Content
More than 200 thousand species of edible and inedible mushrooms grow on earth. Garlic mushrooms of the Negniuchnikov family also occupy their niche among them. They are all similar to each other, nondescript, and outwardly unremarkable. Oak garlic is a small mushroom of this family that can be found in the fall in the forests of Russia where oak trees grow.
What does oak garlic look like?
Oak garlic stands out among mushrooms due to its small size, growing conditions, dark creamy stem and garlicky smell spreading throughout the forest.
Description of the cap
At the first stage of maturation, the cap is convex. At this time she looks like a bell. Then it becomes concave-convex, and at the end of ripening it becomes completely colorless.The edges are lamellar, and over time they become torn and slightly ribbed. The plates are frequent, adherent, cream-colored. Only in the middle there are dirty, dark red places. The cap diameter is small. Its maximum dimensions can reach 4 cm. But this happens rarely. Typical diameter is from 2 to 3 cm.
Description of the leg
The leg is slightly curved, reaches 8 cm and has a creamy tint at the top. Below it changes to dark brown. This part of the leg is hard, with white fluff at the base, turning into the mycelium.
Is the mushroom edible or not?
This lamellar mushroom is edible. Its caps can be fried or pickled. It takes a lot of time to collect a sufficient amount of garlic, even in the season when the forest is literally littered with this mushroom.
When dried, it has a garlicky aroma, so it is mainly used as a seasoning. Especially appreciated in French cooking.
Where and how does it grow
Garlic mushroom grows in oak groves or mixed forests. This is due to the fact that mycelium or mycelium spreads on leaf opal under oak trees. The distribution area in Russia is its European part. They appear in the fall, during the humid period at temperatures below 10 ºC, from October to November. In places where they appear, a persistent spicy aroma spreads throughout the forest.
Doubles and their differences
Doubles include the great garlic and the common garlic.
The first type is similar in appearance to its oak counterpart, but has significant differences:
- the large cap reaches 6.5 cm;
- leg brown, black below, high, 6-15 cm;
- grows in Europe, where beech grows.
Edible, used fried and pickled or as a seasoning. But the taste is slightly inferior to other garlic ones.
Common garlic grows in forests with clay or sandy soil and prefers dry places. It can be confused with meadow honey mushrooms, although the latter do not emit a garlic-onion smell. Edible after frying or pickling, chefs use it as a spice.
Conclusion
Due to its small size and unattractive appearance, oak garlic remains unknown to many mushroom pickers. Meanwhile, it has a pleasant taste and high culinary value: it adds mushroom and garlic flavor to first and second courses.
