Is coral mushroom edible? Yes, Coral mushroom is edible. There are two coral mushroom genera that are edible. The two genera are Clavaria and Ramaria. Not only the above genera but there are also several edible coral mushrooms present such as Crown tipped coral mushrooms, White coral mushrooms etc. These mushrooms are distributed all over the world. Not only like other traditional mushrooms coral mushrooms also have some compounds that can cure many health conditions.
Reducing blood pressure, reducing the free plasma cholesterol and some antimicrobial, antitumor, anticancer and antioxidant-like properties are some examples.
What is a coral mushroom?
Contents
There are various types of mushrooms (fungus) in the world. Mainly these mushrooms can be divided into two main parts edible and non-edible as their usage. The mushrooms can also be categorized into groups according to their appearance. The coral mushrooms separate from other mushrooms according to their physical appearance. These mushrooms look like corals in the sea. Normally these coral mushrooms grow up to about 2 to 5 inches in height. The fruit body is thin and branched and the tip looks like a crown.
Some species of Coral mushrooms are used in food processing and traditional medicine. There are two genera of coral mushrooms that are edible and can be used as medicinal mushrooms called Clavaria and Ramaria.
Ramaria :
Ramaria consists of about 200 species and most of them are edible. Ramaria has a thick fruit body. The fleshy and gelatine-like fruit bodies are branched. Some of Ramaria species are bright-colored fungi such as red, orange, bright yellow, purple, white and tan. These colors vary when the fungus gets old. Ramaria also has yellow-brown to rusty-brown spores.
Ramaria flava is an example of an edible mushroom distributed in Northern Europe and Britain. These mushrooms grow from July to November. Ramaria has a mild taste. Ramaria can be poisonous mildly like Ramaria formosa. Due to the poison, some side effects can be observed such as diarrhea, nausea and vomiting.
Clavaria:
Lots of species of Clavaria are saprotrophic. They degrade the dead plant parts such as leaves, grass and organic materials. They use degraded materials for their growth. Clavaria has a simple, smooth, or groove fruit body. The fruit body branched seldom. Can observe various colors of Clavaria like, cream, yellow, violet, pink, black or brown. Clavaria has white-colored smooth spores. Sometimes the spores can be spiny. Clavaria grows from June to November and is distributed mainly in Ireland and Britain. These days, scientists are researching both Ramaria and Clavaria for developing new medicines.
Crown- Tipped coral mushroom:
Crown- Tipped coral mushroom (Artomyces pyxidatus) is also called crown coral because of its crown-shaped tips. They are distributed mainly in Britain, Northern Canada, and Northeastern India. They are yellow in color and have a tough texture. Stalks are thin and short. The spores are smooth and white in color. Crown- Tipped corals grow from June to September and use dead woods to fulfill their nutrition requirements.
White coral mushroom:
White coral mushroom (Clavulina cristata). They are also named Crested coral mushrooms. It has a branched, smooth, white to cream color fruit body. White coral mushrooms are edible and mild-tasting. This mushroom has white-colored, smooth, thick-walled spores.
Is coral mushroom edible? How can you tell?
If the coral mushrooms are bright colors, they are not suitable to consume. The common bright colors of these non-edible mushrooms are purple or red. The edible mushrooms are always white, yellow or beige colors.
Coral mushroom recipes
Crown Tipped coral mushrooms
They are edible as cooked and also as raw too. But the best and safest way to consume this mushroom is cooking. Before cooking the mushrooms should be washed thoroughly. soups, stews, stir-fries, and frying with lightly battered mushrooms are famous preparation methods for coral mushrooms. Preservation methods are also available for this mushroom. The Crown-tipped coral mushrooms are delicious with seafood.
Salad:
First, the coral mushrooms should separate into small parts. Then mix them with vegetables like cherry tomatoes and baby lettuce, which are the same size as mushrooms. Mix them using your hands after adding vinaigrette.
Soups:
Simple Italian Nettle soup. How to prepare: First, the coral mushrooms should separate into small parts. Fry garlic with olive oil for a few minutes until garlic gets light brown and adds onions and leaks to the pan. After a few minutes, add chili, nettles and tomatoes. Then keep them on the stove for 5-10 minutes. Finally, blend the mixture until it gets smooth.
Again cook the blended mixture. Add pasta or rice. Then the soup mixture is seasoned with salt and pepper according to your taste. Add the soup to bowls and finally add the small parts of the mushroom to the soup to keep the texture of the mushrooms well.
Pickles:
Boil the pickling liquid until the large bubbles appear or prepare your own mixture using salt, pepper, vinegar, garlic, and water. After boiling the mixture, pour it into sterilized bottles. Then add the mushrooms to these bottles and submerged them fully into the mixture. Keep the pickle in the refrigerator.
Carrot Clavaria mushroom
Soup:
This soup is called carrot clavaria and fish balls soup. First, soak and wash the Clavaria mushrooms. Then cut them into small pieces. Take a pan and boil some water. Add chopped garlic to the pan while boiling water. Keep boiling it until you get the smell. Add carrot cubes and fish balls that are the same size as carrots. Keep on the stove until the mixture gets soft. Then add mushrooms.
Keep the mixture in the pan until it gets soft. Add chopped green onion. Then season the soup with salt, pepper, some sugar, and with chicken powder to your taste. Pour the soup into bowls and serve.
Other coral mushroom recipes
Crispy Fried coral mushrooms:
Separate the coral mushrooms into small parts and clean the well using water. Apply a small amount of flour to mushrooms then dip them in the beaten egg mixture. Again dip in flour. Add the battered mushroom into a pan with heated cooking oil. Keep mushrooms in the pan for 3 to 4 minutes until it becomes golden in color. Take off the mushrooms from the pan and put them on a paper tissue to remove extra oil. Add salt to your taste and serve.
Coral mushroom look-alike
There are common two coral mushrooms that look alike Clavulina cristata (White coral mushrooms). They are Clavulina rugosa and Clavulina cinerea. Clavulina rugosa does not consist of branches and is called wrinkled coral mushrooms. Clavulina cinerea has dark color on its fruit body and therefore it is called gray corals. Both mushroom types are edible.
Clavaria fragilis look like coral mushrooms and are called White spindles/ Fairy fingers or White worm corals. They are white-colored mushrooms with rounded tips. They are reported as edible mushrooms. Clavulinopsis fusiformis is similar to Clavaria fragilis but the color of the fruit body of C. fusiformis is golden yellow. Due to their color, they are called Golden spindles.
The Jellied False Coral Mushrooms are another example of coral mushroom lookalikes. These can differentiate from real coral mushrooms using their non-brittle, tough appearance. This is white-colored, gelatinous, non-edible mushroom. But it is not reported as poisonous.
Is coral mushrooms look-alike poisonous?
Not all coral mushrooms look-alikes and are poisonous. But some of them are toxic and cause Diarrhea, Nausea, and vomiting. All poisonous coral mushrooms are bright colored such as purple or red. This is one of the tips to identify toxic coral mushrooms. Ramaria formosa and Ramaria pallida are mildly toxic coral-like mushrooms.
There is one type of mushroom that looks like a coral mushroom, which is called Fire Coral Mushroom (Podostroma cornu-damae). Fire corals are distributed in Japan and Korea. These mushrooms are reported as deadly poisonous. It’s not only toxic while eating but it’s also poisonous while touching too. When consuming the fire coral mushroom, some side effects may occur such as Diarrhea, Vomiting, Stomach pain and fever.
Read Next : Amazing Mushroom Supplements Benefits
