Gardening

All About Wild Mushrooms

September 29, 2014

Foraged vegetables are always more fun to cook. So our resident forager, Tama Matsuoka Wong, is introducing us to the seasonal wild plants we should be looking for, and the recipes that will make our kitchens feel a little more wild.

Today: The beginner's guide to mushroom hunting -- because every fungi forager has to start somewhere.

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I love cool, rainy days when the mist settles over the fields and creek. These are the days when the mushrooms come out of hiding -- it always amazes me how they seem to pop up out of nowhere. In reality, rich forest soil can hold about 8 miles of fungi underground in one square inch. Fungi are extremely critical for soil health and the interdependency of plant and animal life. 

More: Can't get enough 'shrooms? Here's more dirt on your favorite fungi.

The mushrooms that we see above ground are the fruit of the fungi webs -- of which there are about 1.5 million different species -- that lie underground. Mushrooms are spore-holders for reproduction; they spread spores to a new area by wind, animals, and water.

When a favorite mushroom appears in my neighborhood, everyone rushes to check their secret patch. This is serious business: Our youngest daughter is the only one who knows the location of my husband's special foraging spot in our woods.

More: Eugenia Bone, mushroom enthusiast, talks mycophylia, myths, and foraging.

But the way I learned about mushrooms was by going on local New Jersey Mycological Association walks in the fall. There are many excellent mycological clubs throughout the United States; the easiest way to learn is among other enthusiasts and with the guidance of an expert mycologist. This is time well-spent since the majority of mushrooms are inedible and some common ones are so poisonous that they can kill you.

The most notorious poisonous mushroom is the deathcap (Amanita phalloides). It looks beguilingly like an Alice in Wonderland toadstool, with a little parasol cap on top of a stem and gills. There is no antidote for consuming this mushroom, and within a few days you will die of liver failure. My mycologist advises that the safest way to start foraging mushrooms is to avoid the ones that look like, well, mushrooms! Poisonous young amanitas can look like small puffball mushrooms before their gills grow. Other poisonous mushrooms include the false morel (the inside is not hollow) and the little brown mushroom

More: Did you know that morels aren't technically mushrooms? Let us explain.

The fun of foraging in the woods is reason enough to seek out wild mushrooms, but they also taste much more fresh and dewy than those you can find in plastic containers in the grocery store. When looking for mushrooms, bring a basket or a paper bag and a knife. Make sure that the specimens you find are fleshy, not dried out or decaying. Cut the mushrooms with a knife, leaving 2 inches of the mushroom intact in the place where it's growing. They store for up to a week in the refrigerator in a closed paper bag.

More: Now that you have mushrooms, learn how to prep them. 

Be sure to cook your foraged mushrooms, as they can make you sick if you eat them raw. Prepare them simply: Clean the mushrooms, then cut and sauté them in a little butter and oil. A few common fall mushrooms that are a good start for foraging are:

Hen of the Woods
Hen of the Woods grow at the base of oak trees. These mushrooms are beloved by the Japanese as maitake; they also happen to be my personal favorite. They grow in large, dull brown clumps (as a polypore or bracket fungus) that look like the back of a brown hen’s ruffled feathers. The mushroom caps are attached to each other by short white stems.

These mushrooms can grow to be several pounds and more than 2 feet wide. On the east coast they appear in September and October.

 

Oyster Mushrooms
I love oyster mushrooms because, as long as it's raining consistently, you can find them everywhere for months; they grow out of trees, fallen logs, and stumps. Wild oyster mushrooms are the same as those grown comercially and sold in grocery stores. But the subtle aroma of the sea that emerges from a freshly cut oyster mushroom is worlds away from any store-bought product.  

  

The oyster mushroom is pale brown to white and often grows in clumps. Its gills are under the cap and reach all the way to the base where it meets the tree -- without a stem!   

 

Chicken of the Woods
This is a "shelf mushroom", growing in pale to vivid orange “shelves” on both upright and fallen trees. Be sure to leave some mushroom behind and cut several inches out from the tree when harvesting.

  

 

Wood-Ear Mushrooms
At the mycology club tour, no one else was interested in these rubbery-looking mushrooms known as a "jelly fungus" -- brown rubbery flaps growing out of the sides of trees and branches, just like ears. 

I knew my Chinese in-laws would be excited for me to bring some home, as they are treasured by the Chinese for their medicinal and anti-viral benefits. They are usually dried, but they can go sliced into stir fries or braises. They do not have a taste of their own -- rather, they soak up the flavors you cook them with. You may recognize these mushrooms, as they are often sliced in Chinese hot and sour soup.

This is only a brief introduction; there are many more delicious mushrooms and much more information than I can cover here. If you want to forage for mushrooms, I would suggest that the following resources:  

  • Contact your local Mycological Society. This is a great way to learn from the experts about what is local to your area and about how to put "Do's and Dont's" into practice.
  • The Complete Mushroom Hunter by Gary Lincoff is a great illustrated guide with very clear information.
  • Mushrooms Demystified by David Arora is an encyclopedia of extensive information -- a mere 1,056 pages!

When foraging, always choose high-quality landscapes (not next to the highway or on post-industrial or sprayed sites), and make sure to obtain permission if it is not your own yard. If possible, go out with an experienced forager. We assume no responsibility for any adverse effects from misidentification or incorrect use of featured wild plants. For more information and identification advice please consult us at meadowsandmore.com. 

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See what other Food52 readers are saying.

  • sandra
    sandra
  • Sylvia Vargas
    Sylvia Vargas
  • Willow Myrick
    Willow Myrick
  • tama matsuoka wong
    tama matsuoka wong
  • Chris Glenn
    Chris Glenn
Tama Matsuoka Wong is the principal at Meadowsandmore, a wild food purveyor and educational studio.

7 Comments

sandra August 18, 2023
I believe the rule is, if you are not 100% sure of what it is, don't eat it! I have a great book by Roger Phillips - Mushrooms which is a great guide (its for the UK but I feel like we have many similar mushrooms). It tells you if they are edible, if they have an evil twin, what time of year to expect them and where they tend to grow along with excellent photographs. It was recommended by a mycologist I went out on a foraging course with. There have been times when the book hasn't convinced me so I checked the internet to be sure. Remember, if you find them in one location, chances are they will grow there again so keep note of what you find and where.
 
Sylvia V. August 26, 2015
So confused about the wild ones that grow in Southampton New York and will have to do more research before attempting to taste them
 
Willow M. August 20, 2015
Also, when preparing and eating mushrooms that you have harvested, always set aside a representative sample of the mushrooms. If you should become ill and need to go to the ER, it will be helpful for the doctors and nurses to see exactly what kind of mushroom you ate.
 
tama M. March 12, 2015
I very much agree. I wish the section on going to the local mycological club (the way I learned) was highlighted more in bold in this article! And yes, so important with any wild foods to harvest and prepare them properly! As to the mushrooms Chris, I spoken to west coast forager Connie Green who advises the following: not sure of the species of mushroom: Morels, Verpa, or Gyromitra need to be thoroughly cooked (whether fried or otherwise). Nordic peoples do have a long tradition of boiling them, discarding the water, and then frying.
 
Chris G. March 11, 2015
I also have something to add. It's not just getting the identity of the mushrooms right, it's also about cooking them the proper way. I once fried some mushrooms in butter that weren't supposed to be fired. (I think they were supposed to be boiled). I did just got an upset stomach & went back are re-read my mushroom guide and realized my mistake. You are absolutely right about going out with someone that knows what's what! Here in the Pacific Northwest, (Western Washington), we have lots of mushrooms growing wild all over! Some are some really bad actors!
Chris
 
Sarah September 29, 2014
Sigh. Wild mushrooms are wonderful to find, but if you are a novice, PLEASE do not do this without an experienced guide! A guidebook is NOT a substitute for a mycologist, period. There are many, many mushrooms that look alike, and the tests to distinguish them apart can often be complicated and require a great deal of experience. One cannot learn the subtleties of mushrooming by reading a few pointers from a blog or guidebook. Learn from skilled mycologists first.
 
Lissa S. February 26, 2015
i totally agree with Sarah. I hunt mushrooms here in France but only after years of going out with mycologists. I never hunt outside my immediate area. One of my mentors in this described visiting a fellow mycologist in the hospital after they had eaten something so bad it required morphine ! One of their LBM's ( Little Brown Mushrooms) was a nasty one. Who wants that eh? Watch yourself people!