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Yellow hedgehog (Hydnum repandum) is a good edible mushroom. Its aroma contains fruity and resinous notes. In European countries it is considered a delicacy. Belongs to the genus Gidnum, sometimes it is also called kolchak or notched hedgehog.
Description of the yellow hedgehog
Young yellow hedgehogs are colored orange
The yellow hedgehog has a well-defined cap with a stem, the surface is slightly velvety without scales, and becomes smooth with age. The pulp is light, almost white, quite dense, breaks easily, and becomes yellow-brown when broken. The height of the fruiting body is from 5 to 10 cm. Young specimens are yellow-orange on top.
Description of the cap
Mature yellow hedgehogs have a lighter cap
In young fruits, the cap is orange, rounded and slightly convex, the edges are curved down. In adulthood, the yellow-ocher color brightens, acquires a whitish tint, and the shape becomes irregular with wavy edges and a concave middle. The surface of the old hat is dotted with pits and tubercles, as if dented.
Instead of plates, hymenophores are in the form of white or yellow spines. During transportation, they easily come off and clog all the other mushrooms in the basket, so it is better to put yellow hedgehog mushrooms in a separate container.
Description of the leg
The legs of yellow hedgehogs are white or yellowish
It is usually short - from 3 to 8 cm, white, slightly narrowed downwards, resembling a curved cylinder. Its diameter is from 2 to 4 cm. The surface is painted white or yellowish. The older the mushroom, the darker it is.
Doubles and their differences
Yellow hedgehog is a wonderful mushroom; it has no poisonous counterparts. It cannot be confused with fly agarics and toadstools due to the structural features of the hymenophore.
Doubles of the yellow hedgehog are chanterelles - valuable edible mushrooms. To notice the difference, you need to look under the cap - the chanterelle has yellow-orange plates there, and the hedgehog has yellow spines.
Chanterelle mushrooms have a lamellar hymenophore
The yellow hedgehog (Hydnum repandum) is also similar to the reddish-yellow hedgehog (Hydnum rufescens).This species is conditionally edible and is distinguished by its smaller size (cap diameter is about 5 cm) and bright orange color.
Reddish-yellow hedgehog is a very tasty mushroom
Where and how does it grow
Yellow hedgehogs are found in forest clearings, mainly on the ground, among moss. They form mycorrhizae with deciduous and coniferous species of woody plants. Adult specimens often grow together with legs and caps, forming witch circles or rows on the ground.
Yellow hedgehog is native to Europe, Asia and North America. Prefers regions with a temperate climate, found in Siberia and the Far East. Mass fruiting continues from August to September, but the harvest season lasts until the end of autumn.
Is yellow hedgehog edible or not?
Yellow hedgehog is a healthy and tasty mushroom. Experienced mushroom pickers love it and always put it in their baskets. Young specimens are subjected to minimal heat treatment. Cook the old ones for at least 10 minutes. Their flesh is coarse and slightly bitter.
How to cook yellow hedgehog
You can cook mushrooms in any way - boil, fry, marinate. Both young and mature specimens are suitable for culinary processing. During preliminary preparation, the mushroom harvest should not be soaked in water; yellow mushrooms will become brittle.
Preparing mushrooms
The collected mushrooms are cleaned of debris, washed and dried.
Fruits brought from the forest are immediately processed. Long-term storage reduces the nutritional value of forest delicacies.
Detailed description of the process:
- Mushrooms are cleared of debris and sorted.
- Large ones are cut into pieces for easy cooking. There is no skin on the caps, so there is no need to peel them.
- After washing well in a basin or under running water, cut off the base of the stem with a sharp knife and remove insect-damaged and contaminated areas.
- Then they dry it on a clean towel, and prepare the intended dish, preserve it or dry it for the winter.
How to fry
Yellow blackberries fried in cream
Making a delicious mushroom appetizer is very simple. To do this you will need the following products:
- mushrooms – 1 kg;
- onion – 1 pc.;
- carrot – 1 pc.;
- cream – 1 tbsp;
- vegetable oil and spices - as needed.
Detailed description of the frying process:
- After preliminary preparation, the mushrooms are sent to a frying pan with heated butter or vegetable oil.
- In a separate frying pan, brown the chopped onions and some carrots (optional) until golden.
- Add onions and carrots to the mushrooms, salt to taste, pour in heavy cream, and cook over medium heat for 3-5 minutes.
How to marinate
Pickled yellow hedgehogs are eaten 12 hours after cooking.
The mushrooms will not lose their shape and volume during marinating, they will be crispy and very pleasant to taste.
Products for 720 ml jar:
- Blackberry mushrooms – 450 g;
- onion – 1 pc.;
- garlic – 1 clove;
- salt – 1 tbsp. l.;
- vinegar 5% – 2 tbsp. l.;
- little rapeseed - 1 tbsp. l.;
- black peppercorns – 10 pcs.;
- bay leaf – 1 pc.;
- boiling water for marinade – 250 ml.
Process description:
- Young specimens are selected for pickling. The prepared mushrooms are poured with boiling water and left to steep for 10-15 minutes.
- Place in a colander and rinse with running water.
- Place a peeled, halved onion and a clove of garlic at the bottom of a clean glass jar.
- Pour in salt, add rapeseed oil and vinegar, add peppercorns and 100 ml of boiling water.
- Place the prepared blackberry mushrooms into the jar.
- Add 150 ml of boiling water to the top, screw on the tin lid.
- After shaking the jar so that its contents are well mixed, turn it upside down. Leave in this position for one hour.
- After this time, the jar is placed on the bottom and put in the refrigerator.
How to freeze
Before freezing, mushrooms are cut and placed in bags.
Blackberries can be frozen fresh or after boiling them in boiling water for three minutes. In the first case, clean, well-washed and dried mushrooms are packaged and frozen. Boiled blackberries are placed in a colander, the water is allowed to drain, after which they are also packaged in bags and frozen.
Pickling
Hot-salted blackberries are ready to eat in two weeks
For pickling, the following spices are used:
- garlic;
- dill umbrellas;
- horseradish leaf;
- peppercorns.
Some mushroom pickers, in order not to interrupt the flavor, use only garlic for pickling. The good thing about the recipe below is that the mushrooms do not need to be pre-soaked as with cold salting.
Products:
- yellow hedgehogs – 1 kg;
- salt and spices - as needed;
- water – 1 l;
- vegetable oil – 50 ml.
Process description:
- Prepared mushrooms are placed in boiling water, adding 0.5 tsp per liter of water. salt. When the water boils, cook for 3-5 minutes.
- You don’t have to remove the foam; the boiled blackberries are placed in a colander and washed under running water. Let it drain for 15-20 minutes.
- Place horseradish leaves, allspice and black peppercorns, garlic on the bottom of a clean glass jar, and add two pinches of salt.
- Place the mushrooms in a jar in layers of 3-4 cm, sprinkling with salt (about 1-2 pinches). Dill umbrellas and more garlic are placed in the middle of the jar.
- The mushroom layers are compacted well by hand. When the last layer is laid, there should be 3-4 cm left to the edge of the jar.
- A horseradish leaf is placed on top as a seal, a pinch of salt is poured in and a little vegetable oil is poured.
- Cover the jar with a clean nylon lid and place in the refrigerator.
Beneficial properties of yellow hedgehog
Due to their healing properties, yellow hedgehogs have been used in Chinese folk medicine for centuries. The composition of the mushroom pulp includes vitamins, macro- and microelements (K, Ca, Na, Ph, Zn, Cu, Se), amino acids, etc. A substance has been isolated from the hedgehog mushroom that is cytotoxic to various cancer cells, especially cancer stomach.
Beneficial features:
- Applying mushroom juice to the wound prevents infection and suppuration.
- When eating hedgehog, the body's resistance to viral diseases increases and immunity increases.
- Mushroom polysaccharides strengthen the walls of blood vessels.
- Biologically active complexes included in the pulp promote hematopoiesis, stimulating the production of red blood cells.
With long-term consumption of yellow bramble, the volume of the lungs increases, the nervous system and gastrointestinal tract are restored, the functioning of the endocrine glands is normalized, and the general tone increases.
In China, mushroom tincture has long been prescribed for prolonged depression. It calms and lowers blood pressure, fights insomnia.Based on these mushrooms, medicinal ointments are made, as well as tonic and nourishing cosmetic masks, which have a high regenerating effect and improve the condition of the skin, hair and nails.
How to grow yellow hedgehog on the plot
In nature, this representative of the mushroom kingdom can grow on any soil, but prefers calcareous soil, which must be taken into account when choosing a place to grow yellow hedgehog at home. Its cultivation gives good results; the main thing is to purchase high-quality mycelium from trusted manufacturers.
Growing order:
Fluff up the ground under a tree or bush.
Usually to a depth of 5-15 cm depending on the characteristics of the root system
Mushroom mycelium is scattered over the surface.
Store-bought mushroom mycelium can be replaced with something you find yourself
Sprinkle a small layer of forest soil on top, mixed in equal proportions with humus.
Sprinkle with soil remaining from fluffing.
Water with a garden watering can on dry days, spending up to 10 liters per 1 square meter. m.
Mushroom mycelium requires regular watering
The mycelium begins to bear fruit approximately six months after planting the mycelium in autumn or spring. She lives for many years while the tree that feeds her grows.
Conclusion
Yellow hedgehog is a valuable edible species, little known to beginning mushroom pickers. It has no poisonous counterparts, so it can be collected without any fear. Easy to prepare and versatile. You can use it to make any mushroom dishes and winter preparations.
