Where Do You Find Late Fall Polypores?

Resinous Polypore is a common, easily recognized, shelf fungus. It occurs in North America and Europe. In the United States it is common east of the Great Plains. It is found from September through November; alone, in groups, or in overlapping clusters; in deciduous and mixed woodlands. It grows on stumps and logs of hardwood that has died recently or several years before but is not well-rotted. It does not grow on conifers. It is saprobic, getting its nutrients from dead wood.

How To Identify them:

Fruiting Body: e 5–19 cm across; 3–9 cm deep;

- irregularly bracket-shaped, kidney-shaped, or nearly semicircular;

- broadly convex; when young quite thick and fleshy, with a finely velvety surface with zones of pinkish brown and brown, and a thick whitish margin;

- in maturity dark brown, sometimes with zones of blackish brown, fairly bald, dry, and tough.

When young: whitish, soft, promptly bruising brown; in maturity pale brown and hard; with 4–6 angular or round pores per mm; tubes 2–8 mm deep.

-Depending on rain quantities, it sometimes exudes water droplets in a process called Guttation.

- No Stem.

- Flesh: Whitish to dull pinkish brown and soft at first; darkening to brown and becoming tougher with maturity.

Taste and smell: Not distinctive.

Spore print: White.

Do They Have Any Poisonous Look Alikes?

It has a similar look alike which is NOT poisonous called Benzoin Bracket (Ischnoderma benzoinum) is a similar polypore that grows only on conifers. The cap is thinner and it has slightly darker flesh. Alos considered edible, slightly tougher but with not much flavor.

How To Forage & Store Late Fall Polypores

I like to collect resinosum when it is very young and tender when their texture is similar to a marshmallow’s. It should also tear easily by hand. Sometimes you can cut the growing edge off of slightly more mature specimens, but by far the best mushrooms are the very young “buttons”

This Polypore has a high water content so cookig fresh is best, don't store in plastic boxes or bags in the fridge as it will create a soggy mess as the water releases. I have not as yet tried dry frying and then freezing similar to chanterelles touse lateras stuffing or sausage, pastie or dumpling filler, but its a possibility.

How To Cook With Late Fall Polypores:

I cut these mushrooms into small pieces and cooked them in a cast iron pot over fire on indirect heat. This slow cooking process allowed the mushrooms to release their juices, slowly cook down and caramelize in their own broth. I added garden herbs, blitzed it up in the food processor with smoked parsnip, potatoes, and pork sausage. It was quite possibly the best dumpling filler I've ever tasted. If you wanted a less Asian theme, simply replace your dumpling wrappers with puff pastry, fill with the mushroom, meat and veggie mix and make pasties, a historical food from the 1700's.

What are the Differences Between Potstickers and Dumplings?

Potstickers are a type of pan-fried dumpling. The main difference is that, whereas dumplings are usually steamed or boiled to produce tender skins, potstickers are known for their crispy bottom due to frying them which is a difference in the cooking method

Ingredients;

Dumpling wrappers: You can find them fresh or frozen in most supermarkets.
Mushrooms:
Cabbage: I used napa cabbage for a more traditional flavor – feel free to use other types, though.
Aromatics: I use a simple combination of ginger and garlic with black pepper so the mushrooms aren’t overwhelmed. The soy sauce provides salt, so I don’t add any additional salt.
Soy sauce: use tamari for a gluten-free option. You can also use reduced-sodium soy sauce if preferred. Though, I suggest using a combination of reduced and dark soy for depth of flavor.
Sesame oil: used to sauté the mushroom filling and if making them as pan-fried vegan potstickers.

How To Make;

Start by finely chopping the cabbage, mushrooms, ginger, and garlic
. To save time, you can, alternatively, process the ingredients separately in a food processor until they are broken down into a chunky crumb. The mushrooms are okay in slightly larger pieces as they will cook down a lot, too.
Start by cooking the mushrooms in a dry pan (no oil) over medium heat. As they cook, they’ll release their water content. After they’ve released the majority of their liquid, add in the remaining ingredients (including the oil) and cook for 4-5 minutes, or until tender, stirring occasionally.
Taste the mushroom mixture and adjust the flavor if needed – more salt or soy. Then remove the mixture from the heat to allow it to cool for a few minutes.
To assemble the mushroom dumplings, fill each dumpling wrapper with around 1 tablespoon of the mushroom filling in the center. Then it’s time to shape the dumplings.

There are several ways that you can seal and shape the dumplings. The easiest being the “half-moon” which requires you to just close and seal the dumpling without the need for extra pleats. Steam by placing the dumplings on top of cabbage in a colander with a lid over a water bath or fry in a pan and enjoy!