Content
- 1 Description of Caesar's fly agaric with photo
- 2 Is Caesar's fly agaric edible or not?
- 3 How to cook Caesar mushroom
- 4 What are the benefits of Caesar mushroom?
- 5 How and where does Caesar mushroom grow?
- 6 Doubles and their differences
- 7 Interesting facts about Caesar's fly agaric
- 8 Is it possible to grow Amanita Caesar mushrooms on a plot?
- 9 Conclusion
Caesar's mushroom is also called - Caesar's fly agaric, Caesar's mushroom or Caesar's mushroom (lat.Amanita caesarea). It grows over vast areas and is found in the forests of many countries in Europe, Asia and North America. Popularly, this species is often called the Egg Mushroom, due to the fact that at the very beginning of its development the fruiting body is covered with an egg-shaped cocoon. It has found application in many areas, including folk medicine. Caesar mushroom is used to prepare an independent dish and as a dietary supplement.
A photo of Caesar mushroom and a description of how this species can be prepared so that it does not lose its beneficial qualities are presented below.
Description of Caesar's fly agaric with photo
Caesar's fly agaric, as seen in the photo below, differs from the typical representatives of this family. Its appearance diverges from the generally accepted idea of the fly agaric - no white spots are visible on its cap. In shape and size, the fruiting body is similar to its poisonous counterpart - the red fly agaric. Therefore, it is important to know the key features of its appearance so as not to confuse an edible product with a life-threatening mushroom.
Description of the cap
The cap of a young Caesar mushroom has a rounded outline, which is clearly visible in the photo. As the fruiting body grows, it acquires flatter shapes and can reach 10-18 cm in diameter. Sometimes you come across specimens with a cap diameter of about 22 cm.
Ripe specimens have cap edges that are velvety to the touch. The color of the cap varies from rich yellow tones to light brown with an admixture of red. The pulp of the Caesar fly agaric is fleshy and juicy, pleasant to the taste.The underside of the cap is dotted with thin stripes.
Description of the leg
The description of the Caesar mushroom states that its stem is 7-12 cm high and about 3 cm thick, as can be seen in the photo below. Its shape is cylindrical, at the base it takes on the appearance of a club. Color – yellowish-ocher with an admixture of orange. The volva at the bottom of the leg is bag-like and rather loose. Its width can reach 4-5 cm. A characteristic feature of the species is a ring of the same color hanging from the stem. Just above this ring, stripes begin that go to the cap, but they are weakly expressed and barely noticeable.
Is Caesar's fly agaric edible or not?
Despite its rather scary name, Caesar's fly agaric is an edible mushroom. The fruiting body contains no toxic components, so it can be eaten. At the “egg” stage, it can be consumed raw, without heat treatment.
How to cook Caesar mushroom
There are various recipes for preparing Caesar mushroom, among which there are both very sophisticated dishes and quite simple ones - the process in this case takes no more than half an hour. This type can be boiled, fried and baked. Regardless of the cooking method, the taste remains very delicate. Amanita Caesar is served as a separate dish or added to vegetable stews, soups and meat dishes.
Adult mushrooms cannot be served without heat treatment, but young mushrooms that have not yet grown from the egg-shaped shell can be cut into salads. It is enough to rinse them thoroughly before doing this.
Stewed Caesar mushroom with cream
This is one of the most popular recipes for preparing Caesar mushroom.
- Mushrooms are thoroughly washed and finely cut into cubes.
- The resulting mass is poured into a frying pan and simmered over low heat for 5-8 minutes.
- Then add heavy cream to the dish, mix and leave on the fire for another 15 minutes.
Caesar mushroom with bacon
The youngest mushrooms must be selected as the basis for this recipe. The cooking algorithm is as follows:
- The mushrooms are washed, dried and their stems are carefully twisted out. This will free up space for the filling.
- The separated legs are finely chopped and fried with garlic for 3-4 minutes over medium heat.
- Then grate the cheese.
- Pour sour cream (2 tablespoons) over mushroom legs in a frying pan and simmer for a few more minutes without covering with a lid.
- After this, cut the bacon into thin slices, no more than 1 mm thick.
- Beat 1 egg and place filled caps, legs stewed in sour cream, cheese and 1 teaspoon of beaten eggs on special baking paper. All this is placed on sheets of bacon.
- Each sheet of bacon is wrapped around a cap with filling and the resulting roll is secured with a toothpick.
- The dish is baked in the oven for 15 minutes at 180°C.
The dish is served with herbs.
Fried Caesar mushroom in butter
This recipe is very simple: just put a piece of butter on a hot frying pan and add finely chopped mushrooms on top. Fry the Caesar fly agaric in butter for about 15 minutes, at the end the dish is salted and pepper to taste. Before serving, add greens to the dish.
What are the benefits of Caesar mushroom?
Amanita Caesar is a rich source of protein, vitamins and minerals. The concentration of phosphorus, calcium and ascorbic acid in its pulp is especially high.The benefit of dishes made from it also lies in the fact that it is a low-calorie product that is easily absorbed by the body. An extract from Amanita Caesar is used as an adjuvant in the treatment of cancer.
The beneficial properties of Amanita Caesar have a beneficial effect on the human body:
- relieves fatigue and helps with rapid fatigue;
- strengthens the immune system;
- reduces the risk of developing heart and vascular diseases;
- makes a person less susceptible to stress.
Contraindications to the use of Caesar's fly agaric
The use of Amanita Caesar has restrictions. It should not be added to food in the following cases:
- with urolithiasis;
- persons with gout;
- with individual intolerance.
How and where does Caesar mushroom grow?
Caesar's fly agaric places quite high demands on air purity, so it is impossible to find it near cities and major highways. Most often, the Caesar mushroom is found in deciduous forests in southern Europe; it can also be found in the subtropical zone. On the territory of Russia, the concentration of Amanita Caesar is especially high in Crimea.
It is worth looking for under old trees: oaks, chestnuts, beeches and birches. Caesar's mushroom is found under hazel trees. Occasionally you come across areas strewn with Caesar's fly agarics, which are located on the border of a forest and a field. They grow in large groups; they are rarely seen alone.
The species grows intensively at temperatures from +20°C.You can collect Amanita Caesar from early July to mid-October.
Doubles and their differences
Amanita Caesar has several dangerous counterparts that contain poisonous components in their fruiting body. Similarities with them are observed at different stages of development of the species.
Young fruiting bodies that have not yet “hatched” from the egg-shaped shell look like pale toadstools, the consumption of which can be fatal. You can distinguish the Caesar mushroom from its poisonous counterpart by making an incision on the egg shell and examining the contents of the cocoon. In a young pale toadstool, all parts of the mushroom have a faint greenish color, close to white. Caesar's fly agaric is golden-orange inside a white shell.
An adult Caesar mushroom is similar to the Amanita muscaria - an extremely poisonous mushroom that should never be eaten. They can be distinguished by the white flakes on the cap with which the poisonous double is strewn. The Amanita Caesar has a clean hat. In addition, Amanita muscaria has a more saturated red color. You can also distinguish these two species by the leg - in the Caesar's fly agaric the volva is free and bag-shaped, while in the red fly agaric it grows to the base.
The Amanita Caesar also has an edible analogue - the Far Eastern Caesar mushroom. The significant difference between these species is that the cap of the Far Eastern one has a rich red color, while that of the Caesar cap is light brown, slightly reddish. The Far Eastern variety grows in the deciduous forests of the Primorsky Territory, in its southern part.
Interesting facts about Caesar's fly agaric
In ancient times, this mushroom was called royal and was considered one of the best.Various writers glorified him in their works - for example, the famous ancient author Juvenal mentioned Caesar's fly agaric in his “Satires”. In addition, records about it are found in the Roman general Lucullus, a famous gourmet of that time.
Is it possible to grow Amanita Caesar mushrooms on a plot?
Caesar's fly agaric is not particularly popular among gardeners and gardeners, which is explained by its high demands on temperature conditions and soil composition. The growing conditions for this species on the site are as close to natural as possible. Amanita Caesar grows very slowly - it fully matures a few years after planting.
There are several ways to transplant Amanita Caesar:
- Planting material is crushed into a bucket and filled with rainwater. The resulting mixture is infused for 2 days at a temperature of about +20°C, after which the contents of the bucket are poured near a suitable tree.
- Carefully dug up mushrooms from the forest are transplanted to the garden plot.
- Planting material is crushed and buried under the trees, but not very deep.
Conclusion
It was not without reason that the Caesar mushroom was called that way - in ancient times it was a real decoration of the table of the Roman emperors. This does not mean that complex gourmet dishes are made from it - preparing Amanita Caesar is not particularly difficult.The raw materials for the dish can be collected in deciduous forests in warm latitudes or grown independently in a garden plot, but the latter option is time consuming. Finally, it is important to know the key differences between the Caesar mushroom and similar varieties - it has several poisonous counterparts, the consumption of which can be fatal.
You can learn more about Caesar's Fly Agaric from the video:
