Safe Mushroom Hunting in New England

Have you ever played "I spy" while on a road trip? A trip through the woods is an on-foot enjoyment that can be compared in many ways to the on-wheels kind. There are so many things to pass by and observe, albeit much more slowly. When hiking you see many less things, yet you can look at them so much more closely. Mushroom hunting is to hiking what "I spy" is to driving. I hope to inspire hikers to make photographing and gathering mushrooms kind of like a B story or a subplot to their forest trek adventures.


Mushrooms have saved the lives of countless people. Did you know that penicillin is a form of mushroom? There is a story of a group of soldiers from WW II trapped in the woods without supplies for a few months. They barely went hungry, and totally sustained themselves because one of the men could identify edible mushrooms. It is a common myth that mushrooms have no nutritional value. They have plenty. In addition to proteins and carbohydrates it is being discovered that there are elements that prevent and fight cancer in the organic matter that makes up this amazing plant.

There, I just called this fungus a plant. I did that just to shake up the mycologists that may be reading this article and sort them out from the audience that I'm trying to target. If you did not know that a mushroom is not considered a plant because it does not grow by way of photosynthesis...then read on. This is an introduction to mycology. You can consider yourself a true mycologist when:

1) You know that a mushroom is not a plant, and that if you compared it to one, the mushroom would be considered the "fruit" of the plant as the underground or embedded in wood and invisible mycellium, a thread like growth that produces this "fruit" would be more accurately compared to a vine.

2) You have found, photographed, and correctly identified a few mushrooms.

3) You have determined from the identification a possible unsafe species and left it in the woods.

4) You have determined from the identification a safe and edible mushroom and took it home.

5) You did a spore print of that mushroom. A spore print is done by leaving the body of the mushroom on a piece of paper covered with a bowl or glass. After several hours, preferably overnight, you will see a dusting of spores on the paper. The color of the spores help determine the species.

6) You really waxed scientific and examined the spores under a microscope at about 400x magnification to observe the shapes of the spores; another factor in identification.

7) You consumed a wild mushroom that you found and positively identified.

Mushrooms have killed a counted number of people. They have also made a great number of people hallucinate, either purposely or accidentally. Sickness from different species of mushrooms varies in severity. Some types are completely edible yet certain people will find the protein hard to digest and get an upset stomach. Another kind works like "Anabuse" -a drug used to combat alcoholism. You can consume this mushroom without any ill effects...until you drink some alcohol within about 24 hours before or after you eat this particular mushroom. Then you will be talking to RAAALPH extensively about his BUUUICK. Some species have cost people, like the guy who wrote "The Horse Whisper" the use of their kidneys. Some destroy the liver. The deadly Aminita AKA "Destroying Angel" can put you down for a "dirt nap" in 48 hours.

Safety first....second, third, etc.

Enough said about what most people already know; some mushrooms are poison, about 25% in fact. This is why most people do not take any part in the hobby I'm encouraging you to pursue. But I'm going to show you an ultra simple, very safe way to partake. I want to educate you on just a few different types of edible mushrooms that grow in the Northeast USA. These are delicious...more tasty than cultivated store bought varieties. These three types of wild mushrooms are difficult to cultivate and therefore more valuable...yet available for free in your local woods. Most importantly, they are extremely easy to visually identify, and resemble the poisonous varieties about as much as a strawberry resembles an eggplant. Literally, a blind person could tell the difference.


Let's start with my favorite:

Chicken of the Woods

This Mushroom has a texture similar to chicken. It is a bracket type mushroom. In this part of the world, no bracket type mushroom is poisonous. Some are inedible only because they are too hard or "woody" . Even this delicious mushroom can get too tough, old, and less tasty like the big brownish one I found last week. It's bright yellow and orange colors make this species an unmistakable, exciting find. The color proves it's freshness. Be sure to cook it before eating, and note that this is a mushroom that some people can be sensitive to.

Hen of the Woods

This mushroom is called Maitake in Japanese. It also grows in that part of the world and is considered a delicacy. Japanese people have a saying like our "an apple a day keeps the doctor away" yet they replace "apple" with "Maitake". It means "dancing oak" in their language. This is because it is considered such a prized find, the discoverer will dance around the tree it was found growing at the base of, usually Oak.

Boletes

This class of mushroom is not as easy as the chicken and the hen to differentiate from it's non edible counterparts because it looks like, well......a mushroom. There is a major visual difference between a bolete and say the deadly Destroying Angel. When you look at the underside of the mushroom you will not see gills like the poisonous varieties have. Instead, boletes have a sponge like substance. There are many different types of boletes here in the Northeast and elsewhere. None of them are poisonous, but not all are delicious. In other parts of the world there are poisonous mushrooms with this sponge like underbelly. So to be extra, extra safe leave these behind in the woods. They don't have an appealing texture in my opinion, so they only make a really good soup. Some have a lousy taste, so try a sample before you throw them in the pot.

I once found a peppery bolete. One little nibble was like a teaspoon of Tabasco! This type can be dried and powdered and used like a spice. The Porcini is a prized bolete all around the world. I've found a few, but they seem rare around here.

Did I entice you? Did you do those seven steps? Did you puke? Did you hallucinate? Did you die? Search the woods, and search the Internet for more info...and recipes. If you go no further than step seven with the mushrooms I featured, and answered no to those last three questions, you are a mycologist. Send me a SASE and I'll send you a certificate, your name hand written on it in beautiful calligraphy, suitable for framing. All kidding aside, I hope that I have NOT enticed you to do something dangerous. Be careful. I'll close with just a few more safety tips.

Take a picture, submit it to a site like http://forums.mycotopia.net/ they will help you ID your find.

Eat a small amount at first, a single bite, and if you feel OK by the next day...pig out.

Keep a sample of the mushroom in the fridge to bring to the doctor should you get sick.

Don't eat any found in a place like someones lawn. They could have been sprayed with chemicals.