What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have never been discovered.-Ralph Waldo Emerson
What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have never been discovered.-Ralph Waldo Emerson
Chanterelle mushrooms grow over most of the U.S., Their golden brilliance starts to appear across many areas of the South and along to the Eastern Coast of the USA anywhere from late May through September. Along the Western Coast the season starts in autumn and carries on almost through to winter. Common varieties of chanterelle include the golden brilliance that is so easy to spot and the smaller red cinnabar variety. Chanterelles grow and thrive just about anywhere that warm rains and heat from the sun occur roughly at the same time together, 2023 up here in the Adirondacks has had a bumper crop because of so much rain.
Chanterelle caps range in size from an inch to 5 inches, depending on variety and age. The underside of all chanterelle caps features false gills, more like narrow waves imprinted onto the surface of the mushroom. If you rake your knife blade or fingernail across these false gills, they won't separate or release from the underside of the cap.
The flesh of a chanterelle should be creamy white. They grow on a single stem that should be solid and not hollow. Another good identification trick is to give the freshly picked mushroom a sniff. It should smell mildly of apricots or other fruit, not strong or unpleasant at all.
The most common lookalike for chanterelles is the jack-o'-lantern mushroom.and I have included it in the Mushroom Identification Gallery so you can see the difference in gills for example, THe Jacks have True gills, the chanterelles have false ones, rather like ridges across the cap.
Chart courtesy of Discover the Wild
Black Trumpet Mushrooms (Latin name:Craterellus cornucopioides) are common, delicious edible mushrooms that are easy to identify. They’re perfect for beginning foragers because they have no close look alikes. Though common, they can be hard to spot because they blend in with the forest background.Once you have found one, clump, take a good look at the area around it as you will often find others peeping up through the leaf duff.
Black trumpets look like . . . black trumpets. Ok, that's a bit of an oversimplification, but it's essentially true.
These mushrooms are vase or bull-horn shaped, and generally black, dark grey or dark brown in hue. If the mushrooms are exposed to the sun they can dry out and lighten, sometimes to a light gray or tan, but will still have all the other features.
The top "cap" of black trumpets are more or less round, with a flower-like ruffled edge. As they age and dry out, these edges frequently split. The underside of black trumpets lack true gills. They may be smooth, crinkled, or have linear groves that vaguely resemble gills, but are actually wrinkles in the mushrooms surface, rather than separable gills. The undersides may be lighter in color than the inside and top and/or may become lighter the closer it is to the ground.I have done a separate page for them, CLICK HERE to learn more about this wonderful mushrooms.
Photograph courtesy of Healing Mushrooms.net
Photograph courtesy of Healing Mushrooms.net
There are multiple ways to store chanterelle mushrooms. When possible Use your fresh chanterelles immediately as dehydrating chanterelles can cause them to lose their fruity flavor. It is best to preserve these mushrooms through other methods, such as refrigerating, freezing, or picklingPreservation methods for these wild mushrooms include:
Refrigerate: You can store raw chanterelles in the refrigerator. Places the mushrooms in a paper bag or in a bowl loosely covered with a paper towel to let them breathe. They will last up to ten days in the refrigerator. If the chanterelles turn slimy, discard them.
Freeze: You can store chanterelles in the freezer. First, remove some of their water by dry frying the chanterelles in a frying pan on the stove on medium-high heat with no oil. This evaporates much of the water that the chanterelles hold. Cook the chanterelles for five to ten minutes until they release their juices and shrivel slightly. Remove the chanterelles from the heat and let cool before storing in a freezer bag in the freezer. Frozen chanterelles can last for a year in the freezer. After you freeze chanterelles, you can use them straight from the freezer without defrosting. You can add frozen chanterelles to many meals, including stews, risotto, or pasta.
Pickle: To pickle chanterelles for later use, first dry fry the mushrooms. Then, add the chanterelles to a jar with a one-to-one mixture of water and vinegar, as well as any seasonings you want. Pickled chanterelles will keep for up to a year.
HOW I STORE CHANTERELLE MUSHROOMS
Probably the MOST important thing I want to say to you as you forage Chanterelle mushrooms is to not store them in plastic either as you collect them from the ground or keep them in the fridge. Chanterelle mushrooms hold a huge percentage of water and can become very sodden if kept for any length of time in an enclosed plastic or Tupperware container. Store in cardboard, cloth or paper to maintain shape and keep the mushrooms in the best condition. Stored properly, these wonderful mushrooms can last 3 weeks in your fridge.
HOW I CLEAN MUSHROOMS
In all honesty, there is no exact science as to how to clean a mushroom, its up to how clean you want it and how much effort you want to put in. Sometimes I cup the mushroom in the palm of my hand and have a small flat paintbrush from the dollar store, (doesn't have to be fancy) I brush from the stipe downwards.Most of the possible woodland debris will come off. Dunking them in cold water afterwards could also be done, just make sure to put on water absorbent paper or cloth afterwards and dry fry before adding oil or butter so as to remove excess moisture that chanterelles have. Sometimes I just look at them, give them a shake and think "that'll do"
WHEN I FORAGE MOST MUSHROOMS
I nip off the bottom soil end covered part of the stipe and place them cap down in my foraging bag or container, it keeps them a lot cleaner and is then less work in the kitchen.
ALWAYS BE SURE YOU ARE 100% CERTAIN OF THE MUSHROOMS YOU FORAGE> WHEN IN DOUBT< THROW IT OUT
Honestly, I use them in everything I can! They are wonderfully vibrant in color and make any dish shine! Take care not to overcook them or they turn oily, just put them to your dish last thing and heat them through, you are good to go!
A SIMPLE DISH OF MUSHROOMS IN PASTA- ALWAYS A WINNER!
Ingredients
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