Similar in appearance to deer antlers, it was not for nothing that the deer horn mushroom was so named. At the same time, it also resembles sea coral. It is not popular, and most people do not even realize that it is edible and very tasty. It is listed in the Red Book as a rare species and is considered the highest mushroom.

Places of growth and main characteristics

Most often, the deer horn mushroom can be found in the Far East, Karelia, Eurasia, Eastern and Western Siberia, North America and the Caucasus. It grows mainly in damp places of pine and deciduous forests among white moss and on rotten wood from June to October. In areas with warm climates, it is also harvested during the winter months. Found on roots and stumps. Grows in groups, forming arcs and rows.

Deer horns have several names:

  • coral mushroom;
  • horned;
  • latticefoot hedgehog;
  • Coral hedgehog.

Unable to determine, where it has a cap and where it has a leg, and therefore, when described, it is characterized as a body consisting of many fragile branched processes of light yellow, orange, light brown and purple. The branches grow up to 5-7 cm in height, while they reach 15-30 cm in width.

Only young specimens should be collected for food. It is advisable to cook freshly picked mushrooms. The tender flesh of horned mushrooms tastes like shrimp or champignons.

They can be used fried, dried and salted, and used as first and second courses. Fans of exotic dishes make caviar and filling for pies and dumplings from them. Potatoes fried with them are no worse than with other mushrooms. Rogatiki are marinated in a sauce that includes butter, salt, sugar, lemon juice and balsamic vinegar. But at the same time, doctors do not recommend consuming them in pickled and canned form.

Before cooking, deer antlers must be washed thoroughly, since due to their special structure they accumulate a lot of dirt on their body. After washing, cook for 15-30 minutes. Drain the broth and do not use it in food.

Cooking

Every mushroom picker is interested in how to cook deer horns. There aren't many recipes that use them as an ingredient. But the basic cooking methods are the same as with other mushrooms. Those lucky enough to find them can make some delicious dishes out of them.

Kira Stoletova

The deer horn mushroom stands out for its unusual shape and color among other mushrooms. It got its name because its shape resembles deer antlers or sea corals.

Description of the appearance of the mushroom

The color of the mushroom depends on its growth phase. Young deer antlers are light yellow in color; with age it darkens and becomes bright orange. It does not have the usual mushroom smell.

Irina Selyutina (Biologist):

As a species, the mushroom was described in 1755 by the French botanist Joseph de Tournefort. However, this species received its scientific name - yellow ramaria (Ramaria flava) only 133 years later in 1888 thanks to Lucien Quelet, the founder of the French Mycological Society.

Coral fungi, to which this species belongs, are considered basidiomycetes. Their spores are formed on the entire surface of the fruiting body, because the spore-bearing layer is located on the outer side.

Ramaria, also known as deer horn, is found on the soil surface and on rotten wood or stumps in all types of forests. You can find fruiting bodies in August-September, with good weather until October. Among the many species, poisonous ones are not found, but there is a division into conditionally edible and edible. It is better to eat only young organisms because older mushrooms have a bitter taste.

Deer antlers are harvested from August to October. They grow in small colonies, making them easy to collect. This type of mushroom also makes delicious first courses.

Types of mushroom

The deer horn mushroom has several similar types:

  1. Horny bunch: This is a white fungus in color, which with age acquires a light pink tint. Its branches reach a height of 15-20 cm and a diameter of 10-15 cm.
  2. Coral-shaped clusterweed: its body has thick, thin white branches. The pulp is tender, but becomes tougher with age.
  3. Purple horn: the mushroom is small in size, its body length is 10 cm, diameter is 4-5 cm. There is no pronounced taste or smell.
  4. Rogatik golden yellow: has thick “branches” of light yellow color. Its collection begins in late August-early September.
  5. Rogatik comb: reaches a height of 5 cm. The “branches” have comb-like, sharp tips.

Beneficial features

The composition contains amino acids (methionine and tryptophan), as well as lipids, phytoagglutinin and sterol. The mushroom is often used in Chinese medicine to treat gastrointestinal diseases and improve lung function.

It also has an antitumor effect and strengthens the immune system. Deer antlers are used in cosmetology to slow down the aging process.

The calorie content of the reindeer horn mushroom, or yellow ramaria, is 55 kcal per 100 g of product. Such a high calorie content allows it to be used in the preparation of various dishes. The mushroom is also perfect for a vegetarian menu.

Contraindications

This mushroom, like other types, has certain contraindications. These include:

  • children under 12 years of age;
  • pregnancy and lactation period;
  • chronic gastrointestinal diseases;
  • individual intolerance (allergy).

You should be careful when collecting because it has inedible counterparts.

Before cooking, they should be thoroughly washed under running water. You should not collect these mushrooms near highways and large industrial enterprises.

Application

This species is often used in folk medicine. Medicines for joints and cleansing the body of helminths (flat, round, tapeworms) are prepared from it.

Irina Selyutina (Biologist):

Ramaria yellow, or deer horns, has found its use in cosmetology. Here it is used for anti-aging procedures. Its use in this area is justified by its ability to retain moisture in the skin epithelium, which is significantly greater than the same property of glycerin and hyaluronic acid. Its natural polysaccharides deliver beneficial substances to the deep layers of the skin, and the vitamin D included in the composition becomes an activator of the metabolic process in the skin.

Also used in cooking. The horns are especially suitable for pickling and drying. They make delicious soups and mushroom caviar.

In cooking

Despite the fact that ramaria belongs to taste category 4 due to its characteristic bitterness, young mushrooms are still used in cooking. However, only young specimens and bases are best suited for these purposes, since the “twigs” are bitter.

Fresh deer horns are washed, cut into small pieces and boiled.

This species also makes delicious sauces and fillings for savory baked goods. The taste of ready-made deer antlers is similar to seafood or boiled chicken. Mushrooms brought from the forest are sorted out, and where required, the lower part of the stem with pieces of turf is cut off. Wash and then boil for 15-30 minutes in salted water. After this, the broth is drained and not used for other dishes.

For mushroom salad take:

  • boiled mushrooms – 150 g;
  • carrots – 150 g;
  • small onion – 1 pc.;
  • vinegar – 2 tbsp;
  • sunflower oil – 1 tbsp;
  • garlic – 2 cloves;
  • salt, pepper, herbs to taste.

Finely chopped mushrooms are combined with carrots and garlic. Then salt, add pepper and herbs, season with vegetable oil, and let it brew for 30 minutes. At this time, the onion is cut into rings, marinated and mixed with salad.

Marinated deer horns have a particularly delicate taste. To prepare them you need to take: lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, black pepper and vegetable oil. In appearance, pickled horns resemble corals.

First course recipe:

  • mushrooms – 400 g;
  • carrots – 150 g;
  • potatoes – 400 g;
  • hard cheese – 150 g;
  • butter – 50 g;
  • salt, pepper, herbs to taste.

Boil the mushrooms for 30 minutes, cut into small pieces. Vegetables are also chopped and thrown into the pan.

Add mushrooms, salt, pepper and herbs to the boiled vegetables and leave on low heat for 15 minutes. Then add grated cheese and butter; if desired, add cream or sour cream sauce before use.

In medicine

To combat stomach ulcers, you can prepare a medicinal tincture according to the following recipe:

  • Rinse 150 g of fresh mushrooms thoroughly, dry and place in the refrigerator for 2 days.
  • Cut the prepared mushrooms into small pieces and pour in 500 ml of alcohol or high-quality vodka;
  • Leave to infuse in a dark place for 30 days, then strain. After this, treatment begins.

For ulcers, drink 1 tbsp. l. medication three times a day before meals. The treatment period lasts a month, then take a break for 14 days and repeat the course.

Conclusion

Deer horn mushrooms are one of the most unusual of their kind. They are valued for their exotic shape and pleasant taste. Most often found on stumps and dry trees in coniferous forests.

It is often used in preparing various dishes. This type of mushroom also helps in the treatment of certain diseases. But you should be careful when collecting, they can be confused with false representatives of this “deer horns” group.

Description of deer horn mushrooms

People call deer antlers so because in shape they really resemble the branched antlers of a male deer.

What kind of mushrooms are “deer horns”, are they edible?

To many it resembles coral.

Rules for collecting horned animals:

Important tip!

Appearance

Taste qualities

Where does the mushroom live?

Deer antlers live in central Eurasia and North America.

Description of the mushroom Deer Horns

In Russia, it can be found in Siberia, near the Caucasus Mountains. They prefer pine forests, but they are also found in deciduous forests. They grow on healthy or dead tree trunks.

Classification of mushrooms

Edible:

Conditionally edible:

The world of mushrooms is truly fascinating and unique. These organisms are unique in themselves and can surprise you with their shapes, complex life cycles, and taste.

In the forests you can sometimes find an unusual mushroom that looks like coral. People call it “deer horns”. Let's talk more about these mushrooms.

Description of deer horn mushrooms

The correct botanical name is Ramaria flava. From Latin it is translated as Ramaria yellow. Belongs to the department Basidiomycetes, class Agaricomycetes, order Gomphaceae, family Rogataceae.

The habitat of this mushroom is the mixed, deciduous and coniferous forests of the Caucasus, the North-West of our country, as well as the forests of Central Europe.

Sometimes in mushroom picker reference books you can find the following names:

The above-ground part of the ramaria grows approximately 15-20 cm in height. The fruiting body grows diametrically and reaches 20 cm in diameter. In the middle there is a dense hyphal plexus that forms a common stalk, and branched processes “horns” emerge from it. These “branches” are cylindrical in shape and branch dichotomously at their apex.

The color of the aboveground part of the fruiting body is yellow, and the palette of yellow can have different shades. This depends on the substrate on which the ramaria grows, as well as the intensity of sunlight in the undergrowth.

Closer to the bases of the horns, the color can be rich yellow. If you press on the fruiting body, a brownish color appears at the place of compression. When cut, the flesh is marble yellow. The smell is quite pleasant, reminiscent of the smell of freshly cut grass.

Ramaria has a low food grade. On the botanical scale of food categories - fourth. There is no particular pronounced mushroom taste. If the fruiting bodies are collected old, the tops must be removed, as they accumulate substances that give a certain bitterness.

Collection rules and precautions

Many horned mushrooms are poisonous. In this regard, you need to know yellow ramaria and be able to distinguish it from other “forest corals”. Collection and preparation are carried out in August and September. At this time, deer antlers can be found in the undergrowth as single fruits or small groups of 3-4 “bushes”.

Rules for collecting horned animals:

Important tip! If you are a novice mushroom picker, it is not recommended to collect horned mushrooms. Whether the horned mushroom is edible or not is difficult to determine. Some of them are so similar to each other that they can only be distinguished under a microscope. There is only one reassuring point - among these mushrooms there are no highly poisonous ones that lead to death.

How to properly cook mushrooms

The soup made from “reindeer horns” is especially tasty. To prepare it, you will need the standard ingredients of mushroom soup - a clove of garlic, onions, herbs, carrots, potatoes, butter, salt, pepper and 300-400 g of this wonderful mushroom.

Boil the mushrooms separately in salted water for 20 minutes. This broth must be drained and not used. It may contain toxins. You can boil it twice for 10 minutes. It will be even better that way.

Then the soup is cooked in the standard way. Throw onions, potatoes, garlic, carrots into cold water, bring to a boil, add mushrooms. Cook for 10 minutes over low heat and add salt, pepper and herbs. This makes a very tasty light mushroom soup. Children will especially like it, since the mushrooms in the soup are unusual.

Ramaria can be salted, fried with potatoes, or added to salads. The main condition for cooking is to always simmer the mushrooms over low heat for 10-15 minutes in salted water. This helps get rid of toxins. This is especially important, because among the horned ones there are many moderately poisonous species.

Edible deer horn mushrooms: description of the type and recipes

Primary thermal treatment allows you to destroy and reduce the concentration of toxic substances to a minimum.

Young deer antlers can be dried. Overripe fruiting bodies can rot when dried, but young ones dry out easily. To do this, they need to be divided into the maximum possible number of “branches” with part of the stem. A thread is threaded through the leg. Next, the mushroom garlands are hung in the shade in a dry and ventilated room.

When preparing dishes from dried ramaria, it must be soaked in water for 12 hours, and then rinsed thoroughly and boiled for 10 minutes.

Collect deer horns, prepare culinary masterpieces from them, but be careful and careful!

This amazing specimen is found in forests from time to time. He is very unusual and even a little exotic due to his appearance. This name, of course, is associated with its unusual appearance and shape. After all, it is very similar to deer horns or corals. Because of such an unusual shape and color, many mushroom pickers pass by these amazing specimens.

Appearance

Deer antler mushrooms look very exotic and unusual. As mentioned above, they are similar to corals. The color of these mushrooms varies from light yellow to bright orange. Young specimens have light and delicate tones, but older specimens look a little brighter.

By weight, the deer antler mushroom can reach a size of about one kilogram. And in diameter and height up to 20 cm. It is interesting that at first they grow in width, and then begin to grow in height. That is, from one copy you can prepare dinner for a large company.

Taste qualities

The taste of this mushroom is legendary. They say that it tastes incredible, although it belongs to the fourth category. Deer horns are incredibly tender, pleasant and slightly similar in taste to chicken or shrimp. Of course, if they are well prepared for this.

Also, only young mushrooms are tasty. Old specimens are bitter and unpleasant. Alas, even soaking and heat treatment cannot remove their bitterness. Therefore, you should not collect them, but rather look for young mushrooms.

Deer antlers are used for cooking, soups, salads, pies, and they are also used as a filling for any dish. Also, deer horns are pickled, fried, stewed, and there are many more different ways to prepare them.

On the Internet you can find a bunch of different recipes for preparing these mushrooms. They are all very tasty and interesting.

Where does the mushroom live?

This mushroom is a rare specimen, so it is not found often. Although, if you find a place where they grow, you will probably meet not just one representative, but a whole bunch. Sometimes, in one place you can collect a whole bag of these mushrooms. They can grow in a bunch or in a circle.

Deer antlers live in central Eurasia and North America. In Russia, it can be found in Siberia, near the Caucasus Mountains. They prefer pine forests, but they are also found in deciduous forests.

deer horns

They grow on healthy or dead tree trunks.

Interestingly, its taste depends on what tree this mushroom grows on. They say that deer antlers that grow on linden and oak trees are considered the most delicious, but those on pine and cedar trees are less tender.

This mushroom has no poisonous counterparts, but there are conditionally edible ones.

Classification of mushrooms

Edible:

  • Horny bunch (color from soft red to rich brown).
  • Coral-shaped hedgehog (color white, cream).
  • Rogatik is purple (color varies from dark purple to deep lilac).
  • Amethyst horn (purple color).
  • Rogatik is golden yellow (light yellow color).
  • The mushroom is formidable (color cream, slightly brownish).
  • Rogatik is yellowish (color is dirty pale gray-yellow).
  • Rogatik comb (white color).
  • Mushroom cabbage (color white with a yellowish tint).
  • Mushroom noodles (color white - pink).
  • Horny bulavastik truncated (brownish color).
  • Sakhalin Horntail (ocher color).

Conditionally edible:

  • Rogatik is dull (the color is dirty - cream, ocher).
  • Spruce hornet (color yellowish-brownish, slightly ocher).
  • The horn is beautiful (pink, ocher color).

These listed mushrooms are replicas of staghorn mushrooms. They are all very similar, both in taste and appearance. It is difficult to distinguish them from each other.

If you accidentally confuse edible with inedible, you will immediately feel it, because they will be too bitter and tasteless. This only threatens you with a spoiled mood.

Deer horn mushrooms: edible and inedible

The world of mushrooms is truly fascinating and unique. These organisms are unique in themselves and can surprise you with their shapes, complex life cycles, and taste.

In the forests you can sometimes find an unusual mushroom that looks like coral.

Deer horns - unusually shaped mushrooms

People call it “deer horns”. Let's talk more about these mushrooms.

Description of deer horn mushrooms

The correct botanical name is Ramaria flava. From Latin it is translated as Ramaria yellow. Belongs to the department Basidiomycetes, class Agaricomycetes, order Gomphaceae, family Rogataceae.

The habitat of this mushroom is the mixed, deciduous and coniferous forests of the Caucasus, the North-West of our country, as well as the forests of Central Europe.

People call deer antlers so because in shape they really resemble the branched antlers of a male deer. To many it resembles coral.

Sometimes in mushroom picker reference books you can find the following names:

The above-ground part of the ramaria grows approximately 15-20 cm in height. The fruiting body grows diametrically and reaches 20 cm in diameter. In the middle there is a dense hyphal plexus that forms a common stalk, and branched processes “horns” emerge from it. These “branches” are cylindrical in shape and branch dichotomously at their apex.

The color of the aboveground part of the fruiting body is yellow, and the palette of yellow can have different shades. This depends on the substrate on which the ramaria grows, as well as the intensity of sunlight in the undergrowth.

Closer to the bases of the horns, the color can be rich yellow. If you press on the fruiting body, a brownish color appears at the place of compression. When cut, the flesh is marble yellow. The smell is quite pleasant, reminiscent of the smell of freshly cut grass.

Ramaria has a low food grade. On the botanical scale of food categories - fourth. There is no particular pronounced mushroom taste. If the fruiting bodies are collected old, the tops must be removed, as they accumulate substances that give a certain bitterness.

Collection rules and precautions

Many horned mushrooms are poisonous. In this regard, you need to know yellow ramaria and be able to distinguish it from other “forest corals”. Collection and preparation are carried out in August and September. At this time, deer antlers can be found in the undergrowth as single fruits or small groups of 3-4 “bushes”.

Rules for collecting horned animals:

Important tip! If you are a novice mushroom picker, it is not recommended to collect horned mushrooms. Whether the horned mushroom is edible or not is difficult to determine. Some of them are so similar to each other that they can only be distinguished under a microscope. There is only one reassuring point - among these mushrooms there are no highly poisonous ones that lead to death.

How to properly cook mushrooms

The soup made from “reindeer horns” is especially tasty. To prepare it, you will need the standard ingredients of mushroom soup - a clove of garlic, onions, herbs, carrots, potatoes, butter, salt, pepper and 300-400 g of this wonderful mushroom.

Boil the mushrooms separately in salted water for 20 minutes. This broth must be drained and not used. It may contain toxins. You can boil it twice for 10 minutes. It will be even better that way.

Then the soup is cooked in the standard way. Throw onions, potatoes, garlic, carrots into cold water, bring to a boil, add mushrooms. Cook for 10 minutes over low heat and add salt, pepper and herbs. This makes a very tasty light mushroom soup. Children will especially like it, since the mushrooms in the soup are unusual.

Ramaria can be salted, fried with potatoes, or added to salads. The main condition for cooking is to always simmer the mushrooms over low heat for 10-15 minutes in salted water. This helps get rid of toxins. This is especially important, because among the horned ones there are many moderately poisonous species. Primary thermal treatment allows you to destroy and reduce the concentration of toxic substances to a minimum.

Young deer antlers can be dried. Overripe fruiting bodies can rot when dried, but young ones dry out easily. To do this, they need to be divided into the maximum possible number of “branches” with part of the stem. A thread is threaded through the leg. Next, the mushroom garlands are hung in the shade in a dry and ventilated room.

When preparing dishes from dried ramaria, it must be soaked in water for 12 hours, and then rinsed thoroughly and boiled for 10 minutes.

Collect deer horns, prepare culinary masterpieces from them, but be careful and careful!

Amethyst horn

Amethyst horn. Clavulina amethystina

Amethyst horn. Amethyst clavulina (Clavulina amethystina) photo

Grows in deciduous forest mixed with birch from late August to October, singly or in groups. The fruiting body is up to 7 cm in height, highly branched, lilac-violet, paler at the base. The branches are cylindrical, initially smooth, later finely wrinkled, with a blunt or serrated ending. Either there are no legs, or it is very short.

Amethyst horn edible, belongs to the fourth category. Used boiled and dried.

Clavulina cristata (Clavulina cristata)


Rogatik comb, clavulina combClavulina cristata

Fruiting body

Similarities

Can only be confused with other white horned birds.

Grade

The mushroom is not tasty.

Rogatik grape-shaped

Horntail (Ramaria botrytis)


Rogatik grape-shapedRamaria botrytis

Fruiting body

with a pleasant smell and mild taste.

Season and place

Grows in summer (until autumn) in deciduous and mixed forests, especially near beech trees. Rarely seen.

Grade

The mushroom is edible while it is young.

Description of the deer horns mushroom

Yellow hornet (Ramaria flava)

Yellow hornet (Ramaria flava) photo

Grows on the ground in deciduous and coniferous forests in August-September. The fruit body is up to 20 cm in height, up to 20 cm in diameter, very branched. All branches and legs are creamy, lemon-yellow in color, later becoming ocher or almost orange. The branches are flattened and equal in length.

The pulp (tissue) is white, pale yellowish, fragile, watery. The spore powder is pale ocher. The leg is up to 8 cm in height, 4-5 cm in diameter, whitish at the base, and turns reddish when pressed. Button edible, fourth category.

In cooking, yellow hornet is used boiled.

Golden hornet

Beautiful hornet, beautiful ramaria (Ramaria formosa)


Rogatik is beautiful, ramaria is beautifulRamaria formosa

Fruiting body

whitish-yellowish, yellowish-pink or salmon-colored at the top, yellow ends. Old specimens are distinguished by a uniform leather-brown color. Pulp white, brittle, sometimes turns red when pressed, tastes bitter.

Season and place

Grows in deciduous forests.

Grade

The mushroom is POISONOUS! Possible disturbances in the functioning of the stomach and intestines.

Horntail truncated

Rogatik reed. Clavariadelphus ligula

Rogatik reed. Clavariadelphus ligula photo

Grows in coniferous, (less often in deciduous) forests on fallen needles in July-September. Occurs rarely, singly or in small groups (3-6 pieces). The fruit body is small, club-shaped or elongated-linguate, up to 10 cm in height, up to 15 mm in diameter, smooth, creamy, then ocher-yellow or yellow-orange.

The flesh is white or creamy. Spore powder is white. Little known edible mushroom of the fourth category.

They use boiled reed horntail.

10 best sites on the topic: Horned mushroom

  1. Pictures upon request Horned mushroom - edible

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  8. Cooking Club Mushroom Picker's Guide Edible mushrooms Rogatik

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  9. mmarym - it's true edible mushrooms? horned yellow

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Deer horn mushrooms amaze with their unusual appearance. They grow on trees and resemble either deer antlers or corals. From them you can prepare dishes for every taste. The main thing is to collect them with caution, because there are inedible and poisonous mushrooms that look similar.

Deer horn mushrooms grow on trees

  • Number of servings: 3
  • Preparation time: 30 minutes
  • Cooking time: 40 minutes

How to prepare an appetizer from reindeer horn mushrooms

A light mushroom salad for an appetizer is a great start to a holiday lunch. It is especially interesting if such a salad is made not from the usual chanterelles or champignons, but from rare and unusual mushrooms.

Before preparing the salad, boil the reindeer horns in salted water until tender. It will take no more than 30 minutes. Then follow the instructions:

  1. Cut the mushrooms into small pieces, chop the carrots into small strips, chop the garlic. Mix these ingredients. Add salt, pepper, vegetable oil and half the vinegar to them. Let it brew for 30 minutes.
  2. Cut the onion into thin half rings, pour the remaining vinegar over it and let it marinate to remove any excess bitterness.
  3. Mix salad with onions.

Garnish the salad with sprigs of herbs or sprinkle it with chopped herbs.

Soup with mushrooms and reindeer horns

Mushroom soup is a good solution for everyday lunch. If you find deer antlers on the trees in the forest, add them to the first dish. It will turn out tasty and aromatic. You will need:

  • 0.5 kg of deer horns;
  • 3 liters of water;
  • 200 g carrots;
  • 0.5 kg potatoes;
  • 100 g onions;
  • 200 g green canned or fresh peas;
  • 3 cloves of garlic;
  • 100 g butter;
  • 100 g of hard cheese of any kind;
  • salt, herbs, black pepper to your taste.

How to cook soup:

  1. Place the mushrooms in boiling salted water and cook for 30 minutes. Drain them in a colander, cool slightly and divide into thin strips.
  2. Cut potatoes, onions, carrots into small cubes. Boil water, salt it, add vegetables there and cook until tender.
  3. Add mushrooms and green peas to the pan. Season the soup and add salt if necessary. Reduce heat to low and simmer soup for another 15 minutes.
  4. Grate the cheese on a fine grater. Remove the pan from the heat, add cheese, butter, chopped dill or parsley.

Before serving, you can add a little sour cream or cream to each serving if desired. This will only enhance the taste of the first dish.

Add your favorite ingredients to the described soup and salad, don’t be afraid to experiment. Reindeer antlers go well with many other foods.

Deer horns are a mushroom that is included in the Red Book of Russia and belongs to basidiomycetes, a class of higher fungi. It got its name because of its peculiar exotic appearance. People also call the mushroom differently, for example, coral, horned mushroom, coral-shaped hedgehog, etc. Hericium coralloides is the full scientific name of the lower plant.

Botanical description

Staghorn mushrooms resemble coral branches or deer antlers in appearance. The photo shows a clear resemblance. The aboveground part of the plant is very branched and decorative. The spines are snow-white, 10 to 20 mm high. The body diameter of the mushroom is 16-30 cm; specimens weighing up to 1 kg are found in nature. It is worth noting that most often the height and width of the exotic mushroom are the same. The branches of the plant are thin and quite brittle. The coral hedgehog only affects the wireworm; other worms are indifferent to it.

The color of the mushroom changes as it grows, acquiring characteristic yellow shades. Obsolete copies may be bright orange. Horntails and amethyst colors grow. The active growing season of basidiomycetes falls from June to October. The biological culture does not have the usual mushroom aroma; in its raw form, the deer horn mushroom has an elastic consistency; when cooked, the fruiting body becomes harsh.

The most commonly mentioned mushrooms can be seen on tree trunks and stumps. Like other woody lower plants, they are not difficult to notice on rotten wood of any species. It is believed that among a certain variety of coral-shaped mushrooms there are no poisonous ones, while there are plants that are conditionally inedible and suitable for consumption. It is better to use young species of deer antlers for food. Large hedgehogs can disappoint with their taste: they are bitter and have an unpleasant aftertaste.



The best collection period is August and September; in the southern regions of our country, slingshots are also collected in winter. They often grow in whole clusters; collecting such mushrooms is an endless pleasure. Knowing the description of edible cattails, you can easily prepare the required amount of forest product and prepare wonderful dishes.

Cooking methods

The description of the mushrooms says that these plants are used in folk medicine, with their help they treat joints, expel worms, etc. It must be remembered that poisoning often occurs due to negligence or complete illiteracy. You should not eat foods that you have doubts about.

There is a separate opinion that convinces mushroom pickers that this type of plant is not suitable for classical preparation. Experts fundamentally disagree with this statement.

Edible hornets are prepared for future use, fried, added to soups, dried, and mushroom caviar and other dishes are prepared from them. Without any doubt, all existing recipes for forest “brothers” are also suitable for corals. In winter, the dry prepared semi-finished product is soaked in water, then fried in batter. Many exotic lovers use these specimens as a filling for dumplings and pies. They are also good fried with potatoes and onions.

A fragrant and tasty mushroom dish can be created from mushrooms marinated in a special sauce. It’s not difficult to prepare, just collect the necessary ingredients: oil, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice and salt with sugar. Pickled blackberries in a jar look like coral.

Mushrooms should be washed well before use, then placed in a pan of water and cooked after boiling for at least 10-15 minutes. Ready-made semi-finished products are used as desired. To prepare the filling, the lower plant is passed through a meat grinder, combined with other ingredients to taste and the main dish is prepared.

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