ilovemyheckler Posted October 29, 2022 Report Share Posted October 29, 2022 In recent weeks I have noticed lots of people (mostly eastern Europeans) in our local woods collecting the enormous amounts of mushrooms growing. How difficult is it to learn which you can eat and which you can't? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandspider Posted October 29, 2022 Report Share Posted October 29, 2022 (edited) You can eat any mushroom, but some you can only eat once! It's not easy, to answer more seriously. Roger Phillips does some good ID books, but I think it's advised to go out with someone who knows what they're doing. Some edible ones look similar to deadly ones. Loads of mushrooms in our garden, but I'm not confident enough to risk it. Edited October 29, 2022 by sandspider Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted October 29, 2022 Report Share Posted October 29, 2022 i would love the detailed knowledge of edible mushrooms............but im not confident enough....it would take the enjoyment out of eating them and waiting to die Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnfromUK Posted October 29, 2022 Report Share Posted October 29, 2022 A very good family friend (now in advanced years) is a great expert - and I have often eaten a variety of what she harvested. The only one I have really liked are the genuine wild ordinary (horse) mushrooms, which are really lovely (much better than shop bought). The others I have had have always seemed both dull and uninteresting. I have never had any that were unpleasant, or had any unpleasant effects, but neither have I ever felt that they were delicious and I would like to learn about these so that I could try and collect some. Then again, I'm very 'underwhelmed' by truffles - which are so expensive and many think are wonderful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted October 29, 2022 Report Share Posted October 29, 2022 29 minutes ago, JohnfromUK said: A very good family friend (now in advanced years) is a great expert - and I have often eaten a variety of what she harvested. The only one I have really liked are the genuine wild ordinary (horse) mushrooms, which are really lovely (much better than shop bought). The others I have had have always seemed both dull and uninteresting. I have never had any that were unpleasant, or had any unpleasant effects, but neither have I ever felt that they were delicious and I would like to learn about these so that I could try and collect some. Then again, I'm very 'underwhelmed' by truffles - which are so expensive and many think are wonderful. truffles make me baaff....🤢 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldypigeonpopper Posted October 29, 2022 Report Share Posted October 29, 2022 Hello, you can buy a book on what mushrooms are edible but a lot of woodland owners ban mushroom picking, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
51/50 Posted October 29, 2022 Report Share Posted October 29, 2022 (edited) I've collected mushrooms for around 40+ years,i'm not really interested in the more 'exotic' varieties,i really only focus on boletus (ceps,birch bolete & bay bolete),hedgehog fungus,chanterelle & winter chanterelle (not too fussed about the chanterelles these days),horse mushroom,field mushroom,parasol mushroom & sometimes cauliflower fungus,there was a time when i had a few hoteliers that would regulary buy mushrooms from me but that fazed out over the years mainly due to health & safety regs,these days i really only gather for myself,i've always got a good supply of dried porcini,they store very well if done correctly & the flavour they put in stews,casseroles & sauces etc is absolutely awesome,if i was to choose a favourite it would be the hedgehog,simply delicious,one fungus i have never found is the sulphur polypore or 'chicken of the woods',i'm too far north for them i reckon,seemingly quite common in England (?). For many years i have also harvested,processed & regulary consumed birch chaga,i drink chaga coffee nearly every day of the week (& no,it has nothing whatsoever in common with liberty cap tea! 🤪 🤣) before the advent of the internet it was quite obscure but these days there's no shortage of it for sale if you're prepared to pay silly money for it. For anyone that enjoys mushrooms i'd highly recommend you familiarize yourself with porcini/ceps & how to dry & store them,they're very distinguable & not too difficult to find (unless the foreigners beat you to it!),once you've mastered this & start using them in cooking you'll never look back. Edited October 29, 2022 by 51/50 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nuke Posted October 30, 2022 Report Share Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) Porchini, chanterelle (yellow/winter/black-horn of plenty) is a solid base to start with and quite easy to learn with none or few dangerous spieces to confuse them with. We usually dry what we pick, except for the yellow chanterelle which we just blanche and then put them in the freezer. Porchini is the best imnsho, perfect in a risotto of on pizza. Dried crumbled winter chanterelle adds lots of flavor to a stew of any other long simmer dishes. The black and winter chantarelles are in season around here now, especiallay the later kind. /Markus Edited October 30, 2022 by Nuke Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen-H Posted October 30, 2022 Report Share Posted October 30, 2022 Good post this! I've got a few books on mushrooms I.d etc I often look for them while just out walking the dog I've never picked any for the table so far. Upto now I've found penny buns, bay bolletes, field mushrooms , chicken of the woods, birch polypore I'm yet to find any chanterelle's & there is often a steady flow of liberty caps in a local national trust park not far from me if that's your thing. I've a bag of dried porcini in the cuboard will chuck them into the next stew to see how it goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandspider Posted October 30, 2022 Report Share Posted October 30, 2022 Go on then, what's the best way to dry porcini? Assuming I can find and ID some. We have a dehydrator, if that would work? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen-H Posted October 30, 2022 Report Share Posted October 30, 2022 1 hour ago, sandspider said: Go on then, what's the best way to dry porcini? Assuming I can find and ID some. We have a dehydrator, if that would work? Slice them & put them into the dehydrater at a set temperature for circa 8 hours & then bag them up ideally vacum packed there is a lot of videos on YouTube to assist. Seen a lot of people do it for homemade biltong/Jerky also Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandspider Posted October 30, 2022 Report Share Posted October 30, 2022 Simples. Have made jerky before, though I think I used a smoker last time. 👍 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ilovemyheckler Posted October 30, 2022 Author Report Share Posted October 30, 2022 Some great replies, thanks. Can anyone recommend a book? I really only want to try and find the easy ones that any fool could identify! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samboy Posted October 30, 2022 Report Share Posted October 30, 2022 I've got a mushroom book and there's 2 in there that are identical. One is poisonous and one isn't. So i will just keep buying them from the greengrocer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nuke Posted October 30, 2022 Report Share Posted October 30, 2022 10 hours ago, sandspider said: Simples. Have made jerky before, though I think I used a smoker last time. 👍 Use low temp, no more than 40 deg C. /Markus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harrycatcat1 Posted October 30, 2022 Report Share Posted October 30, 2022 1 hour ago, samboy said: I've got a mushroom book and there's 2 in there that are identical. One is poisonous and one isn't. So i will just keep buying them from the greengrocer. 👍😉 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandspider Posted October 30, 2022 Report Share Posted October 30, 2022 40 minutes ago, Nuke said: Use low temp, no more than 40 deg C. /Markus Thanks. Will see if I can id anything edible in the garden for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old'un Posted October 31, 2022 Report Share Posted October 31, 2022 Best and safest way to learn about edible mushrooms is to join a fungi group, there’s plenty of them around the country, I was a member of the Worcester Fungi Group for many years, its surprising what you learn in a group and there’s always an expert on hand to help confirm your find. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted October 31, 2022 Report Share Posted October 31, 2022 at one time there was a stall on norwich market (on the gentlemans walk side).....that sold all types of dried and fresh mushrooms from the local area.....often bought chantrelles from there....dont know if it is still there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walker570 Posted October 31, 2022 Report Share Posted October 31, 2022 The one I was very surprised about and believe me it was the first time I had cooked them, was the puff ball. It was mentioned on here and I found a nice fresh young one and sliced it and fried it in batter. Superb. As a kid we ate a lot of field mushrooms but never ever tried puff balls. Slice about 1/2 inch, simple batter mix with a good shake of your favorite seasonings. Fry in butter and serve with a fried egg/s and some smoked bacon, fried bread optional. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oowee Posted October 31, 2022 Report Share Posted October 31, 2022 My wife is Slovak and picks a few but her parents collect lots of wild mushrooms. Even when I am told they are safe I would hesitate to eat some of them. We had some Pheasant back last time I was over to visit and just looking at it was almost enough to convince myself I was going to be ill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old'un Posted October 31, 2022 Report Share Posted October 31, 2022 8 minutes ago, oowee said: My wife is Slovak and picks a few but her parents collect lots of wild mushrooms. Even when I am told they are safe I would hesitate to eat some of them. We had some Pheasant back last time I was over to visit and just looking at it was almost enough to convince myself I was going to be ill. make sure you keep on her good side as she might dish you up one of these. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oowee Posted October 31, 2022 Report Share Posted October 31, 2022 34 minutes ago, old'un said: make sure you keep on her good side as she might dish you up one of these. 🤢 🤣 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
51/50 Posted October 31, 2022 Report Share Posted October 31, 2022 On 30/10/2022 at 08:09, sandspider said: Go on then, what's the best way to dry porcini? Assuming I can find and ID some. We have a dehydrator, if that would work? Yes,dehydrators are the way to go,plenty available these days & a good investment,i also use mine for venison & goose jerky & occasionally herbs & 'sundried' tomatoes,i store my porcini in airtight containers lined with kitchen towel & a few small sachets of silica thrown in,never had any issues,pointless vac-packing them,you'd only have to cut the bag open then re-pack them again everytime you used them unless you were dealing with very large volumes. I don't read books so can't recommend any but i've found this Youtube channel that looks very good for info.... https://www.youtube.com/c/WildFoodUK1/videos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hushpower Posted November 5, 2022 Report Share Posted November 5, 2022 Their are plenty of visual picture apps to download free. But for the price of a big tub of mushrooms at aldi i wouldnt run the risk if not a exspert. But them chestnut mushrooms very very tasty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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