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The 7 Safest
Mushrooms to
Forage and Eat
Perfect for novice
foragers, these
mushrooms are delicious,
easy to find, and are not
easily confused with toxic
species
BY BILL HEAVEY | PUBLISHED DEC 7,

2020 8:00 PM

SURVIVAL

The king bolete is also called porcini, penny

bun, and squirrel’s bread.
Pixabay/Alessandro Squassoni

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There is some great eating out there in
the fungal world, and some of the best-
tasting mushrooms are also quite safe,
with no or few poisonous look-alikes.
But every mushroom article must
carry a warning, so here goes: While
only about two Americans are killed by
consuming poisonous mushrooms
each year, many hundreds su!er
everything from mild gastrointestinal
distress to liver failure from eating
“bad” mushrooms. The rule of thumb
is to not eat any mushroom without
being 100 percent sure that it’s safe to
eat. For beginners, that means running
your "nd past an expert. The good
news is that there are local mushroom
hunting groups that can educate you
almost everywhere that mushrooms
grow. The other thing to remember is
that virtually all mushrooms are at
least mildly poisonous in their raw
form and must be cooked before
they’re eaten. Now, with the scary stu!
out of the way, let’s look at some of the
tastiest and safest (relatively speaking)
mushrooms to forage and eat.

1. Pu!ball
Mushrooms

Look for young pu!balls with white flesh

inside. Pixabay/Jan Haerer

Pu!balls are nearly unique among

mushrooms in that they are spheres—
round, with no open spore cap. They
can be as small as marbles or as big as
basketballs. Spores are produced
internally, which is how the
mushroom gets its name. Kick or
squeeze a mature pu!ball and clouds
of dust-like spores will rise up. While
that cloud may look toxic, most
pu!balls are safe to eat. You do,
however, want ones that are
completely white inside. Avoid any that
are yellow or purple under the white
skin. Also, young specimens are better
than mature ones, which can be tough.
Not every type of pu!ball is a delight. I
personally avoid both the dog-turd
fungus and the wolf-fart pu!ball, both
of which actually exist. Some people
develop intestinal irritation from the
outer covering, so peel that layer with
a knife. Pu!balls are commonly
referred to as “breakfast mushrooms”
because they go so well with eggs. But
they also make good side dishes at
other meals. A thick slab of pu!ball
develops a golden color when browned
in butter. They are o#en cut into cubes
for cooking.

2. Chanterelle
Mushrooms

Chanterelles are funnel-shaped and brightly

colored. Pixabay/Jenny R

Chanterelles are a great mushroom for

beginning foragers. They’re easy to
spot because of their bright color,
which ranges from orange-yellow to
pale gold. They’re also distinctively
funnel-shaped. Chanterelles are a
meaty mushroom, with a peppery
taste and a delicate, fruity odor
reminiscent of apricots. They’re prized
for their $avor and quite expensive to
buy. If you "nd some, don’t tell
anybody, as they tend to grow in the
same places year a#er year. They can
be found in deep, old leaf litter around
all kinds of plants. One of the best
ways to cook them is to simply slice
and sauté them in butter. They bake
well and go great with chicken, pork,
and veal. The only dangerous look-
alike is the jack-o-lantern mushroom,
which is bright orange, with true gills,
while chanterelles have false gills. (A
basic mushroom book, like the
National Audubon Society Field Guide
to North American Mushrooms,
explains the di!erence.) Even a jack-o-
lantern won’t kill you, although you
may su!er gastrointestinal distress.
Make sure to look at a picture of a jack-
o-lantern mushroom before you
foraging for chanterelles.

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3. Oyster Mushrooms

Oyster mushrooms are named for their

shell-like shape. Pixabay/NatureFriend

Another good mushroom for

beginners, oysters are found on
standing dead trees or logs. The name
comes from the mushroom’s ivory
color and shell-like appearance, which
resemble an oyster. They usually grow
in groups. They have a longer season
than many mushrooms and can be
found both fall and spring, and
sometimes even in winter. They’re
prized for their velvety texture and
unique $avor, which can range from
mild to strong. I have a friend who
claims they’re the best mushroom to
pair with venison. There are no toxic
look-alikes, but you do want to avoid
Lentinellus ursinus, the bear Lentinus,
which is known as “the only
mushroom that raccoons will spit out.”
It won’t hurt you; it just doesn’t taste
very good. Large oysters are o#en cut
into chunks, rolled in breadcrumbs
and eggs, then sautéd. Smaller ones
should be added at the last minute to
stir-fries. They’re also good added to a
cream sauce over chicken breasts or
"llet of sole.

4. Chicken of the
Woods

Chicken of the woods mushrooms are

brightly colored and usually grow in
clusters. Courtesy of Field & Forest Products

Finally, a wild thing that actually does

taste like chicken. Chicken of the
woods mushrooms, aka the “sulphur
shelf,” or “chicken mushrooms,” are an
orange-ish fungus found on trees that
are diseased or otherwise wounded.
The mushrooms tend to grow in
clusters, sometimes called a “shelf,” so
if you "nd one, you usually "nd more.
The only part that is eaten is usually
the edge of the fruiting body. The
other parts tend to be quite tough. The
young ones are bright orange with
creamy undersides. Young, prime ones
are rubbery. A#er they get older, they
turn chalky and are usually full of
wormholes and/or bugs. Don’t eat
those. Chickens areusually found on
oaks, although also on yew, willow,
and some conifers. They’re parasitic
and produce brown rot on their hosts.
They’re usually prepared in the ways
that real chicken is. They are also good
for freezing, as they retain their $avor
for a long time.

RELATED: 7 Poisonous Mushrooms

and What Happens if You Eat Them

5. Hen of the Woods

These mushrooms can weigh 100 pounds.

Courtesy of Field & Forest Products

A win-win for the novice forager. Hen

of the woods mushrooms are big—
specimens weighing over 100 pounds
have been recorded—and they’re easy
to "nd. They tend to grow in groups at
the foot of oak trees, where they can
o#en be found annually for years.
They’re also delicious with no
poisonous look-alikes. How good are
they? In Japan, they’re known as
maitake, the dancing mushroom,
because those who "nd them may
dance for joy at their discovery. Hen of
the woods mushrooms are round,
brown, with many folds, and are said
to look like a hen sitting on the ground
—although you may "nd this a stretch.
Once you learn to spot them, though,
you’ll be looking for them every fall.
The mushroom is full of vitamins and
minerals, improves overall immunity,
and has shown promise in treating
cancer. Slice it about ¼-inch thick and
sauté in butter or olive oil. Hens also
dry very well for use all year long.

6. King Bolete

The king bolete is also called porcini, penny

bun, and squirrel’s bread.
Pixabay/Alessandro Squassoni

Very good or bad mushrooms tend to

attract lots of nicknames. This is one
of the good ones. It is most commonly
known as porcini, an Italian word
meaning “pig.” The young fruit bodies
resemble pigs, and hogs are in fact
fond of them. The English name,
penny bun, refers to its rounded shape
and brownish color. The German
name, Steinpilz (stone mushroom)
refers to the species’ "rm $esh. The
Dutch name is squirrel’s bread.
Nobody knows what the Dutch are
thinking. The king bolete grows in
deciduous and coniferous forests
throughout the Northern Hemisphere,
and in southern Africa, Australia, New
Zealand, and Brazil, where it has been
introduced. The brown cap can be up
to 14 inches across. The mushroom
itself can weigh nearly 7 pounds. The
king bolete is so delicious that it is
widely sold commercially, even though
it is di&cult to cultivate. It’s dried,
packaged, and distributed worldwide,
and commonly reconstituted and used
in soups, pasta, or risotto.

7. Lion’s Mane

This one is also called the pom-pom

mushroom, for obvious reasons. Courtesy of
Field & Forest Products

The lion’s mane, aka monkey head

mushroom, satyr’s beard, and bearded
tooth mushroom, is one of my
favorites because, sautéed with a bit of
butter and oil, it tastes like lobster.
Really. It’s in the tooth fungus family
and doesn’t even look like a
mushroom. It’s also called the pom-
pom mushroom, because it looks like
something a cheerleader would shake
to rile up a team. It tends to grow in a
single clump of longish spines on dead
deciduous trees, especially willow,
maple, and beech. It’s native to North
America, Europe, and Asia, and has
been used in traditional Chinese
medicine for centuries. I have a friend
who is especially fond of lion’s mane.
He gave me some recently, and when I
asked where he found it, he sent me a
photo of a huge one 30 feet up a beech
tree. He harvested it using a climbing
treestand. Sautéed until the ends of the
“teeth” were just starting to curl and
brown, it was delicious.

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