#beefsteak mushroom

[ketrinadrawsalot]

We interrupt these penguins to bring a correction to Fungi February! It turns out maitake (Grifola frondosa) doesn't grow in California, but what does is the magnificent beefsteak mushroom! Despite looking like meat (even in cross section!), they have a sour taste due to the presence of several acids, including oxalic acid. They're not common, but they are unmisteakable :P

Thanks to fascinatedbyfungi on Instagram for the correction and suggestion!

The poster's been updated accordingly on Redbubble

[mycoblogg]

FOTD #110 : beefsteak polypore! (fistulina hepatica)

the beefsteak polypore (also poor man’s steak, ox tongue, or tongue mushroom) is a bracket fungus in the family fistulinaceae. it can be found in europe, north america, australia, north africa & southern africa :-)

the big question : can i bite it?? yes !! it is edible when young, but may require long cooking.

f. hepatica description :

"the cap is 7–30 cm wide & 2–6 cm thick. is shape resembles a large tongue, & it is rough-surfaced with a reddish-brown colour."

[images : source, source & source] [fungus description : source]

[foodshowxyz]

Garlic Beefsteak with Mushrooms and Béchamel Sauce

Ingredients:

Steak:

2 beef steaks (such as ribeye or sirloin), about 1-inch thick

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Fresh rosemary sprigs (for garnish)

Mushrooms:

1 cup mushrooms, sliced (such as cremini or button)

1 tablespoon butter

1 clove garlic, minced

Salt to taste

Béchamel Sauce:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups milk

Salt and white pepper to taste

A pinch of nutmeg (optional)

Instructions:

Prepare the Steak:

Season the steaks generously with salt and black pepper.

In a skillet over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil and add the minced garlic. Sauté for about 1 minute until fragrant.

Add the steaks to the skillet and cook to your desired doneness, about 3-4 minutes per side for medium-rare, depending on thickness.

Remove steaks from the skillet and let them rest.

Cook the Mushrooms:

In the same skillet, melt butter over medium heat.

Add the sliced mushrooms and the second clove of minced garlic, sautéing until the mushrooms are golden and tender.

Season with salt to taste. Remove from heat and set aside.

Make the Béchamel Sauce:

In a saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat.

Whisk in the flour and cook for about 2 minutes without letting it brown.

Gradually add the milk, whisking constantly to prevent any lumps from forming.

Continue to cook and stir until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Season with salt, white pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg if desired. Remove from heat.

Assemble the Dish:

Place the rested steaks on a warm plate.

Top the steaks with the sautéed mushrooms.

Pour the warm béchamel sauce over the steaks and mushrooms.

Garnish with fresh rosemary sprigs.

[fungitopia]

TRICK OR TREAT!!

Treat! Beefsteak fungus. Looks pretty spooky!

[birchsapfaerie]

credit: aclotheshorse on tiktok 🍄🍁

[eatfreeordie]

It hasn't rained much lately but not complaining!

[mushroomgay]

It’s piiiiiie season baby !!

This was made with a mix of oyster mushrooms and beefsteak fungus (both foraged) and button mushrooms (left over in fridge)

[serpentizlord]

[hail-despair-hail]

Back from my walk. Met some cute lil guys and found my first Beefsteak Fungus!

[templeofshame]

In case yall aren't sick of mushroom photos

[squishroom]

Natrissa, in the aftermath of the siege.

Absolutely love how this one turned out! I am very proud of myself for drawing it :) I think I'm finally getting an idea of how to draw again, so this is very exciting!

[starforms]

autumn mushroom hunting

[mutant-distraction]

The beefsteak fungus (Fistulina hepatica), also known as the ox tongue, is a mushroom that can be found primarily on oak or chestnut tree trunks.

Pic credit :: Sai Mejia

[warrior-cats-rewritten]

In the season of the holidays, let's talk about the Clan Culture of Gift-giving!

There are many different kinds of things that Clan cats give each other as gifts. I will show some of the different categories, feel free to ask about anything in them.

Flowers (for all intents and purposes, most flowers are no longer toxic to cats)

Flowers are a very common gift amongst the Clans. Different flowers also have different meanings. Lavender is given as a general "wishing you peace" as the scent has a calming effect. A rose is seen as a VERY bold gift, as they are mainly found in Twoleg gardens, and posses thorns. Stems, petals, and leaves are all seen as gifts themselves, but all parts of a flower have the same culture.

Scorchfur brought Snowbird tulip petals while they were courting. Quite brave and romantic since they come from Twoleg gardens!

Tree brought Needlekit and Rootkit daisies while they were small. Oops, that's a gift younger cats tend to give older cats. Thankfully they liked the smell.

Palebird liked giving heather to Woollytail, which is seen a nice, generic gift in Windclan. In any other Clan, it is pretty much seen as just friendly. Heather flowers were Woollytail's favorite though,

Generally, they are given to from any cat to any cat, but have their own meaning unlike human flower language.

Stones/Shells

Since shells are nearly Riverclan exclusive, I'm gonna throw them into this category.

Stones are seen as adult gifts. You don't give them to kits, they are given to fellow warriors. If a mentor gives one to their apprentice, it is seen as a HIGH compliment. Longtail gave a lovely smooth pebble from the river to Swiftpaw. Cloudtail buried it with him. Rainwhisker gave a jagged little stone to his friend Spiderleg, which he uses to help cut up mushroom pieces, good useful gift!

Shellheart, true to his name, gave shells to Rainflower while they were courting. She threw them all out when they split up. Crookedjaw gave a shiny shell to Willowbreeze when they got together. Silverstream kept it and it is now in Blossomfall's possession, as Blossomfall is Silverstream's daughter now.

Berries/Mushrooms/Nuts

Snacks! Snacks are great gifts! Anyone can give these out to anyone, and some have basic messages. They quite different from straight up meals. They are very often given from parents to children, especially nuts.

Acorns are very common in Thunderclan land, and Squirrelflight liked giving them to The Three for them to eat and play with.

A large beech nut tree grows on Riverclan land, close to their Windclan border. Beechfur would leave small piles of beech nuts for Gorsetail to find and give to their kits.

Mushrooms are more mature, since they have tastes that young kittens may not enjoy. They are most common found in Shadowclan's beautiful marshy land, but grow in other areas too. I'll be doing a post on the different mushrooms that grow in WCR. FOR ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES THE MUSHROOMS USED IN THE STORY ARE NOT TOXIC TO CATS.

Toadstep made fried mushrooms (beefsteak mushroom) for Featherpelt during an Aftergathering while she was pregnant.

Berries are also incredibly popular! Whether for fur dye, food, or bait for hunting, every cat is happy to get gifted berries. They are most popular to give to cats you are either kin with or have mentored/been mentored by.

Puddleshine likes to give sloe berries to Shadowsight, as a bush grows on the Thunder-Shadow border.

Strawberries grow near the Wind-Thunder border, and strawberries are Leafpool's favorite snack, so Squirrelflight does her best to get lots for Leafpool, and got some for the Three.

Snowtail likes to give lots of blackberries to his mother Speckletail, as blackberries are both their favorite.

Feathers

Feathers are a lovely gift! They are often used in nest building or as toys for kits. (Or, if you for some reason make the hike up the mountain to the Tribe Of Snowy Peaks, used in sculptures) (except eagle feathers, which are only for nesting because of their stiffness being perfect for keeping nests together)

Note: You do not give Cuckoo feathers as gifts. Ever. It is seen as incredibly disrespectful. They are NOT gifts.

Icecloud likes to give robin feathers to her mom and dad, she makes sure they have nice nests, and knows that Dustpelt really likes the colour of them.

Ivypool found a large crow feather once and gave it to Blossomfall, who especially appreciated to softness while recovering from having their kits.

Tigerclaw gave Firepaw cuckoo feathers, because he knew Firepaw wouldn't know what they meant.

Clay

Clay pots, bowls and plates are all very good things. Most often given to Medicine Cats or Cooks since they get the most use out of them, they are the most frequent recipients. Each is very unique and has a different vibe.

Briarlight made a small plate for Jayfeather while she was in recovery, using her claws to make lots of different textures.

Bristlefrost made bowls for Rootspring and Shadowsight, they both still have them. They have her pawprint in the middle.

Curlfeather made Frostpaw lots of bowls, each with curly, looping designs on them...

Wood

Woodworking is difficult, but since the discovery of Fire, was revamped with woodburning. Tools and decorations are made, but while decorations are for anyone, tools are not for apprentices (aside from inheritance).

Pieces of wood are cut with sharpened stones and bone tools, then shaped as best as the WCR cats can get them.

Tools are important to the Clans, and inherited and passed down until the tool breaks, to which it must be replaced by the cat who broke it. Tools are a very high-value gift and a huge honor to receive.

Ashfur gave Ferncloud a small decoration, he burned a small pattern into it for the nursery to smell nice. She threw it out after his death.

Breezepelt gave his first litter (Smokehaze, Brindlewing and Needletail) their own tools when they were apprentices, despite the pushback he got.

Food/Meals

Food is always an amazing gift, especially when you know someone's favorite meal. You can always expect a meal gift if you are close with a cat who likes cooking, such as Sparkpelt, Strikestone, Featherpelt, Firefern, and Graymist.

To apologize to Daisy, Spiderleg made her favorite dish: scrambled egg. It was burnt in one part, undercooked in another, and not enough shell was in it, but Daisy told him it was the best meal she had ever had.

Spicy Chub Soup is Hawkfrost's favorite meal, so his daughter Cloudsnap learned to make it for him whenever he looks stressed out.

Squirrelflight makes Fried Squirrel for her family members, often drizzling it with honey as well.

All in all, giving gifts is done all year round, but a lot of gift exchanges happen at Gatherings or Aftergatherings.

Happy Holidays, whatever you celebrate!

[cipheramnesia]

Mycology nerd here: Fungi mechs is such a cool idea. The long threads of mycelia holding it together, the chitin in the fruit harden like the exoskeletons of insects, photoreceptors in the eyes so it can see, bioluminescence for the lights, it "bleeds" like Beefsteak mushrooms, and inner flesh that oxidises and changes colour when it's exposed to oxygen....

It would be all stringy when it took damage too. Mmmmm

[mushroomgay]

London, UK, October 2023

Beefsteak fungus (Fistulina hepatica)

Found a couple of little beefsteak fungi yesterday right at the end of their season - I suspect trying to grow because of the unseasonably warm October we were having until very recently, which might also have caused the strange, long growth on the first one.

This mushroom is remarkably like raw meat when sliced, and even 'bleeds' a red liquid. Its taste is firm, chewy, and rich, although not much like meat. I find them delicious though - I simmer in butter with onions and garlic (sometimes I'll add herbs or red wine too). I had it as a little side dish to my udon soup.