This is one of the most common, mild tasting, Russula species in the California oak woods. This species was known as R. "basifurcata" sensu Thiers, but sequencing the holotype for R. grundii clarified the proper name. It can easily be confused with the other very common, peachy-white colored, mild species, known as R. "chamaleontina" sensu Thiers, but the key differentiation is that R. grundii has a much darker yellow color of the spore deposit (on the darkest yellow side for the genus). R. grundii also shows a slight grayish discoloration on the context when sliced, typical for the other closely related members of its clade -- R. decipiens from Europe and R. californiensis from California. While mild tasting, a slight pungent aftertaste may be present.