Content
- 1 What does the Polish boletus mushroom look like?
- 2 Where do Polish boletus mushrooms grow?
- 3 Is Polish boletus edible or not?
- 4 Taste qualities of the Polish boletus mushroom
- 5 The benefits and harms of the Polish boletus mushroom
- 6 False doubles
- 7 Collection rules
- 8 How to cook Polish boletus
- 9 Conclusion
The Polish boletus is an edible mushroom from the Boletaceae family. Many connoisseurs of quiet hunting consider it a cheap delicacy, accessible to everyone. It is very popular in Western Europe, but residents of the post-Soviet space have a slightly different opinion about it. Officially, it is not even included in the first category of edibility: it is believed that its taste can only be compared with boletus mushrooms, but it is very far from porcini mushrooms. This species owes its name to enterprising Polish merchants who sold it almost throughout Europe, although it is found not only in Poland.Next will be a photo and description of the Polish boletus.
What does the Polish boletus mushroom look like?
This is a fairly large representative of the mushroom kingdom, the appearance of which is perfectly suited to the classic description of a mushroom, as it is depicted in children's books. The round cap has the correct shape, its diameter can reach up to 15 cm.
The cap is convex, covered with thin skin, which is practically not removable. It feels dry, smooth, and without mucus. After a little rain, the cap may have adhesive properties. Young fruiting bodies have a matte white skin, while adults are brown and shiny. The color of the cap itself is dark yellow or chocolate brown.
The hymenophore has a tubular structure. It either grows to the leg or does not reach 5-7 mm to it. In the latter case, a noticeable notch is formed, and the cap becomes thinner.
The pulp contained in it is fleshy and dense. Its color is predominantly white or yellow-white. When cut, the pulp may acquire a blue color, and after some time (up to 1 hour) the color changes to its original color.
The height of the leg reaches 12 cm, the thickness is no more than 4 cm. The leg most often has a cylindrical shape. In relatively rare cases, it may be slightly thickened above or below. The flesh of the stem is fibrous, slightly tougher than that of the cap. The color is light brown or brown.
The spores of the Polish boletus are ellipsoidal in shape, they are yellow-honey in color, and smooth. In this case, the color of the spore powder has an olive tint.The size of the spores is no more than 16 and 5 microns in length and width, respectively.
Where do Polish boletus mushrooms grow?
The Polish boletus is found predominantly in coniferous forests of temperate climates. But, since it is capable of forming mycorrhiza not only with coniferous trees, but also with oak, beech, horse chestnut, etc., it can also be found in deciduous forests. Guaranteed to be found in any spruce forest in Western and Central Europe.
Prefers sandy soils, although it can tolerate loamy soil. On sandstones it occurs in the form of small colonies, on loams - mainly singly or in 1-2 specimens. With great reluctance, it “settles” near dead trees and stumps. It is almost impossible to meet a Polish boletus near a stump.
The homeland of the species is considered to be the east of Poland and the west of Belarus, but this is just one of the versions of its origin, which has a “commercial” background. In fact, it is very widespread in Europe, the North Caucasus, Western Siberia and the Far East. Representatives of the species can be found even in Azerbaijan and in the vicinity of Tyumen.
Is Polish boletus edible or not?
The mushroom belongs to the second category of edibility; it can be consumed in any form: boiled, fried, dried, salted, pickled. A special feature of the mushroom is its rather long ripening period. In late autumn, when almost all the Boletaceae are gone, the Polish boletus is still quite common.
Taste qualities of the Polish boletus mushroom
The “hat” pulp has a very strong mushroom smell, spreading over several meters, however, it is not repulsive; on the contrary, the Polish mushroom smells quite pleasant.Unfortunately, even with minor heat treatment, the smell of the Polish boletus almost completely disappears.
Subjective assessments of taste can vary greatly among different sources. And the point here is not only in the personal taste sensations of this or that expert. The beautiful and large Polish boletus looks as if it can compete with the “absolute top” in the world of mycology – porcini mushrooms. In reality, this is, of course, not the case.
According to the classification, Polish boletus belongs to the moss mushrooms and fully corresponds to this taste niche. Prepared in a special way, in some dishes it sounds like an ordinary boletus mushroom, sometimes approaching the taste of a porcini mushroom, but never reaching it.
As for the taste and aroma of dried mushrooms (the main way of consuming them), then the Polish boletus will not compete with both white and ordinary boletus. In contrast to the indicated representatives, its aroma almost completely disappears when dried.
As for ordinary dishes - fried mushrooms, mushroom soup or pickles, we can say that the Polish boletus in these dishes deserves a rating of 4.5 on a five-point scale. It retains the elastic properties of the pulp, and its taste is considered very good. The change in color of the stem and cap on the cut completely disappears during heat treatment. That is, you should not be afraid that the dish will turn red or blue when adding Polish boletus to it.
The benefits and harms of the Polish boletus mushroom
Like all mushrooms, the benefit of the Polish boletus is that it contains a large amount of protein. Its energy value is quite high, and it is able to quickly satisfy hunger.
Polish boletus also has its contraindications. First of all, they relate not so much to the mushrooms themselves, but to the places where they are collected. The property of mushrooms to accumulate harmful substances and toxins is well known, so you should not collect Polish boletus mushrooms in the immediate vicinity of industrial enterprises, pipelines, power lines, railways, roads and other similar objects.
Standard restrictions on the consumption of Polish boletus apply to children (under 5 years of age) and pregnant women. These categories are not recommended to consume mushrooms in any form. This also includes people suffering from diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.
False doubles
The following species can be classified as false doubles of the Polish boletus:
- Variegated moth fly. Its cap has a yellowish-brown tint, but as it grows, it becomes covered with cracks, and red flesh is visible in them, which the Polish boletus does not possess. This is an edible mushroom, but many people do not like it because it turns the dish bright blue.
- Brown moss. The cap has a yellow-brown or dark brown tint, but it is somewhat smaller than that of the Polish boletus. In addition, during growth, cracking of the skin is observed, similar to the variegated flywheel. In this case, white-yellow or white-green flesh is visible in the cracks.This is also an edible mushroom, but its taste is not very expressive. Only freshly prepared dishes have good taste. It is believed that brown mushrooms are only good when fried.
Collection rules
As such, there are no rules for collecting Polish boletus. It can be collected at any time of the year, from the end of July to the first days of November. The ripening time for fruits is about 2-4 weeks. Preference is given to young specimens, since very often the fruiting bodies, before they have even gained 50% of their “adult weight,” are attacked by insects and their larvae.
How to cook Polish boletus
Polish boletus can be prepared in any way suitable for mushrooms.
It can be used:
- fresh (cooking soups, roasts, side dishes and appetizers, in which case the mushroom must be boiled for 10-15 minutes);
- salted and pickled;
- dried;
- frozen.
There are no restrictions on preparation (except for 10-15 minute heat treatment). The blue color of the pulp disappears within the first minutes of boiling.
Conclusion
The Polish boletus is a typical inhabitant of temperate forests. It can be found almost everywhere in Eurasia. The mushroom has good taste and can be used to prepare any mushroom dish. The mushroom's doubles are not dangerous to humans, so a mistake if they accidentally end up in the basket will not have serious consequences.
