Content
In addition to the well-known mushrooms, which are the basis of many dishes, pickles and marinations, there are species that can easily be used as a seasoning for them. The garlic mushroom can play this role. It has a smell that is very suitable for the hot and spicy forge. If you pinch off a piece of the cap and rub it between your fingers, you can smell the distinct smell of garlic.
What does garlic mushroom look like?
As you can see in the photo, the common garlic mushroom, or common garlic mushroom, is a very small lamellar mushroom on a thin stalk.
The mushroom is easily confused with toadstool. It has a small cap, the color of which gradually changes from shades of ocher to dark brown. His leg is thin and long. A distinctive feature is the strong garlicky smell of the mushroom, which persists even after drying.
Description of the cap
The garlic mushroom has a convex cap, the average size of which is 2 cm in diameter. Over time, it evens out and becomes more prostrate. At the beginning it is yellowish, with age the surface gradually darkens and becomes fawn. The miniature cap of the common garlic clove is dry in consistency, thin, with rough skin and grooves along the edges. In adulthood, it takes on a bell shape with thin brims and a depression in the center.
The plates have different lengths, wavy and convex shapes. Their color is white or pink. Spore powder is whitish.
Description of the leg
The structure of the garlic stalk is hollow. Its length, depending on age and place of growth, ranges from 0.5 cm to 5 cm, thickness - about 2 mm. Judging by the photo of the garlic mushroom, the surface of the stem is bare, pubescent at the bottom, and has small longitudinal grooves. The reddish color at the base becomes somewhat lighter.
The flesh of the leg is pale, with a garlicky odor, which becomes stronger after drying.
Is the garlic mushroom edible or not?
The common mushroom is an edible mushroom that has long been used for frying, pickling, boiling and drying. After boiling, its spicy taste disappears, and drying it only enhances it.Garlic is used to create spicy seasonings that are the stuff of legends. One of them says that Napoleon’s cook prepared such a mushroom sauce that the guests ate the emperor’s old fencing glove with it. This is where the saying came from that you can even eat the sole with this sauce.
Use of garlic mushroom in cooking
Non-rot mushrooms are edible mushrooms and do not require prior boiling. Thanks to the symbiosis of mushroom and garlic aromas, chefs are happy to add them to any dish. Garlic is the basis of a spicy sauce, especially appreciated by gourmets. Mushrooms fried with potatoes cause complete delight.
When dried, garlic cloves can be stored for several years. Before cooking, they are thrown into water, and after a few minutes they acquire their original appearance, taste and aroma.
Useful properties of garlic
Due to its antiviral and bactericidal properties, garlic is used as a raw material for the production of preventive and therapeutic products.
In nature, the mushroom is not subject to rotting, and this feature is used to extend the shelf life of products.
The discovered antibiotic substances in the garlic composition actively manifest themselves in the destruction of the aerobic bacterium – Staphylococcus aureus.
Where and how does it grow
The rotting bug can be found in coniferous or deciduous forests. It is widespread throughout the Northern Hemisphere. The favorite basis for its growth is at the base of trees: moss, small litter, foliage, bark. It can also grow on mossy trunks or stumps of birch trees.
The crop bears fruit for a long time - from July to October.Sometimes its representatives are called all-season, since they can be found in winter, during the thaw period, in forest thawed areas. The best time to collect is after rain, since the mushrooms are saturated with moisture, become clearly visible to the eye and at the same time emit a characteristic smell, by which they are easy to find.
Does the garlic mushroom grow in the Moscow region?
Among the wide variety of mushrooms growing in the Moscow region, there is also garlic, which can be found until November in the deciduous forests of central Russia. Its habitats are located in areas with dry clay soils and sandstones. They like to settle in large groups on rotting trees, pine needles, foliage, bark, branches, and very rarely in grass.
Is it possible to grow garlic mushroom on the plot?
It is not difficult to grow garlic mushrooms in your garden plot. They thrive in shady places in the garden. The optimal temperature for development is 15-20⁰С. To get mushrooms you need:
- Prepare willow or poplar logs 0.5 m long and up to 50 cm in diameter.
- Soak them for several days in water.
- Leave the wood in the sun for two days.
- Drill holes in the logs of a size corresponding to the purchased sticks with mycelium, at a distance of 10 cm from each other.
- Insert the sticks there.
- Wrap the logs in plastic wrap, leaving holes for ventilation.
- Place the logs in a dark place.
- After 4 months, the mycelium grows and the wood is transferred to the garden.
- Then set it vertically and dig in a little.
At a temperature of about 20OWith constant humidity, mushrooms grow and produce a harvest of up to 15% of the wood mass.
It is possible to grow garlic using mycelium brought from the forest and scattered over the garden soil.
Doubles and their differences
Several of its varieties and counterparts are considered similar in appearance to garlic.
Great garlic
This species differs from the usual one in having a larger cap (up to 5 cm), a black stalk with hair, and plates with uneven edges. The mushroom is edible, but it is recommended to boil it before use.
Oak garlic
Quite a rare species that lives in oak foliage. It differs in that its stem is covered with red hairs, its cap is wrinkled, and its plates can be translucent. The mushroom is edible, consumed fresh and pickled, and used as a spice.
Meadow mushrooms
As you can see in the photo, common garlic is very similar to meadow mushrooms. But their legs are thicker, and in addition, they do not have a characteristic spicy smell. They glow in the dark. Mushrooms phosphoresce. They are boiled, fried, salted and pickled.
How to distinguish garlic mushroom from toadstool
Inexperienced mushroom pickers can confuse common garlic mushroom with toadstools. To prevent this from happening, it is worth remembering that the leg of the first one is darker than the cap. It is hard to the touch, unlike toadstool. The most important sign that you have a non-poisonous mushroom in your hands is the smell of garlic, which appears after a small piece of it is rubbed in your hands. Using this marker, it is difficult to make a mistake when picking mushrooms.
Conclusion
Despite the fact that the garlic mushroom is inconspicuous in appearance, the aroma that it is able to synthesize has culinary value in preparing dishes.The product is easy to store dry and later transform into its original form with water. These qualities may be the reason for greater attention to garlic and its use.
