”This is a great easily recognisable fungus that’s popping out now reliably in good quantities. It’s also very meaty, full of umami and tasty so it’s a favourite of mine (top 5).
GeorgeFlavour Fred
Found in both deciduous and conifer woodlands lately - known to be common in most woodlands.
The cap is creamy->yellow feeling dense with an irregular and uneven shape depressing in the middle over time. The best ID feature is the spines like a hedgehog starting off white becoming buff and continue down the stipe (stem) a bit. The stipe is often off centre to the cap and again off white with a downy texture. Once cut the flesh is also off-white and yellow towards the base.
I’ve been making lots of ferments of wild mushrooms for seasonings that I’ll be putting into a new subscription service for those interested. (Find out more by joining the mailing list).
There is little to confuse other with other than the terracotta hedgehog (Hydnum rufescens) which is smaller and terracotta coloured. After that it’s the rare Greenfoot tooth fungus which has a dark brown scaly cap, *poisonous to some although I have tried in Estonia once. And there is also the Jelly Tooth fungus which is found on conifer stumps and has a jelly texture and is translucent.
