St. George’s mushroom can be found in spring growing in troops or rings in grasslands, woods, fields, parks, gardens and roadsides of Europe. The mushroom stands two to four inches tall and has a cap two to six inches across. The cap is fleshy, creamy white, and smooth but may develop yellow or gray patches. It is rounded to convex and has slightly inrolled margins. The white to cream colored gills are crowded and narrowly joined to the stem. The creamy white stem is smooth and 1 to 1.5 inches in diameter. The spores are cream colored.
St. George’s mushroom is considered a choice edible mushroom with a flavor that has been described as mealy, like wet flour, similar to Play-Doh, and slightly like cucumber. It is noted for its firm texture and can be eaten raw or used in a large variety of dishes including risotto, lasagna, omelets, soups, and sauces for meat, and especially for chicken and fish. Alternatively, it can be dried or preserved in virgin olive oil or vinegar. There are several poisonous look-alikes so great care should be taken to have expert identification before consuming any mushrooms gathered from the wild.
The common name comes from the fact that the mushroom appears in Britain on St. George’s Day in April.
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