A nutritional and organoleptic research of nine wild edible fungi from the Nothofagus forests of Patagonia, Argentina.

TOLEDO C.V.; BARROETAVEÑA C.; RAJCHENBERG M.

La Antigua

Workshop; 7/th International Workshop on Edible Mycorrhizal Mushrooms. La Antigua,; 2013

Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala,

Conferencia en simposio Nothofagus forests from Patagonia (Argentina) harbor several wild edible species of fungi, although very little information on their ecology, nutritional and medicinal properties is available. The aim of this work was to determine the organoleptic characteristics and the nutritional value of nine wild edible fungi: the endemic Aleurodiscus vitellinus, Fistulina antarctica, Fistulina endoxantha, Ramaria patagonica, Cortinarius magellanicus, Grifola gargal, Cyttaria hariotti , Clitocybula dusenii, and the cosmopolitan Lepista nuda, widely distributed in Nothofagus forests of Patagonia. Flavor, aroma and texture of each species were registered in fresh specimens and then compared with fungi undergoing different conservation methods. Dry, composite samples from at least 3 collections of fresh, mature fruit bodies of each species were analyzed, with 2 replications. The analysis followed methods described by the International Association of Official Analytical Chemistry, and are expressed on dry weight basis. Compared with reported values for other commercial species, the highest values in crude protein content were detected in Lepista nuda (29.03%, similar to Agaricus bisporus and Boletus edulis), and Ramaria patagonica (23.07%, similar to the range of Agaricus bisporus and some Pleurotus spp.), followed by Clitocybula dusenii (13.58%, value similar to Lentinula edodes). The other taxa showed much lower values, between 3.60-7.42%. Carbohydrates composition was high for Grifola gargal, Cyttaria hariotti and Aleurodiscus vitellinus (>79%) and low for Ramaria patagonica (62.87%) and Lepista nuda (44.49%). Crude fat was high in Lepista nuda (6.86%, similar to Lentinula edodes), and below 1.7% for Grifola gargal, Cyttaria hariotti, Fistulina antarctica, Fistulina endoxantha and Ramaria patagonica. The more promising species considering together organoleptic properties and high protein content are Lepista nuda and the ectomycorrhizal Ramaria patagonica.