The blue leg mushroom, which is also called the blue foot or lilac-foot row, belongs to the family of ordinary. It is common throughout the European part of Russia. The blue foot stubbornly tolerates the first frosts, so it can be collected until late autumn.
General characteristics
The blue foot has a specific blue-violet coloration of the lower part, which repels many mushroom pickers. In fact, this mushroom is suitable for consumption and does not contain toxic substances.
You can distinguish the blue leg by the following external characteristics:
- a convex flat hat of light yellow color with a light violet tint, the average diameter of which is 10 cm, but sometimes it can reach 25 cm;
- on the bottom of the hat there are plates of a yellowish color;
- the leg of this fungus is fibrous, has a gray-violet or bright purple color, sometimes with a bluish tint;
- the flesh of the mushroom is dense and thick; in the mature period, it becomes loose.
From the bruises, you can cook different dishes. This type of mushroom is great for pickling.
The fruiting season of the blue foot begins in April and lasts until the end of October. Most mushrooms can be found in the fall. Several crops are harvested in one season.
Places of growth
The purple leg-foot is common in the temperate climate zone. The mushroom is widespread in Russia. In addition, the blue foot is found in the forests of South and North America.
The lilac-leg rowing usually grows under an ash-tree or coniferous trees. Large accumulations of these fungi are observed in places where there is humus, in meadows in places of grazing, in places of fallen leaves.
Unlike many other types of mushrooms, bruises are not tied to a specific tree: for them, the soil is much more important. Such fungi grow in colonies, forming large rows or circles.
When collecting mushrooms, the following recommendations should be taken into account:
- it is better to collect bruises in sunny weather, since in conditions of humidity their hats are covered with mucus and become unpleasant to the touch, the slippery surface of the fungus will create difficulties when cutting;
- to find large colonies of mushrooms, you need to go to open bright glades;
- you should not try the bruises in the raw form, they are conditionally edible mushrooms and require heat treatment.
Collecting the lilac-legged row, it is worth abandoning the rotten and old specimens. Old but strong mushrooms with a fresh look can be left, but before cooking, you need to remove their plate part and eat it safely without any fear.
Useful properties and features of the blue leg
The blue foot, like other representatives of the rank-and-file, contains many vitamins and nutrients. It:
- amino acids;
- lipids;
- potassium;
- manganese;
- phosphorus;
- selenium;
- aspartic acid, a natural antibiotic;
- folic acid;
- Vitamin E
- vitamin K1;
- glycine.
Bruises have such useful properties:
- suppression of the activity of pathogenic microorganisms;
- coronary vessels strengthening;
- normalization of blood sugar;
- removal of free radicals from the body;
- improvement of the cardiovascular system;
- blood pressure stabilization;
- preventing the development of depressive conditions;
- removal of toxins from the body;
- a decrease in the severity of inflammatory processes;
- stimulation of the urinary and biliary system;
- prevention of the development of dermatological diseases.
Growing a blue foot at home
The purple leg row can be grown at home and harvest mushrooms several times a year. Mycelium can be added to the soil of the garden, or you can grow a blue leg in suitable indoor spaces.
Mushroom growing in the garden
To grow the bruises, you need to prepare compost, which is a breeding ground for this type of mushroom. It can be prepared in several ways:
- mix 12 kg of dry unreacted straw with fresh cow manure (8 kg), the preparation time is about 25 days;
- mix 12 kg of straw with 8 kg of fresh bird droppings, cooking time - 24-26 days;
- mix 12 kg of straw with 8 kg of fresh horse manure, preparation time - 22-24 days;
Growing a blue foot in the garden is easy. It is best to lay the culture in May, although this can also be done in the fall. The only condition is that the air temperature should not be below +15 degrees. You can grow bruises in the garden both on the beds and in boxes or bags.
After planting in the soil, the substrate with the mycelium added to it is covered and regularly moistened. When in 2-3 weeks violet patches (mycelium) appear on the substrate, you need to apply a moist layer of earth (5 cm) on top, covering the culture.
After 2-3 weeks, the mycelium will appear already on the surface of the soil. The coating layer should always remain moderately moist.
The blue leg will be able to endure the winter cold. In autumn, when the temperature drops below 5 degrees, beds with mushrooms must be covered with bags, and a layer of straw or foliage should be poured on top, the thickness of which should be at least 10 cm. In spring, this coating can be removed when the temperature rises above 10 degrees.
Watch the video in which the mushroom picker shares his experience of growing these mushrooms on his site:
Growing a blue foot indoors
You can breed lilac-legged rowing indoors. They should maintain a temperature in the range of + 10-15 degrees.
Also, in premises intended for breeding of the bruises, there should be a high level of humidity. A good ventilation system and lighting are required.
The most common mistakes that negate the effort spent on growing the blue pinches are:
- excessive illumination: if a large amount of sunshine falls on the mushrooms, then they are dehydrated and die;
- insufficient or excessive soil moisture;
- poor ventilation.
The blue foot gives the first crop about a year and a half after planting.
Methods for making the bruises
After collecting and transporting the mushrooms, the blue legs need to be processed as quickly as possible. They need to be held for some time in salt water to eliminate insects that may be in the mushrooms. Pre-bruises should be cleaned.
Then they need to be washed under running water, boil for 15 minutes, drain the water. After that, they can be used to prepare various dishes.
Pickled Blue Feet
The bruises are often pickled. Mushrooms prepared in this way are truly a delicious product, as they have an unusual, pleasant taste.
To make pickled blue pinches, you need to:
- Boil peeled mushrooms (1 kg) for 20 minutes.
- Tilt in a colander, wait until the water completely drains from the mushrooms.
- Pour blue feet with a liter of water, put on fire, bring to a boil.
- When the water boils, add 2 tablespoons of coarse salt, a few leaves of laurel, 12 peas of black pepper. Also, if available, you can add several oak or currant leaves - they will give a special aftertaste and aroma to the finished product.
- Boil the mushrooms with spices for 10 minutes at low heat.
- Take 2 cloves of garlic, chop, add to the mushrooms along with two tablespoons of vinegar.
- Boil everything together for 7-10 minutes.
Pour mushrooms with brine into sterilized jars, close, put in heat until cool.
You can also prepare dishes from a blue-leg for a full lunch or dinner - first, second, salads.
Blueheart Soup
To prepare the soup, you need to take 500 g of mushrooms, one chicken, 3 potatoes and 2 onions, medium-sized carrots, one bell pepper. You will also need salt, ground black pepper, bay leaf.
Soup with bruises is prepared in this way:
- Mushrooms are cleaned, washed, boiled in salted water for half an hour.
- Fillet cut into small cubes.
- Peel and chop vegetables: onion - in small cubes, potatoes - in small cubes, pepper - in thin strips.
- Grate the carrots.
- Onion is fried in oil until transparent, then carrots are added to it, brought to a golden color.
- The liquid in which they cooked is drained from the bruises and poured with new water, chicken and potatoes are added, and put on fire.
- Cook the soup for 20 minutes. Fried vegetables and peppers are added 10 minutes before the end.
- Add salt, pepper, boil for a couple of minutes and turn off the heat.
Such mushroom soup is especially good with sour cream and finely chopped herbs.
Mushrooms in batter
These unusual mushrooms also make a good tasty snack - bruises in batter. They are suitable for both a family dinner and a festive table.
For this recipe you will need: kefir (0.5 l), flour (500 g), bruises (1 kg) and vegetable oil.
- Mushrooms need to be cleaned, washed, and the hats should be separated from the legs.
- Next you need to cook batter. To do this, mix kefir with flour, mix well, so that the mass becomes homogeneous, without lumps. Leave the batter for 10 minutes.
- Heat vegetable oil in a pan. Place the blue-hat hats in batter, making sure that it evenly covers them on all sides, then place in oil and fry on both sides until a golden crust is obtained.
Eating mushrooms in batter can be both hot and cold. Fresh greens of dill and parsley are ideal for them.
The blue-legged, or lilac-legged rowan, is a mushroom distributed in spacious glades and in places whose sections are enriched with humus. Although it is considered conditionally an edible mushroom, it can be eaten after heat treatment without fear. Bruises can be grown on your garden plot or in special rooms.