The admirable bolete, aka "Admiral" (Boletus mirabilis), is one of my favorites, for its beauty, its lively flavor, and its fleeting collectabilty. Rarely do I find one before the bugs.
Unlike the king bolete (Boletus edulis), which can be used in all manner of culinary ways, the admiral is probably best by itself, sliced and sauteed, an amuse bouche for the table. The taste of lemon is distinctive and usually requires something to balance it such as butter or soy sauce. That said, I'm told the lemony flavor is produced by a compound in the velvety "skin" of the mushroom's pileus, or cap. Presumably one could peel this off and then use the admiral in any standard porcini recipe.
The admiral is a mushroom of damp Pacific Northwest forests. I generally find it in older hemlock stands with spongy moss carpets where it likes to fruit off nurse logs, and though it can get quite large, with a cap approaching the size of a salad plate, edible specimens are usually smaller.
You're right about the lemony flavor and the citrus overtones. I must confess to being a fan of this often overlooked fungus...
ReplyDeleteHope you're well and in full foraging mode...
Farmer
i just discovered a few of these today when i was out picking chantrelles. I can't wait to sautee them up and try them :).
ReplyDeleteWhen you dry them, do you cut off the sponge underside (pores). I found a good patch and need to preserve them.
ReplyDeleteHave you ever frozen them.
Thanks
KingB
Liabach67 - Some folks do separate the sponge from the rest of the body when drying. Especially with B. edulis, as the sponge matures and yellows, it becomes very flavorful, almost too much for some. I have friends who dry and powder these mature sponges to use in soups, stews, and gravies. The dried pores also act as a thickener.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reply, I had thought the pores might of been in bad shape but once I cut into them they looked fine -maggot free. I dried them up and they smell amazing.
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