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Speckled Oak (Neoboletus erythropus) - belongs to the Boletaceae family. This mushroom is also called red-legged boletus, granulopod boletus, and boletus.
Reading the names, you can understand that you need to look for fruiting bodies under oak trees. It is with them that they have symbiosis, they provide each other with nutrients and sucrose.
What speckled oak mushrooms look like
To understand what the speckled oak tree looks like, it is necessary, in addition to the description, to carefully examine the photo. Moreover, you need to find out the characteristics of each part of the mushroom, since they have their own distinctive characteristics.
hat
The speckled oak cap reaches 20 cm. While the mottled oak is still small, it resembles half a ball. Then it becomes like a pillow. The skin is dry, velvety; mucus appears on the matte surface only after precipitation. Young fruits have a brown, yellowish-brown, chestnut or gray-brown cap. Old oak trees are distinguished by the fact that their color is dark, almost black.
Leg
The leg grows up to 10 cm, in diameter - about 3 cm. This part of the speckled oak tree can resemble a barrel in shape. But most often it is tuberous with a thickening at the bottom. Red specks or scales are clearly visible on the orange surface.
Tubular layer
Speckled oak mushroom belongs to the tubular mushrooms. This layer in young fruits is yellowish-olive. As it grows, the color changes to orange-red. If you press on the tubes, a blue color appears.
Pulp
The granulopod boletus is distinguished by its dense, fleshy pulp. In the cap it is yellow, but when cut or broken it quickly turns blue. The flesh of the leg is brown-red. Spore powder is brown-olive in color.
Where do mottled oak mushrooms grow?
Mushroom pickers in central Russia can rarely boast of an amazing find, since mushrooms almost never grow here. But in the Leningrad region, Siberian forests, the Caucasus and Europe, you can quickly collect a basket of delicious mushrooms.
Speckled oak trees grow on acidic, swampy soils in coniferous or deciduous forests. The collection of podpodubniks begins in June, fruiting lasts for a long time. Granulopod boletus grows most in August-October, until frosts begin.
Is speckled oakberry edible or not?
Red-legged boletus is classified as conditionally edible. It should be eaten only after preliminary boiling. Mushrooms can be salted, dried, boiled and pickled.
Speckled oakberry is tasty and healthy. It contains a lot of microelements necessary for humans:
- Iron helps maintain hemoglobin levels.
- Copper helps form pituitary gland cells.
- Zinc improves the functioning of the digestive system and metabolic processes.
The presence of useful substances improves immunity, strengthens the heart and blood vessels, and helps normalize blood pressure. And this, in turn, protects a person from atherosclerosis. Antioxidant, antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties are also inherent in speckled oak.
False doubles of speckled beetroot
The speckled oak has twins that are similar to it in appearance and in other characteristics. Among them there are edible and inedible representatives:
- olive-brown oak;
- oak tree Kele;
- satanic mushroom.
Olive brown
This is an edible mushroom with a hemispherical, convex cap of olive-brown color. Its surface is velvety. The leg resembles a pin. At the top it is yellow-orange in color, at the bottom it has a red-brown tint, where the mesh is clearly visible.
The mushroom is distinguished by yellow, dense flesh that turns blue when cut. It exudes a pleasant aroma. Grows in mixed and deciduous forest.
Kele
Conditionally edible species with a rounded-convex chestnut-colored cap. Features a smooth velvety surface.It grows on a yellow-brown stem in the shape of a cylinder and with a slight thickening near the ground, there is no pattern.
The dense yellow pulp does not have the characteristic mushroom aroma. The blue color quickly appears on the cut.
Satanic mushroom
The worst thing is if, instead of a mushroom, there is a poisonous satanic mushroom in the basket. It also changes color when cut. But the watery flesh or legs first turn blue and then turn red. His cap is whitish.
Collection rules
You need to cut speckled oak trees with a sharp knife close to the ground so as not to destroy the mycelium and deprive the forest of the future harvest. Collect small or medium mushrooms. It is better to discard old, outgrown ones. The cut speckled oak trees are shaken off the ground and placed in a basket.
How to cook speckled oak
Speckled oak mushrooms are valuable mushrooms with excellent taste. But since they are conditionally edible, before preparing various dishes they are boiled twice for 15 minutes, changing the water each time.
Poddubniki can be used to prepare:
- mushroom soup;
- fried foods;
- pickling;
- solyanka;
- mushroom paste.
Conclusion
Speckled oakberry is valued for its beneficial properties and taste. True gourmets are quietly hunting for it. It’s a pity that not all residents of Russia will be able to enjoy these forest fruits.
