Boletus edulis, commonly known as King Bolete or Porcini, is a large, robust bolete with dull brown cap, dirty white pores and stout and swollen stem. It has a white net over upper stem. It is a very popular, delicious, meaty mushroom that grows almost all over the world.

Cap convex in shape when young and flattens with age, color is quite variable from light brown to reddish brown. Flesh white, unchanged when cut or bruised. The pore layer is quite hard when young and white changing to yellowish then to pea soup green to greenish brown becoming fairly soft at maturity. Tubes white at first, slowly becoming greyish yellow to olive-brown. Stem Very thick and club shaped and usually finely reticulated meaning it has a net shaped raised pattern on the surface. The reticulation is most pronounced near the top. The color can vary from whitish cream to reddish brown. It can become cylindrical at maturity. Ring absent. Interior solid.

Similar species Boletus variipes has a dry, tan cap and grows with oak; Tylopilus felleus is similar when young but tastes bitter and is thus inedible.

Boletus edulis on the First Nature Web site.
Boletus edulis on the MushroomExpert.Com Web site.