MUNCHIES
GETTING MUSHY A S A N A N G L E R , YO U P R O B A B LY S P E N D A L O T M O R E T I M E WA N D E R I N G A R O U N D FO R ES T S T H A N M O S T P EO P L E D O . A S W E H I T T H AT S E A S O N A L P E R I N E U M K N O W N A S A U T U M N / FA L L I N S O U T H A F R I CA , W I T H T H E M I X O F H E AT A N D R A I N C O M ES S O G GY H U M I D I T Y. T H AT M E A N S I T ’ S M U S H R O O M T I M E . FO R A G I N G EX P E R T C H A R L I E S TA N D I N G O F T H E U R B A N H U N T E R G AT H E R E R ( T H E U R B A N H U N T E R GAT H E R E R . C O M ) G I V ES U S T H E L O W D O W N O N W H AT L I ES B E N E AT H . Photos. Micky Wiswedel
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here are thousands of mushrooms or fungi out there, many of them edible and plenty that aren’t. It’s natural, if you are new to foraging, to feel a little afraid of getting it wrong. A good general rule of thumb is to avoid mushrooms with white gills. The best thing to do is to forage with someone who knows more than you do. In the interests of health, safety, flavour and brevity, I’ve narrowed down the selection to identifying three of the most delicious and widespread mushrooms found both in South Africa (and in many other countries). Once you know what to look for and have picked and cooked a few, you will never look back.
CHICKEN OF THE WOODS Also known as Sulphur Polypore or Sulphur Shelf, Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus sulphureus) is a bracket fungi that, you guessed it, tastes like chicken and lives in the woods, growing off the sap of oak trees. You’ll also find it growing on gum/eucalyptus trees, but those ones don’t taste great and can make you feel a bit queasy. Chicken of the Woods appears at the driest time of the year, right before the rains so, where I live in the Western Cape of South Africa, that’s any time from the end of January to April. It’s one of those fungi that you can’t really go out looking for, but more something you happen upon. Pick them at their freshest because when it’s old and saggy, it’s not worth it. If you find a lot, they freeze well. Fresh, you can treat them just like chicken – grill, roast or braai.
OPINEL - NO 8 STAINLESS MUSHROOM KNIFE
Designed for foraging mushrooms, this nifty tool from French knifemaker Opinel sports a curved blade for cutting stems and a brush for removing dirt. awesometools.co.za
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W W W. T H E M I S S I O N F LY M A G . C O M
