This mushroom is quite often found in the middle latitudes of our country, it is called bile fungus, but its name also includes the name of mustard.
Experienced mushroom pickers probably know what this mushroom looks like and what mushrooms look like, but amateurs should be careful, because mustard is often confused with porcini mushroom, boletus and boletus. There are many controversial versions about whether this fungus is dangerous. But the question of whether the bile mushroom is edible can be answered unequivocally: no, since it has terrible bitterness and even a small piece of it can spoil the taste of the whole dish. Probably because of this property it was called bitterness.
Bile mushroom (mustard): description
This mushroom can be found in any region of our country from June to October. Bile fungus can grow both in groups and individually, most often found near coniferous forests, where trees and a lot of fallen needles are rare. There is an opinion about the mustard mushroom, that it is a double mushroom.
And this is actually so, because outwardly he looks very similar to him: a thick strong and fleshy leg, on top it is fibrous, dark brown or brown. Its cap on the inside resembles a sponge covered with a dense porous layer on top. The spongy portion has a pinkish tint and is very bitter in taste. Outside, the mushroom cap is covered with a thin film, it is dense and, as the mushroom grows, can change its color from pale to dark brown.
How to distinguish mustard from edible mushrooms ?
What kind of mushroom it is and how it looks, we have already figured out, now we will try to find out the distinctive features of mustard. How not to confuse it with cep or boletus? Perhaps the most important difference between the bile fungus is the color of its cap on the inside. It is spongy and has a pink tint. If such a mushroom is cut off, the leg will quickly darken and acquire a brown color. Another important feature that a bile fungus has is that no insects can ever harm it. For beginner mushroom pickers and amateurs, this makes mustard mushrooms very attractive.
The photos presented here confirm this. Gall mushroom is really beautiful, but you should not take it. After all, as already mentioned, even a small piece of mustard can spoil the whole dish.
Is it possible to get poisoned with mustard?
Scientists differ on the mustard mushroom. That this is an inedible, but not poisonous mushroom - say Russian biologists. In their opinion, the use of bile fungus in food is impossible only because of its bitter taste. Foreign scientists believe that the pulp of this fungus contains toxic substances that have a detrimental effect on liver cells. If, nevertheless, this fungus enters the human body, then it can cause dizziness and weakness. After a few weeks, another sign of poisoning may appear - the secretion of bile. It is believed that after eating a bile fungus, even the development of cirrhosis of the liver is possible. If you come across this mushroom, consider whether you should take it and risk your health. Despite the fact that he is beautiful and looks just like a real porcini mushroom, even insects and animals are in no hurry to enjoy the mustard, and probably not in vain.