Parasol mushrooms (L. Lepiota procera) happen to be one of my real favourites, so lunch, over the next few days, is a foregone conclusion (unless the cepes decide to erupt).
Anyone worried about searching for, and eating, wild mushrooms, can be assured that with the Parasol it's difficult to make a mistake. The larger ones (above) stand nearly 12 inches high, and the caps are about 8 inches across; they are often much bigger. No other white gilled mushroom grows to that size, and they always have a distinctive ring a third of the way down the stem. They also have a very bulbous root.
As for flavour, they taste a little like chicken, and make an excellent, and substantial, omelete.
Lucky is he (or in this case, she) who finds Parasols.
17 comments:
I probably should have added that the white oval plate on which the Parasols are placed, is huge! It's designed for a giant roast turkey. Pictures can be deceiving.
Hello:
Your footnote was useful as to the size of the plate - these mushrooms are indeed large!
Here, throughout the City, there are Mushroom Offices where, if you have gathered your own, you take them to be identified. All right as long as the inspector is a friend!
How appropriate that the Parasols should have been picked in the rain!
I might have to go for a walk in the woods today... (although I don't think I could ever trust my mushroom identification skills sufficiently to eat any finds).
Yes, Parasols are very good, but you need to include a health warning - the confusion between Parasols and other Aminitas is what kills most inexperienced collectors, I believe. Once you have compared the two side by side, you can never be confused (Parasols are very tall, for instance) but when young, Death-Caps and Parasols are easily mistaken for each other - even by Russians, who are brought up to gather mushrooms. This shouldn't put people off, but if it does, all the more for us!
I've just returned from a trip to my local woods where I picked some. I think they were Parasol's. They tasted o.k. but...
...Ughhhhhhh kkkkkkkchchkkk!!!!!!!1
Chris. Just don't eat anything that has pixies living beneath it..... A never-fail identification!
They are huge...I believe the only wild fungus I have eaten are morels (spelling?) and puffballs. Do you have puffballs in France?
Yes we do MBJ. Huge ones that are almost the size of footballs; very tasty. As for morels, I've only ever found one, and that was by chance.
They make a pretty arrangement. You know, I don't trust myself with these things, but I can pick a mean radish out in the garden.
What a delicious treat is in store for you over the next few days. Lady Magnon certainly brought home a treasure. Looking forward to hearing how you cook them
Thanks for a beautiful post
Helen
They're best simply fried in olive oil, with salt garlic and parsley. We had our today's haul with a salad.
Dad used to slice the puffballs, bread them lightly and fry them. I haven't tasted them since I was a kid.
I laughed out loud when you said they taste like chicken! But they look beautiful and exotic...the omelete will undoubtedly be a masterpiece.
Cro...did you know it is possible to preserve mushrooms?
MBJ. We've tried everything from freezing to bottling. Our favourite, though, is drying; especially good with cepes.
Mushrooms, garlic, and chianti, oh my! They're three of my favorite thing, but I don't believe I'll be trusting myself to pick mushrooms in the wild. I'll have to buy them from the market and hope the sellers know more than I do. (which wouldn't take much)
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