Mushroom Hunting

On one of the nicest (aka non-raining) Memorial Day holiday’s I can remember, we decided to go hunting – mushroom hunting that is.  Hunting for mushrooms in SW Montana can be challenging due to the high elevation, cooler temperatures, and lack of abundant precipitation.  And because of these factors, there are also fewer varieties of mushrooms growing in Montana.  So when you do find precious edible mushrooms, you feel like you have hit the “jackpot”!  And so it was on this sunny Memorial Day.  We found wonderful large puffballs.  The best part? Almost all puffballs are edible when firm and white inside.

Once you call it a day and clean all dirt and duff off your mushrooms, it is time to process them (Note:  I would not recommend eating any wild mushroom raw.  Always cook them first).  There are several ways to process mushrooms.  The three we use most of the time are dehydrating, simmering and then freezing, and cubing and placing into a simmering pot of soup.  Today, we dehydrated our load of mushrooms.  All it takes is a dehydrator (you can also allow them to dry in the open air).

We liker to slice the mushrooms into 1/4″ thick slices and then place them on a dehydrator tray evenly spaced to allow air flow to evenly dehydrate the slices.  When all the mushrooms were on trays, we set the timer and the heat, and dried them for about 3 hours.  Then all you do misplace them into a jar Mason jar with a lid and dig in when you want to use them in your favorite dish.  Mushrooms will last for many months once dehydrated and each variety has their own flavor.  Some are absolutely fantastic and others are more bland.  That is the magic and fun of mushroom hunting.  You get to select which species you prefer and some years, depending on climatic conditions, there are more choices than others.

Intro to Mushrooming

Mushrooms are the reproductive structures or “fruit” of certain fungi. Most people are most familiar with mushrooms that have “gills” (radiating blades) on their underside.  Millions of microscopic reproductive units called spores are discharged from these gills and spread by air currents.  Only a small percentage of spores land in a favorable spot where they will germinate to form new fungi in the future.

Fungi do not manufacture their own food  like plants.  They must obtain food from outside sources.  The part of the mushroom that digests nutrients (for their growth) is an intricate web of fine threads called mycelium.  These mycelium can live for a long time (hundreds of years) periodically producing mushrooms when enough moisture is available.  That is why it is absolutely essential when harvesting mushrooms to cut the fruit from the stem rather than pulling the mushroom so that the mycelium has a chance to produce fruit (mushrooms) again in the future.

Mushrooms (more specifically, fungi that produce them) are a vital part of our environment and most are beneficial.  Most are either saprophytic or mycorrhizal.  Saprophytic fungi are natures recyclers.  They replenish soil nutrients by breaking down complex organic matter like wood, dung, and humus into simpler compounds.  Mycorrhizal fungi form a mutually beneficial relationship with the roots of plants in which nutrients are exchanged.  These are critical to the health of our forests.  And because certain types of mushrooms will only grow around certain trees, it is a good habit to make note of the tree species growing in the vicinity of any mushroom you wish to identify.

Despite the many benefits and uses of mushrooms they still get a bad rap sometimes (fungophobic).  It has only been in the last couple decades that large numbers of people in the U.S. are beginning to discover that these “forbidden fruit” are delicious and nutritious, valuable, and vital to the environment.  And, best of all, people are discovering that mushroom hunting is a challenging, enlightening, and uplifting activity.

Recommendation:   Before you begin cooking up some mushrooms you have found, educate yourself as to which varieties are edible and which are not.  We taught ourselves how to identify edible mushrooms, and you can too.  However, if you can join and class or go out with someone experienced at identifying mushrooms, I would strongly encourage you to do so.  Plus, as a minimum, obtain a couple mushroom books that help you key or identify mushrooms.  I have several that I have used but by far have utilized “All That the Rain Promises and More …” by David Arora. 

Happy Hunting!

Rick