If they have bruises or dark spots, look slimy and wet or are slightly darker in color than usual, they're going bad. And, if they feel soggy or soft and are floppy, they're definitely not edible.
Most recipes that call for mushrooms don't require that you remove the gills on the underside of the caps. Portobello mushrooms, however, have particularly dark gills, which can cause any dish they're used in to turn dark and unappealing.
Fresh mushrooms are dry, firm and smooth and have a pleasant earthy smell. Bad mushrooms are softer (possibly mushy), sticky, slimy, shriveled, maybe moldy and discolored and may smell unpleasant.
If they have bruises or dark spots, look slimy and wet or are slightly darker in color than usual, they're going bad. And, if they feel soggy or soft and are floppy, they're definitely not edible.
The pigskin puffball is a rounded, warted, yellowish brown ball with blackish purple flesh.
Puffballs, as the name suggests, are typically spherical, ball-shaped or often pear-shaped mushroom that houses a mass of powdery spores inside.
Russula nigricans, commonly known as the blackening brittlegill or blackening russula, is a gilled mushroom found in woodland in Europe. It gains both its common and scientific name from its propensity to turn black from cutting or bruising.
WARNING: The Common Inkcap causes severe poisoning if consumed with alcohol 48 hours either side of eating the mushroom. Even applying alcohol based aftershave after eating it can cause a reaction. It was still listed as edible in some guides if alcohol was avoided.
As the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirms, soft, fresh produce — such as mushrooms — should be discarded if moldy. Because they contain so much water, moldy mushrooms can easily "be contaminated below the surface."
Coprinus comatus is a common edible found in North American and European grasslands. It is a conspicuous mushroom, with a cylindrical white shaggy cap that becomes bell shaped as the mushroom matures and secretes a black liquid that is filled with spores.
Symptoms of mushroom poisoning
Nausea. Stomach cramps. Vomiting. Diarrhea (sometimes bloody)
In other words, don't plan on grilling them with your steak and don't leave them on the lawn to tempt curious dogs and cats. The black powder you see coming out is the fungal spore mass - the way this fungus spreads itself. Dig them before they hit that mature stage to cut down on future outbreaks.
Stachybotrys will generally be a dark slimy type of mold that looks like it is colored in with black crayons extremely dark. It can also appear in other colors such as grey, blue, and green. It will also have a distinct odor that can be similar to a towel that has been left outside for a long time.
Wood ear or black fungus (木耳) is an edible fungus that commonly used in Chinese cuisine. The fresh wood ear is in dark brown or black, soft and crunchy in texture, with a very subtle grassy flavor. It uses in cooking mainly to add texture. Wood ear should never be eaten raw, since it might contains bacteria.
A fairly common, sometimes brightly coloured Waxcap found growing in grassy locations from summer until late Autumn. As the name suggests, the mushroom becomes black where touched or completely black after some days and will be found in that condition for many weeks.
The Bleeding Tooth Fungus is not toxic, but tastes so bitter as to be inedible, despite one of its other names (Strawberries and Cream, because of its resemblance to a fruit danish).
The yellow cap flesh of Boletus pulverulentus turns blue-black if it is cut and exposed to air.
Black mold, a type of mold that can potentially pose health risks to humans. It produces mycotoxins, which are toxic substances that can be released into the air when the mold is disturbed or when it grows on damp or decaying materials.
If you spot green, blue, grey, or black patches on or in your fruiting box, your culture is most likely contaminated. Do keep in mind, however, that small blue stains in the mycelium may just be bruising and not mould.
Black mold is a fungus that may cause your immune system to react. Common symptoms include sneezing, coughing, congestion and eye irritation. It rarely causes serious illness or death but may worsen asthma symptoms.
The symptoms usually appear within 20 minutes to 4 hours of ingesting the mushrooms, and include nausea, vomiting, cramps, and diarrhea, which normally pass after the irritant had been expelled. Severe cases may require hospitalization.
The symptoms may occur soon after eating a mushroom or can be delayed for 6-24 hours. The most commonly ingested poisonous mushrooms are "gastrointestinal irritants." They are called "backyard mushrooms" or "field mushrooms." These mushrooms cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and stomach pain.
Though both these foods are fungus and are often confused for each other, wood ear mushrooms and black fungus are not the same ingredient. Wood ear mushrooms grow wild on elder trees and black fungus, sometimes called cloud ear, grows on other trees, but both are found in temperate, sub-tropical forests.