Unseasonally early bloom of interesting fungi in the woods
COUNTRY FILE
FOLLOWING the warmth of May and the humidity of June, we have an unseasonally early bloom of interesting fungi appearing in the woods.
One late evening trip produced a bountiful crop of chanterelles – those most perfect, egg-yolk yellow, two-inch tall trumpets that are normally so hard to find.
Ten minutes picking through moss and leaf litter gave me half a kilo of these. The scent of them is delicious, something like slightly spicy apricots with a touch of rich woodiness. This is only a hint of the flavour that will be released when they are fried in butter with just a shake of salt.
Nobody with access to good chanterelle ground will share their best locations. Nor should they, for such discoveries are only made following extensive explorations and a good many hours of largely fruitless searching.
But find the chanterelles and you have a summer treat. Find plenty and dry what you can – they will keep indefinitely. Or fry them in butter, wrap them in small parcels and drop them into the freezer. Not only will you have the best of wild mushrooms in the middle of winter, you will have the memory of summer in each mouthful.
Neither can the chanterelle, that most desirable of all native wild fungi, be mistaken for anything else, nor especially for anything even remotely toxic. News reports of death cap poisonings, whether accidental or not, have put many people off the very notion of eating a mushroom found growing in the woods. Long may that continue! All the more for me.
We also found small number of summer boletus, most of a variety I have never seen before. These are large mushrooms with something resembling a sponge in place of gills on the underside of the cap.
While some varieties of bolete are poisonous, most of them can be eaten. However, as it only takes one of the poisonous kind to spoil a perfectly good weekend, we do need to be sure about our business.
These were what are known as ‘scaber-stalked’ boletes, with a particular pattern of reticulation on the stalks. Further to that, the flesh of them turned black on exposure to air. Those factors, plus the location they were growing, told me they were good to eat.
But as even honest mistakes carry consequences, these specimens will be subject to thorough investigation before being added to the pot.
We also found one special and very interesting mushroom. It was not just the size of the thing (it would have filled a dinner plate) that we found compelling. It was beautifully coloured with a pale buff top, lemon-yellow into orange-red pores (the spongy part) and a bulging, scarlet, yellow-topped stalk. When the cap was cut the yellow flesh gradually turned blue, which might seem to be an obvious warning sign.
This was the Devil’s bolete, a very toxic species likely to cause severe sickness among those who unwisely consume even a small amount, as the rather lurid testimonies of those with first-hand experience of Boletus satanus, to use the Latin name, readily admit.
Even in the hand it can be hard to tell one of these mushrooms from another. What we need is a good book, illustrated with accurate drawings and equipped with informative text. Happily, there are such books out there.
Though we are only at the start of summer, we have good hauls of free and fine food just waiting to be gathered.
And while we are out searching for fungi, who knows what else we might find? One thing is certain: if we aren’t in it, we aren’t going to win it! See you there.