Mushroom foraging

Today's post is about something that I really want to learn more about - wild mushroom foraging. A few years ago I noticed that we have so many varieties of mushrooms growing on our property. I would love to know more about mushroom identification and in particular, edible mushroom foraging. Ideally, I would love to find local classes or a local mentor, but that hasn't come to fruition yet. This week though, while camping in the wonderful Charlevoix region of Québec, we had the opportunity to do a mushroom foraging activity. The SEPAQ does not usually allow foraging in its parks, however, an exception was made in this educational context. 

First, in a classroom setting, we learned the basics of mushroom identification and biology. We focused on one mushroom in particular - the lobster mushroom.  The lobster mushroom is a mushroom that is colonized by a fungus, giving it an orange color. I learned after the fact that the infected mushroom contains mostly DNA of the parasitic fungus, which I find fascinating.

Then, we did a short hike to find lobster mushrooms. It was a wonderful hike in a taiga environment. Once every participant found and harvested a lobster mushroom, we cleaned it with a brush and knife and carried it back. The naturalist then showed us how to cook the lobster mushroom. He sliced very thin slices and pan fried it to a "potato chip" consistency. It was delicious. Back at our campsite we cooked our own lobster mushrooms for supper. 

I am looking forward to learning more over the coming years about mushrooms, and in particular, about which mushrooms we can forage around our property. The naturalist suggested that a good goal is to learn one new mushroom a year, and to know it well. I know that on our property, we have Coprin Chevelu (shaggy mane) which is pretty distinctive and is edible. I think my goal for this year will be to harvest some Coprin Chevelu from our property, and go from there.