Which wild mushrooms are safe to eat

Though they can grow up to 10 inches long, they are generally harvested when they are one inch big and sold in dried form. They are one of the most flavoursome mushrooms and so are popularly used in cooking, especially Italian cooking.

This variety of mushrooms, with its low water content and plentiful medicinal properties, have seen a recent surge in demand! Owing to which, there is a focus on their cultivation in the northern states of India. That being said, their incorporation in the culinary world has been a slow journey will a long way still to go.

The rare specie of mushrooms have a light, almost fruity flavour. Their appearance resembles small white straws with tiny caps on them. One must be careful so as to know overcook them as heat can really tighten them up, making them unpleasant to eat. In fact, they can even be eaten raw! Given their crispy texture, they make great additions to salads and soups as garnish. Also known as Guchchi mushrooms in the Himalayan region, this variety is particularly difficult to grow, due to which it is rare to find and very expensive costing nearly Rs.

The appearance resembles a honeycomb perched upon a branch. Dark brown in colour, their flavour profile is similar to Shitake mushrooms, except far woodier and enhanced in flavour. They are super popular in cooking, and have a mild flavour and odour that get enhanced when exposed to heat.

They have a soft flavor and aroma to them and are therefore often used in cooking. This mushroom, with an unusual name, has a rather unusual appearance too! With tiny white hair framing a round figure… it looks just like a lion! They belong in the same family as Morel Mushrooms and have a strong meaty flavour.

These mushrooms are also known for their anti-inflammatory, gastro-protective and cardio-protective properties and hence are popular in the medical world. These pretty yellow mushrooms that resemble the pout of a trumpet can be found both in fresh and canned varieties. They have a strong peppery flavour, but one has to refrain from over cooking them as that toughens them and makes them difficult to eat.

Safe-to-eat fungi offer different flavours from mild to earthy and are best cooked in stews, casseroles or the frying pan. Inedible mushrooms won't cause illness but are still unappetizing with their leathery, tough textures or unpleasant peppery or bland taste.

Some, like the crusty Chaga mushroom found growing on birch trees, can be made into tea and herbal extracts. Poisonous fungi contain toxins to protect against hungry wildlife. Commonly mistaken as edible is the Amanita, a large, showy, often wart-capped group of mushrooms ranging in colour from pure white to dark brown. In Alberta, the Fly agaric, a yellowy-orange member of the Amanita family, can be found during the fall.

There's no universal rule for telling a poisonous mushroom from an edible one, because there's so much diversity out there. Get to know just one or two edible species at a time and look for them only.

Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, dizziness, headache, muscle cramps, bloating and fatigue. Mushrooms in the genera Amanita are among the deadliest in the world. Here are some ways to recognize two of these.

Death caps: This highly toxic mushroom Amanita phalloides is blamed for the most mushroom poisonings in the world. While native to Europe, death caps occur on the U. East and West Coasts. Description: Death caps have a 6-inch-wide cap, often sticky to the touch, that can be yellowish, brownish, whitish or greenish in color. The cap has white gills and grows on a stalk about 5 inches tall with a white cup at its base. Can be confused with: Young death caps can resemble puffballs, which encompass the genera Calvatia, Calbovista and Lycoperdon.

When seen: September to November. Habitat: Under pines, oaks, dogwoods and other trees. Symptoms: None immediately.

Then the person will experience vomiting, diarrhea and cramps. After several days, these symptoms will go away and the person will think they are OK. However, they are not. During this time, internal organs are being severely damaged, sometimes irreparably. Death can occur six to 18 days after ingestion.

Destroying angels: Destroying angels get their name from their pure white stalks and caps. Like the death caps, they belong to the genus Amanita , with several species occurring in different regions of the country. All, however, have a similar white fruiting body. Description: An attractive white cap, stalk and gills. Can be confused with: In their button stage, destroying angels can be confused with button mushrooms, meadow mushrooms, horse mushrooms and puffballs.

When seen: Summer and fall. Habitat: All Amanita species form relationships with roots of certain trees. Destroying angels can be found in or near woodlands or near shrubs and trees in suburban lawns or meadows. Symptoms: Diarrhea, nausea and abdominal pain generally occur five to 12 hours after ingestion. However, a day or two later the symptoms will return and get worse. By then, it will probably be too late because the person will likely suffer liver and kidney failure and enter a hepatic coma that ends in death.

If they survive, treatment is severe: a liver transplant. A thumbnail look at three other edible mushrooms popular with foragers. Its distinctive shape, which resembles the mane of a male lion or a pom pom, is unlike any other mushroom. Its taste is also unique and often compared to seafood. How to recognize it: Beech trees are frequent hosts.

Another identifying characteristic is that it tends to grow its spines from one group rather than from branches. It can also grow very high in the trees, as much as 40 feet up the trunk. It is prolific in the Northeast but has been found as far west as Idaho.

Because they can grow quite large and become too tough to eat, they should be harvested when they are young. Older specimens can be dried, powdered and used for soups and sauces, also for a unique breading adjunct. How to recognize it: Maitakes have small, overlapping tongue or fan-shaped caps. Oyster mushrooms: Oyster mushrooms Pleurotus ostreatus belong to a genus of some of the most commonly eaten mushrooms. They can be found in every season of the year, but are most prolific in cooler weather.

Be sure to clean carefully to remove any insects that may be hiding in the gills and discard the stems, which tend to be woody.