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The main criterion for lovers of “quiet hunting” when collecting forest gifts is their edibility. Even one poisonous specimen can cause irreparable harm to health. Any experienced mushroom picker knows for sure that it is better to be left without a trophy than to take a harmful one. Pepper mushroom causes controversy among connoisseurs. There are diametrically opposed opinions about its edibility.
What does pepper mushroom look like?
Pepper butterdish belongs to the Boletov family. Biologists consider it conditionally edible. Small differences between an ordinary butter dish and a pepper bowl can be misleading for an inexperienced mushroom picker.
Cap Description
The convex rounded hat of the pepper oiler reaches 8 cm in adulthood. By this time, the hat straightens and becomes flat-round. The color includes all shades of brown. The hat can be reddish, and reddish, and dark. Unlike the common butterdish, the pepper fungus does not have a slimy film.
The bottom layer of the cap looks like a sponge. The color of the hymenophore is usually the same as the top of the cap, maybe a little lighter. When pressed, reddish spots appear on the porous tubular surface.
Description of the leg
The shape of the leg is cylindrical. In some specimens, it may be curved. Towards the bottom, the leg narrows slightly. At the top it fuses with the hymenophore. The height of the leg is up to 8 cm. In diameter, it grows from 3 mm to 1,5 cm. Its flesh is elastic and easily breaks when pressed. The cut in the air acquires a reddish tint.
Is Pepper Mushroom Edible or Not?
There are different opinions about the edibility of pepper mushroom. Biologists say that the toxic substances contained in the fruiting body do not decompose even during heat treatment. Scientists warn about the dangers of these components for the liver. Poisons can gradually accumulate in the body, subsequently causing severe oncological diseases.
In Our Country, it is not customary to collect pepper butter dish as edible. Among the forest resources, there are enough other, less dangerous representatives of this species.
European scientists do not confirm the opinion about the poisonousness of the pepper mushroom. And culinary experts in Western countries consider this gift of the forest one of the most delicious representatives of the mushroom kingdom. The spicy taste and delicate aroma add piquancy to the dishes from this forest guest. Some gourmets prepare various dishes from the pepper butter dish. It is stewed, added to prefabricated mushroom delicacies and meat stews. Others prefer to use powdered butterdish pulp as a substitute for hot peppers.
Experimental studies on the qualities of the pepper list have not been conducted. There were no signs of poisoning after eating dishes from it. According to experts, mushrooms can have a negative impact on health if consumed regularly for a long time from 6 months to a year.
Where and how does pepper oiler grow?
The area of growth of oil pepper and ordinary is the same. They are collected in pine and spruce forests of the northern regions. It is extremely rare to find butterflies in mixed forests. On the territory of Our Country, they are harvested in Siberia, the Caucasus and the Far East.
The collection period varies depending on the region of growth. In Siberia, butterflies appear in June. In the European north, the time for hunting them begins in June and lasts until October.
Mushrooms grow singly or in small families of 3-5 pieces. When harvesting, cut the leg with a knife.
How to distinguish pepper butter
Some mushrooms are very similar to peppercorns. An ordinary butter dish can be distinguished from a pepper bowl by the appearance of the underside of the cap, which has a light yellow color, in contrast to the reddish one of the pepper bowl. The hymenophore of the edible species of butterflies is dense, finely porous. The pores of the pepperbox are large and irregular in shape. In addition, young butterflies are covered with a sticky substance, from which the name comes.
The film covering the ordinary butter dish can be easily removed, which is usually done by housewives before cooking. In pepper mushroom, according to the photo and description, the cap coating is difficult to separate. It looks dry and may even have small cracks.
It is not easy to distinguish pepper butter from goat. This is another representative of the Boletov family. Mushrooms are very similar in color and structure of the cap and stem. The main distinguishing feature of the goat or lattice, as it is popularly called, is its increased attractiveness to worms. Even the youngest mushrooms are most often found with a hat eaten by worms. The cap of the mushroom in wet weather becomes especially wet and slimy. The goat is classified as an edible mushroom. But lovers of forest gifts rarely collect it.
False oiler is easy to distinguish from pepper oiler by photo and description. The poisonous fungus is lamellar, not tubular. It is worth cutting it off, as the leg acquires an unpleasant bluish color. When it gets into the dish, the false butter dish gives it the smell of mustiness and unpleasant bitterness.
What is useful pepper mushroom
It is difficult to talk about the benefits of pepper mushroom. Official information about any useful properties, except for a sharp pleasant taste, has not been recorded anywhere. Therefore, it is possible to judge the beneficial qualities by the content of substances in the fruiting body of the pepper butter dish.
Like other representatives of the kingdom of mushrooms, it contains a large amount of vegetable protein, amino acids and many trace elements. And its calorie content is only 22 kcal per 100 g of product. The composition of the product is rich in the following components:
- phosphorus;
- magnesium;
- fluorine;
- selenium;
- vitamins A, B, E, K, D;
- acids: nicotinic, pantothenic, folic.
It also contains such rare amino acids as alanine and leucine. These components are used to lower sugar levels in diabetes.
In folk medicine, pepper oil powder and tincture have long been used as an antibacterial agent. There is an opinion that drugs from this fungus cure tuberculosis and other lung diseases.
How peppercorns are prepared
In European countries, not only spicy seasoning is prepared from pepper, but it is also used as the main ingredient in various dishes.
Mushrooms are stewed with onions and sour cream. After proper heat treatment, they lose some of their sharpness and become very palatable, according to lovers of savory dishes.
For seasoning, mushrooms need to be dried and chopped. But pre-pepper butter dish is boiled for about two hours, changing the water several times. Cooking sequence:
- Boiled mushrooms must be washed.
- Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment.
- Dry in the oven for 4 – 5 hours, stirring.
- Cool it down.
- Then grind in a coffee grinder.
Properly dried pepper mushroom is easy to chop even with your hands.
Seasoning is added instead of hot pepper in meat and vegetable dishes.
Conclusion
Pepper mushroom is very popular in many countries. There are myths about its toxicity, but there are no proven facts. Perhaps eating in large quantities will harm the body. It is important to remember that any little-known product can adversely affect health if abused. In addition, a new dish can be tested for tolerance by the body.