forests quite often. Many mushroom pickers consider this mushroom a kind of mushrooms, but this is wrong. The white load is not related to the milkers and is one of the representatives of the russula genus.
What does dry breast look like
The white load, the photo and description of which is given below, really has a certain resemblance to an ordinary load. This is the reason for the similarity of names.
The photo above shows what a dry breast looks like. The mushroom has a traditional shape with a pronounced cap and stalk. Can reach considerable sizes. The dry mushroom mushroom has quite a few synonymous names, in various sources you can find its photo and description under the following names:
- Load white.
- Suchar (rusk, rusk).
- The cheesecake is pleasant.
- The cheesecake is excellent.
The Latin name for the white load is Russula delica. It belongs to agaric mushrooms of the Russula genus.
Cap Description
The hat of the white loader undergoes significant changes as it grows older. In young specimens, it is flattened-semicircular, with strongly tucked edges. Gradually, it straightens out, becomes funnel-shaped, while the edges remain wrapped down. In the photo below – cracker mushrooms of different ages.
The hat of the white loader becomes funnel-shaped with age
In older specimens, the funnel expands completely, taking an inversely conical shape. At the same time, its edges often crack. The diameter of the cap of an adult white load can reach up to 30 cm. Initially, its color is white, but over time, yellow and brown embossed spots begin to appear on it, resembling rust in appearance. In addition, a large amount of plant debris and earth sticks to the hat, which also affects its color.
On the reverse side are numerous thin straight white plates, often with a greenish or creamy tint. At a more advanced age, sometimes brown spots may appear on them. The pulp is white, dense, has a pronounced mushroom aroma.
Description of the leg
The leg of the white load is rather short, thick, massive, solid, dense to the touch. It has a cylindrical shape, while slightly tapering upwards. The stem is white; in adult specimens, uneven dimples of a rusty-brown color often appear on the surface.
How and where does white podgruzdok grow
White podgruzd can be found in forests of any type, but in coniferous forests it comes across much less frequently. Its habitat is the temperate zone of both the European and Asian parts of Our Country. Most often, this fungus can be found on the edges, edges of forest roads, clearings, in mixed forests with a predominance of birch, aspen, less often spruce or pine.
In the video at the link below you can see how dry milk mushrooms grow in the wild.
How much dry milk grows
The first wave of growth in white loads usually begins in mid-summer. Most often they grow in small groups, although large colonies are sometimes found. However, it is quite difficult to find a clean mushroom that is not damaged by worms at this time. Numerous flying insects are very fond of laying eggs in the fruit bodies of dry mushrooms, so the lion’s share of them during this period are wormy. Before the end of the season (late October or early November), there may be several more such waves of mushroom growth.
Under a layer of fallen leaves, it is sometimes difficult to notice the load
The rapid maturation of white pods can be observed in the first half of autumn, especially if warm weather returns after a long cold snap. There are practically no midges in the forest at this time, so most mushrooms do not have wormholes during this period.
Edible white pickle or not
White podgruzdok refers to edible mushrooms of category III. Despite the fact that its taste is rather mediocre, many mushroom pickers love this mushroom for its versatility.
Doubles of white loading and their differences
The white loader has a lot of doubles. Here is some of them.
- Raw horseradish is chlorine-likei (greenish load). This mushroom grows mainly in deciduous forests in Western Siberia. It differs from the dry milk mushroom only in the bluish-green color of the plates. Greenish podgruzdok is an edible mushroom, so there will be no negative consequences from its use.
- violinist (skripun, felt breast). A widespread mushroom, visually similar to a dry mushroom. In contrast to the latter, a bitter-tasting milky juice stands out on the cut of the violin. Because of this, the violinist is almost never wormy. The violin has a pure white color (except for old specimens), there is usually much less debris and earth on it, while the cap itself has a velvety, pleasant to the touch surface. Skripun can be eaten after a preliminary long-term soaking in water; this is a conditionally edible species.
Important! If you run a fingernail or other object over the surface of the cap, you can hear the characteristic squeak, because of which this mushroom got its name.
- Pepper. This mushroom belongs to the lactic, on the cut, milky juice is released from it, which is very pungent in taste. Pepper mushrooms, like violin, are always cleaner than dry mushrooms. At the same time, he has a thicker leg. Despite the pungent taste, the pepper mushroom can be eaten, but before that, a long exposure to running water is necessary to get rid of the milky juice.
- Volnushka white. This is also one of the representatives of the Milky genus, so milky juice will definitely come out on a cut or break in this fungus. It is easy to distinguish a white volnushka from a dry milk mushroom by a strongly pubescent, and sometimes slimy cap. This mushroom is conditionally edible and can be eaten, but long-term soaking in water is first necessary.
What is the difference between raw mushrooms and dry
Raw most often called real, white milk mushrooms. Their caps are covered with a thin layer of mucus, making them moist to the touch. In addition, there are several other differences between raw mushrooms and dry ones.
- Yellowish color of the cap, on which darker concentric circles are faintly distinguished.
- Fringe on the hat.
- The edges are strongly tucked down and inward.
- The leg is hollow.
- Milky juice appears abundantly on the cut.
You can distinguish raw milk mushrooms from dry ones not only by photo or appearance, but also by smell. Real white has a strong specific aroma with fruity tones.
A real mushroom is a mushroom picker’s dream
A raw (real) mushroom (pictured) is a much more valuable mushroom than a dry one. In terms of nutritional value, it belongs to the I, the highest group, and is a welcome trophy for mushroom pickers.
How to distinguish dry breast from false
The easiest way to distinguish a cracker from other similar species is to inspect the cut. The release of white juice will unambiguously indicate that the fungus belongs to the milkers. The white trim on the cut will remain dry.
The benefits and harms of white loading
White podgrudok contains in its composition a lot of substances that are beneficial to human health. It consists of:
- amino acids;
- proteins;
- vitamins of groups B, D, PP.
- trace elements.
The low calorie content of dry mushrooms allows them to be used as dietary products. Their regular use helps to improve blood circulation and cleanse blood vessels, helps maintain a high level of immunity.
However, it should be remembered that any mushrooms and porcini in particular are quite heavy food, and not every stomach can cope with them. It is not recommended to use them for small children, as well as for people with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and with individual intolerance.
How to process dry milk mushrooms after harvest
Collected white podgryadki need to be processed as soon as possible, otherwise they will dry out and become brittle. As a rule, there is always a large amount of plant remains and earth on the hats, so it takes a long time and thoroughly to wash each specimen. Many mushroom pickers use an old hard-bristled toothbrush for this purpose.
Dry mushrooms are easy to clean with an old toothbrush.
The leg of the white load is usually separated at the collection stage, it has no value. Completely washed dry milk mushrooms can be boiled, salted, pickled.
Are dry mushrooms soaked before cooking
Unlike milkers, which are kept in water to remove the caustic milky juice, the white dressing is soaked only for the convenience of removing dirt from its surface. It is usually enough to fill them for 15-20 minutes, after which it will be much easier to clean the hat from soaked dirt. If the white loads are not very dirty, then they are simply washed under running water without pre-soaking.
What is prepared from white podgruzdki
The main method of preparing white dressings is salting. Before this, the mushrooms are boiled for 15-20 minutes, and then laid out in jars in layers mixed with salt and spices. In addition to salting, other methods of preservation are also used, for example, pickling.
Salted white pickles are especially good.
Fresh white toppings can be added to soup, boiled and fried, mushroom caviar and various sauces can be prepared from them. They are stewed with meat and vegetables, used as a filling for pies. Freshly picked mushrooms can be harvested for future use by drying or deep-freezing them raw or boiled.
How to grow dry milk mushrooms in a summer cottage
If there are birches or aspens in the summer cottage, then you can try to grow white milk mushrooms or podgruzdki on your own. To do this, you need to purchase the mycelium of the fungus in a store or through a boarding school. It is possible to use fruiting bodies of dry mushrooms collected in the forest for breeding mycelium, but practice shows that the effectiveness of this method is extremely low. If you use ready-made mycelium, then the chances of getting a crop become much higher.
These mushrooms can be grown near the house
It is possible to sow white spores throughout the season. Near any deciduous tree (preferably birch or aspen), small trenches 12-15 cm deep are prepared. Planting material is evenly sown in them, and then covered with a mixture of humus and soddy soil, mixed in a ratio of 1: 1. It will take about six months to form a full-fledged mycelium. In autumn (or spring, depending on the time of planting), you can get the first harvest. After the formation of mycorrhiza with the roots of the tree, the mushrooms in this place will ripen annually, and this usually happens twice per season.
Conclusion
Podgrudok white – a mushroom loved by many, which has a universal culinary purpose. It occurs much more often than a real mushroom, therefore, it is used more actively in home preparations. It is believed that the cracker does not have a pronounced taste, but the masters of salting mushrooms will not agree with this. And a huge number of recipes for preparing white podgruzdki only confirms their correctness.