It is that time of year! Autumn is mushroom party time and here come the fungi! Without further ado, here are my five easy to identify mushrooms for this Autumn season.
Field mushroom - Agaricus campestris
Field or Wood mushrooms are easy to identify because they look just like a portobello or large mushroom you would buy in the supermarket. When they are young, they appear small, round and white and like a button mushroom. The photo above shows a fairly young specimen bisected. The gills underneath look slightly pink when young but turn to a deep brown or black as the mushroom matures - see photo below
When you cut and smell this mushroom it should smell sweet or "mushroomy". If it smells like a chemical, this might not be the right mushroom for you.
Field or wood mushrooms are incredibly tasty and worth seeking out in fields, parkland, and woodland that have not been sprayed with chemicals. To enjoy them, simply fry them in a pan with oil, butter, and garlic. Give my wild mushroom risotto recipe a try! Find the recipe here
Poisonous look-alike - The Yellow Stainer
The field/wood mushroom does have a poisonous look alike - the yellow stainer. The yellow stainer can be easily identified by bruising the flesh of the mushroom. It will turn immediately sulfur yellow. The smell has been likened to ink. So use your senses, eyes and nose, to tell the difference.
BTW yellow stainers will not kill you but they will make you feel very ill and will probably make you vomit not long after ingestion. I know TMI - but hey, you're welcome! See photo of yellow stainer below. Note the high yellow colour on the end of the stem. This is a tell-tale sign and it will colour immediately after bruising or cutting.
2. Lawyer's wig or Ink cap
This is a mushroom that you can rely on as it is common, it looks distinct so it is easy to identify and it does not have any poisonous look alikes. So bonus points for beginner foragers! Here's what they look like
Once this mushroom matures it tends to get "inky" and disintegrate and is no longer edible.The young mushroom when cooked has a lovely flavour. It can be used in any recipe that includes mushrooms or simply fried on the pan with some oil or butter. Sometimes, this is the best way to appreciate the flavour of the mushroom, particularly if you are trying it for the first time.
By the way it can be used as ink and has been used by artists for this purpose. Also a fun activity to do with kids!
3. Fairy ring mushroom
The fairy ring or champignon mushroom is another mushrooms that is easy to identify and will often appear in urban settings like parks and lawns. As long as no herbicide has been sprayed in the area they are a great addition to the pot.
How to identify:
As their name indicates, they grow in a seam or "ring". You will never see one here and there. They grow in a cluster as illustrated above. They are toasty to light brown with a little nodule on the cap. The underside has creamy coloured gills. The stalk is fibrous and tough and is not good to eat. The cap should have a nice mushroomy aroma. They are great fried on the pan or in an omelette.
4. Giant puffball mushroom
What could be more fun than eating a giant puffball - seriously?!
They are very much like their description. They are roundish, white and puffy. It is like finding a ball of foam growing in the ground to the point where it is hard to think that they are actually very tasty. You can easily find these near a woodland or in your local park or an unploughed field.
Caveat: tasty when young. Once they start getting very big - and they can grow to the size of a small football - they lose their flavour. They are good to eat from golf ball size up to baseball or tennis ball size. They have a lovely delicate mushroom flavour.
There are no poisonous lookalikes! They have no gills, they are just a simple foamy texture with a smooth outer skin. Fun to find and fun to eat.
5. Jelly ear
Jelly ear is an unsung hero of the woods. It appears in most woodland and you may have stepped over it or passed by many times without noticing it. When dry, it tends to shrivel to a dark crusty looking substance so it is not easy to identify during the summer months.
Once the weather gets a little more moist and cold, it pops back into it's recognisable shape.
Jelly ear as it's name suggests has a rubbery or jelly-like texture. It has a very mild flavour so it lends itself to other flavours very easily.
Jelly ear is widely used in dried format in Asian cusines and will be added to stirfries and soups.
A personal favourite is allowing the ears to marinate in Kahlua or rum and then dipping them in chocolate. The jelly ear becomes more turkish delight in texture and carries the flavours very nicely making this is a really rich and delicious treat!
So there you have it - five easy to find and delicious mushrooms to keep your eyes peeled for on your walks in your local park, woodlands or fields.
If you would like to learn more about foraging mushrooms and plants - join me on a foraging event or contact me to book in your group!