Content
Royal honey mushroom, or golden flake, is not considered a valuable mushroom in Russia, for which mushroom pickers “hunt” with passion. But in vain, because it has a fairly high taste and medicinal properties. The main thing is to distinguish it in the forest from the inedible representatives of the mushroom family.
Description of golden scales
Golden scales, or royal honey (and Pholiota aurivella, willow, thick or greasy scales) looks really luxurious: a large bell-shaped cap covers a thin leg with tiny scales. The size of the mushroom is 10 - 15 cm in height, but as it grows, the cap of golden scales reaches really king size - up to 20 cm and, unlike many poisonous analogues, does not change shape as it grows in size.
Description of the hat
The cap of a young mushroom is bell-shaped, 5 - 6 cm in diameter, yellow in color with various shades of sandy or rusty. From above it is covered with small flaky scales of a darker color than the color of the cap. As it grows further, the cap straightens out and takes on the shape of a wide bell. The lamellar hymenophore is hidden behind a white veil in young individuals, subsequently the veil is torn, leaving only a light felt fringe along the edge of the cap. As it grows, the dark scales on the cap become less visible.
Leg description
The leg of a golden scale, up to 10 cm long, up to 1.5 cm in diameter, of a yellowish-brown color, is completely covered with felt scales of a darker color, as clearly demonstrated in the photo of the mushroom. In young representatives, there is a ring on the leg, formed from a rupture. In adults, the ring is absent.
Is golden scale edible or not
Royal mushroom belongs to the fourth category of mushrooms, which will indicate the minimum value from a gastronomic point of view. However, it is not only edible, but also beneficial to human health, as it has medicinal properties. The pulp of the mushroom has a somewhat specific taste, which is easily eliminated after a short soaking for 2 to 4 hours. When properly prepared, the taste of royal mushrooms is quite high. However, they must be boiled before any kind of cooking.
How to cook golden flakes
Second courses and pickled preparations are prepared from golden flakes, but only after preliminary boiling of the mushrooms for 15-20 minutes. They go well with meat, potatoes and vegetables. Suitable for stews, pie fillings and assorted mushrooms.For the winter table, mushrooms are harvested in various ways:
- dried;
- salt;
- pickled.
Stews from royal honey mushrooms with the addition of milk or sour cream have high taste.
How to pickle golden flakes
Marinating golden flakes is the most popular culinary method. At home, you can prepare a canning that will not be inferior to the taste of a store one.
The algorithm of actions is as follows:
- The mushrooms are cleaned, sorted by size, washed thoroughly and boiled in salted water for 20 - 25 minutes.
- Thrown back in a colander, allow the water to drain.
- They are laid out in prepared, pre-sterilized jars.
- Add cloves, bay leaves, peppercorns, peeled garlic cloves.
- Prepare the marinade: add 2 tablespoons to 1 liter of water. l. sugar, 2.5 tbsp. l. not iodized salt. After boiling, table vinegar is added - 4 - 5 tbsp. l.
- Prepared flakes are poured with marinade and immediately rolled into jars.
How to fry golden flakes with onions
Cooking the lightest and at the same time delicious dish from golden flakes will not take much time, but it will provide invaluable benefits to the body. Cooking algorithm:
- The mushrooms brought from the forest are cleaned, washed and cooked in salted water for 20 - 25 minutes.
- The mushroom mass is thrown into a colander, allowed to drain completely and placed in a pan with vegetable oil.
- Fry over high heat under a closed lid.
- When the moisture evaporates, add onion rings, salt and pepper.
- The dish is brought to readiness and immediately served.
The healing properties of golden flakes
Golden flake contains:
- vitamins;
- amino acids and minerals;
- fats;
- proteins;
- large amounts of phosphorus and calcium.
There are 2 - 3 times more useful components in royal mushrooms than in many other mushrooms. Therefore, we can say with confidence that representatives of this species bring invaluable benefits to the human body. The healing properties of royal honey agaric consist in immunomodulatory action, as well as a beneficial effect on brain activity and the ability to restore vitality. Mushrooms are also useful for anemia.
Where and how it grows
The edible mushroom golden flake grows throughout the Russian territory, as well as in Asia, Europe, Australia and America. Active growth occurs in the period from mid-August to the end of September. Honey mushrooms prefer deciduous, coniferous and mixed forests, where they are found in large numbers on rotten stumps, rotting fallen trees, soddy soil, overgrown with grass. It grows in especially large quantities in Primorye, where it pleases mushroom pickers from early summer to late autumn.
Twins of golden scales and their differences
False doubles of golden scales:
- Mucous scale - very similar to its edible counterpart, but with age, the edges of its caps rise. Mushrooms are covered with mucus during the rainy season, have a small number of scales on the cap. They grow near dead wood or on rotten wood. The variety is inedible.
- False royal mushroom, the hemispherical cap of which has a rich bright color and is also covered with scales, and straightens with age. However, it lacks the rings characteristic of edible species. False honey fungus is poisonous.
- Common scaly has a very similar appearance to the golden representative of the family. It is characterized by a pale color compared to golden flakes. The mushroom is medicinal, used for medicinal purposes.Important! The product contains opium in its composition, therefore it is not recommended to eat it.
Useful video will not allow you to confuse scaly with doubles during a quiet hunt
Conclusion
The golden scaly, despite what is called the royal mushroom, is not its counterpart and belongs to a completely different family. However, mushroom pickers undeservedly bypass these mushrooms: this species is not inferior to mushrooms in taste and healing properties.
