A young mushroom, 2-3 days after it appeared from the soil or poked through a crack in the wood, already contains all the organic substances and trace elements “released” to it by nature, and even an almost unchanged number of cells. What we call the further growth of the fungus is actually not growth, but the stretching of cells under the action of water injected under pressure into the fruit body by a mycelium pump. Thus, even the youngest mushroom is almost completely “equipped” with everything necessary for frying, drying, and pickling-pickling, and is especially good because there is nothing superfluous in it, no water (both literally and figuratively). That is why young mushrooms with not yet opened caps are appreciated by mushroom pickers (albeit often subconsciously, but true) most of all. Old and flabby mushrooms are not only unaesthetic, but can also pose a threat to human health, which we will discuss below.

The least requirements are imposed on mushrooms intended for pickling and drying. When marinating, the mushrooms’ own taste is lost very much, it is replaced by the taste of the marinade and is determined by the amount of vinegar, sugar and the types of spices used. Of course, young elastic buttermilk or crunchy cheese “by the tooth” will be perceived better than the old, slimy and flabby, but they will taste almost the same, and in a salad of pickled mushrooms you will not catch the difference at all.

When drying, even very old, already “wet” (if only not wormy) mushrooms can be “pulled out” by prolonged soft treatment in the dryer (if only they don’t burn), and they will behave quite decently in the soup. Of course, again, they will yield to young “breadcrumbs” both in taste and aroma, but after adding sour cream, this difference is also almost leveled. Nevertheless, one rule should be firmly remembered: mushrooms collected for preparations should be approached more legibly than mushrooms collected for today’s or tomorrow’s soup or frying. This will necessarily lead to an increase in the shelf life of the finished product with the correct processing technique.