B.C. mushroom question

[shelora]

Chanterelles are starting to appear on menus. A lovely saute of baby ones last night at Brasserie and at Rosemeade, a beautifully stuffed ravioli specimen.

My question is, are chanterelles and other species of fungi indigenous to B.C. or did their wee spores get transported from elsewhere?

Stovetop?

[stovetop]

Hi Shelora:

My question is, are chanterelles and other species of fungi indigenous to B.C. or did their wee spores get transported from elsewhere?

chanterelles grow in a lot of different areas in BC naturally and also throughout the world- they love the great growing conditions we have on the coast and in the last ten years have become very popular and are popping up as ingredients in many Vancouver restaurant menus.

I am glad the mushroom companies have not figured out how to culture chanterelles because it keeps the allure about them. The mass production of them would somehow loose the charm of the tasty beauties. When I lived in Port Alberni- I lived on a farm for a while and my roommate and landlord was a huge mushroom fan and we would go out a pick them every week. There is something very instinctual in the whole process. That earthy smell after a rain and being close to the ground and nature. The best part is the process of prepping and cooking with them or getting them ready for storage.

breakfast is a great time- an omelet with chantrelles that you pick the day day before with bread you baked and some awesome strong coffee make my day. The island food basket is second to few. Nature still rules her castle on the coast of BC. Many natural acuring foods still exist and are available to those who go out into the rainforest's and harvest their dinner.

Good times

steve

Edited August 12, 2006 by stovetop (log)

[stovetop]

A few links

south vancouver island Mycological Society

Chanterelle Mushrooms

chanterelles in Saskatchewan

ubc

steve

[mbjesq]

When I think of Mushrooms in Vancouver, I can't help thinking of Vice Misceo. Here's the story on memestream.

[canucklehead]

Cincin is starting up their annual mushroom and truffle festival - and it brings to mind all of the mushrooms that I have seen at market lately.

Whole foods has a bumber crop of chanterelles this week - but last week they had Pine Mushrooms for $25 a pound. Has anyone every cooked with these at home? I think that Okada treats them the best - in a hot seafood broth with a squeeze of citrus - simple and delicous.

["T"]

I met a guy last week off Granville who just sold some chantrelles to West and was sorting his mushrooms in the trunk of his car. We started talking about picking, I pick matsutakes only, and he offered to give me some for free. I declined but said give me $10.00 worth. He then pulled out a bag and gave me 2 lbs for my ten. Now I wish I asked him for his phone number. They were delish!!!!

[canucklehead]

I was just reading the mushroom guide from the Vandusen Garden mushroom chat. Pine mushrooms apparently can fetch up to $200 a pound in Japan. Ha!

What did you do with them T?

["T"]

I was just reading the mushroom guide from the Vandusen Garden mushroom chat.  Pine mushrooms apparently can fetch up to $200 a pound in Japan.  Ha!

What did you do with them T?

←

Pan fry with butter, garlic, shallots, white wine on toast. It put a smile on my wifes face which put a smile on my face.

[merlin]

"T"

Sounds grand. Did much the same thing with the yellow chanterelles I was delighted to find available at Beaches Grocery in Tofino. It is that small, often surprisingly good store in the lot off the highway and turn-off to the Wick and Chesterman Beach that also has Tofino Chocolates, Internet lounge, surfing shop and originally SOBO's "catering" truck. It usually seems to cater to surfers and tourists like us.

They had a good supply of chanterelles the first few days and then I thought the rains meant no more, but they were there the day before we left and headed down to Victoria on the 19th.

One of my morning hilights after a walk along Chesterman hearing the roar of the surf was to stand and see the ocean while frying up a big panfull of those mushrooms and adding them to a melt in one's mouth omelette topped with just a little truffle oil. Yummm

Great price on the matsutakes

[mbjesq]

When I think of Mushrooms in Vancouver, I can't help thinking of Vice Misceo.  Here's the story on memestream.

←

Here's the updated link to the story on Vince and his B.C. porcini mushrooms: "Generosity"

Apologies for those who came looking for this and were sent to the old, non-functioning link.

MBJ

[twinkienic]

Cincin is starting up their annual mushroom and truffle festival - and it brings to mind all of the mushrooms that I have seen at market lately.

When does this mushroom and truffle festival at CinCin start? I looked on the website and didn't see any mention.

Sounds so tempting...

[canucklehead]

I got wind of this a little while ago - but check things out here for addtional details.

[ColinD]

Chanterelles are starting to appear on menus. A lovely saute of baby ones last night at Brasserie and at Rosemeade, a beautifully stuffed ravioli specimen.

  My question is, are chanterelles and other species of fungi indigenous to B.C. or did their wee spores get transported from elsewhere?

Stovetop?

←

A lot of the chanterelles you see on local menus are from Saskatchewan, not sure how many BC chanterelles make it on plates here. The mushrooms from Sask. tend to hold up better than our BC ones (they are drier). That being said theres nothing like a saute pan of fresh picked chanterelles and coho salmon to get the juices flowing.

Colin

[Jcolvin]

I was just reading the mushroom guide from the Vandusen Garden mushroom chat.  Pine mushrooms apparently can fetch up to $200 a pound in Japan.  Ha!

What did you do with them T?

←

Pan fry with butter, garlic, shallots, white wine on toast. It put a smile on my wifes face which put a smile on my face.

←

Slice them thick (1/4 inch or so). Flash-grill them 30 secs per side. They should still be crunchy, when they start sweating they are ready to flip. Dip in soy sauce.

I picked a lot up near Pemberton this year.

Jonathan Colvin

[canucklehead]

I was just reading the mushroom guide from the Vandusen Garden mushroom chat.  Pine mushrooms apparently can fetch up to $200 a pound in Japan.  Ha!

What did you do with them T?

←

Pan fry with butter, garlic, shallots, white wine on toast. It put a smile on my wifes face which put a smile on my face.

←

Slice them thick (1/4 inch or so). Flash-grill them 30 secs per side. They should still be crunchy, when they start sweating they are ready to flip. Dip in soy sauce.

I picked a lot up near Pemberton this year.

Jonathan Colvin

←

Whole Foods has beautiful ones for $25 a pound. Thanks for the suggestions.

[quattroporte]

Also saw some at Granville Island. Wasn't but a couple of years ago we could only dream about find them at a retail outlet.

For those really adventurous mushroom hunters, this has been the best year in recent memory for shaggy manes. True, you look like a dork bent down in a grassy field (and you get a few honks and 'wink wink's') but the reward is awesome. Think intense mushroom flavor crossed with truffle. After I ate my fill, I still had enough to freeze for several heavenly batches of risotto.

[Peter Green]

Y'know, when I think of mushrooms in Vancouver, I always picture that classic Georgia Straight cover - ala the Dutch master's painting - with the students bent over picking the psilocybin on the boulevard on the way to UBC.

Can you cook with those? Without inducing vomiting?

[hummingbirdkiss]

Y'know, when I think of mushrooms in Vancouver, I always picture that classic Georgia Straight cover - ala the Dutch master's painting - with the students bent over picking the psilocybin on the boulevard on the way to UBC.

Can you cook with those?  Without inducing vomiting?

←

yes...lots of ginger in the recipe

not that I would know this from any long ago personal experiance or anything like that

Edited November 30, 2007 by hummingbirdkiss (log)

[Jcolvin]

Y'know, when I think of mushrooms in Vancouver, I always picture that classic Georgia Straight cover - ala the Dutch master's painting - with the students bent over picking the psilocybin on the boulevard on the way to UBC.

Can you cook with those? Without inducing vomiting?

←

Not for taste; magic mushrooms taste awful. Your taste-buds are telling you quite succinctly that you should NOT be eating these shrooms. Your mind has to over-ride the gut instinct. Best just to make tea.

Jonathan Colvin

[Jcolvin]

Also saw some at Granville Island.  Wasn't but a couple of years ago we could only dream about find them at a retail outlet.

For those really adventurous mushroom hunters, this has been the best year in recent memory for shaggy manes.  True, you look like a dork bent down in a grassy field (and you get a few honks and 'wink wink's') but the reward is awesome.  Think intense mushroom flavor crossed with truffle.  After I ate my fill, I still had enough to freeze for several heavenly batches of risotto.

←

Now I've always found shaggy's rather bland and tasteless. Perhaps it's because I'm comparing them with the large bag of dried morels I still have left over from the spring <grin>. I got 10 lbs from the burn on Galiano.

One mushroom I was pleasantly surprised with this year was suilllus (also known as slippery jack). I'd always thought they'd be slimy and tasteless. Not! They grew in huge quantities this year, and if you dry-fry them long enough to get most of the water out, or dry them, they are really good.

ps....If you are cooking with fresh morels, be sure to parboil them well first and discard the water, or fry them on a high heat. We got mushroom poisoning (think very bad stomach cramps) this year from a high-end establishment that made a risotto with an overly-generous quantity of fresh morels. The mild simmer in the risotto wasn't enough to take all the gyromitrin toxin out of the morels.

[Chef Fowke]

Chanterelles are starting to appear on menus. A lovely saute of baby ones last night at Brasserie and at Rosemeade, a beautifully stuffed ravioli specimen.

  My question is, are chanterelles and other species of fungi indigenous to B.C. or did their wee spores get transported from elsewhere?

Stovetop?

←

A lot of the chanterelles you see on local menus are from Saskatchewan, not sure how many BC chanterelles make it on plates here. The mushrooms from Sask. tend to hold up better than our BC ones (they are drier). That being said theres nothing like a saute pan of fresh picked chanterelles and coho salmon to get the juices flowing.

Colin

←

I made the trek out to Northern Sask this summer! YES...they are amazing and the industry is well put togeather. As I understand; most of the mushrooms do not remain in Canada.