Summer porcini lookalikes and how to spot them

The summer bolete (Boletus reticulatus, in our catalog it's the summer bolete) comes up first, and it's beginners who most often confuse it with its neighbors. Most lookalikes give themselves away with one or two details; you just need to know where to look.

The good news is that there are almost no deadly poisonous ones among them in Ukrainian forests. The bad news: a single bitter mushroom can ruin a whole pot, and a few species are still best avoided. Let's go through them one by one.

The bitter bolete, the most common mistake

The first and sneakiest lookalike is the bitter bolete. From a distance it's almost a copy of the bolete: the same brown cap, sturdy stem and similar stance under a tree.

The underside of the cap gives it away. In a young bitter bolete the tube layer is white, but it quickly takes on a dirty pink tint. A true bolete is never pink, only white, yellow or olive with age.

The second clue is on the stem. The bitter bolete's net is dark, brown and sharply defined, while on the summer bolete it's pale. And the most reliable test: a tiny piece of bitter bolete on your tongue gives a sharp bitterness that doesn't go away. The bolete tastes mild and nutty.

The bitter bolete isn't poisonous, but even a single specimen makes a dish inedible. To remember the difference for good, take a look at our summer bolete vs. bitter bolete comparison right here.

The lurid bolete, the one that turns blue

The second neighbor is the lurid bolete. It's also sturdy and dark-capped and also likes deciduous forests, so it turns up next to the summer bolete.

It's easy to tell apart by three signs. First, the underside of the cap isn't white but yellow or orange-reddish, with small reddish pores. Second, the stem often has a reddish tint. Third, and most important: the cut flesh of the lurid bolete quickly turns blue, sometimes almost black.

Remember a simple rule. The summer bolete stays white when cut; it doesn't turn blue or red. If the flesh changes color, what you're holding is no longer a porcini. The lurid bolete is edible after boiling, but a beginner is better off not taking it, so as not to confuse it with something worse. Details in the summer bolete vs. lurid bolete comparison.

The devil's bolete, the one to walk around

The most dangerous lookalike is the devil's bolete. Raw, it is poisonous and causes serious stomach upset, so it simply isn't picked.

You can recognize it by a combination of features:

• the cap is pale, grayish-white or with a dirty olive tone, not warm brown;
• the pores underneath are bright red or carmine-pink;
• the stem is thick and barrel-shaped, with a red net in the middle part;
• the cut flesh slowly turns blue, and an old mushroom gives off an unpleasant smell.

The bolete next to it looks completely different: a warm nut-brown cap, a white or yellow sponge, a pale net and a clean nutty smell. If you see red pores and a red net, don't guess; just leave the mushroom in the forest. Right alongside, we have put together a summer bolete vs. devil's bolete comparison.

Three checks that save you every time

You don't need to keep a dozen species in your head; three moves over every doubtful mushroom are enough:

1. look at the underside of the cap: pink or bright red means it's not a summer bolete;
2. cut the stem: bluing or reddening means a different species;
3. check the net and the smell: the summer bolete has a pale net, a nutty smell and a taste that isn't bitter.

If all three checks point to the summer bolete, you can take it with confidence. If even one makes you wary, it's better to walk on by. The golden rule in the forest: if you're not sure, don't take it.

One more thing from experience. Most mistakes happen in a hurry, when the basket is already full and the eye “fills in” what it wants to see. So look at a doubtful mushroom separately rather than tossing it onto the pile before checking.

An easy way to track when boletes are really coming up is our mushroom radar: on good days there are plenty of mushrooms, and no temptation to grab everything in sight.

Sources

• “Identification Guide to the Fungi of Ukraine” (Kyiv, Naukova Dumka publishing house).
• Boletus reticulatus on GBIF, the global biodiversity database.
• Tylopilus felleus on MycoBank, the international fungal nomenclature database.
• Boletus reticulatus on Wikipedia.