Two days tromping around in the mud and rain, the huge drops of water collected on the spruce trees soaring above our heads, knee deep boots and beach grass soaking all layers, weathered or not through to the skin...I can''t wait to do it again! From Highway 101 South of Tillamook, we headed out circumnavigating the two northern capes [of the Three Capes region of the Oregon coast], Cape Meares and Cape Lookout, armed with mushroom guides and fierce determination. I had had the inclination that perhaps on this day I would find something as of yet undiscovered by my own eyes...not even at a grocery stores--both lobster and chanterelle were familiar on this front long before finding them.
We found a place to stop the car well off the road at Cape Meares, but far enough away not to have the bustle of the parking lot too close, and pulled over. I don't think the amount of time it takes me to type Chicken of the Woods is as long as it took me to spot an enourmous specimen about 10 yards deep into the forest, glowing as bright as the sun (well it seemed that way to me!).
It was at this time that I was quite certain we were in a fruitful location, and readied my gear to explore the surrounding forest. A quick bee-line to the tree yielded a tripple lobed Chicken of the Woods or Sulphur Shelf mushroom. A gill-less polypore that is as bright yellow and orange as a Cheetos wrapper. Believe me, I have been unwilling duped by the latter!We found a place to stop the car well off the road at Cape Meares, but far enough away not to have the bustle of the parking lot too close, and pulled over. I don't think the amount of time it takes me to type Chicken of the Woods is as long as it took me to spot an enourmous specimen about 10 yards deep into the forest, glowing as bright as the sun (well it seemed that way to me!).
Supposedly, it is said that this mushroom tastes like chicken. It certainly smells like chicken. According to one source I found, they declared this mushroom to be one of the four "unmistakable" mushrooms, whose look alike are few, and among which are zero poisonous mushrooms. However, another source indicated that the Pacific Region might have a strain of toxic Sulphur Shelf, as there have been three reported sickenings, possibly allergies in thsi region. Caution is advised, with the proscribed method, for the gastromically willing, is to eat a very small amount, and wait 24 hours. So I did. It was delicious. And I haven't had an issue yet, perhaps I will try a larger portion next time.
As a Pointer: NEVER NO NEVER do this with any mushroom known to have poisonous look alikes unless you are given certitude by an expert! Some mushrooms have irreversible poisons that can cause death and many other permanent and unpleaseant results.
That being said, it did tastes like chicken, and I prepared it by batter and deep fry. In fact, it was a Chicken (of the woods) Nugget.
For the batter, Blend in a Cuisinart:
4 tbls of flour with
chopped oregano, tarragon, and lemon-scented marigold leaf,
once the mixture is fine, add
1 Tbls Olive Oil
and the whites of two eggs
Salt and pepper
Voila, and thick batter to fry and enjoy.
Spices and herbs, obviously, can be sustituted for you own purposes. Those above were on hand and made for a interesting combination, to say the least.
It was on this journey that I realized how the temperature must affect the growing of the fungal fruiting bodies, and how the temperature is related to altitude. More mushrooms were found on higher ground, on the passes of hwy 101, than were found on the floor or the tidal flats, where the most bountiful mushroom patches I have every experienced are sure to spring up in the next few weeks, as the rains of Autumn push finally the dry of summer from the memory.
Not to say that we weren't wet, but even the drenching rain doesn't seem to be enough without the temperature change signalling the mycellium to push upward. A theory I have yet to varify, is that the first frost significantly alters the cellular structure of the biomass on slow breakdown. As the water in each cell expands to freezing, the cell is ruptured, like so many ruined salad greens in a too cold refridgerator, and the mushrooms are suddenly, overnight even, gien access to a bountiful world of organic chemistry to disassemble and the fule to grow. If anyone has definitive answers to this quandary, please contact me at pacificchef@gmail.com!
As a Pointer: NEVER NO NEVER do this with any mushroom known to have poisonous look alikes unless you are given certitude by an expert! Some mushrooms have irreversible poisons that can cause death and many other permanent and unpleaseant results.
That being said, it did tastes like chicken, and I prepared it by batter and deep fry. In fact, it was a Chicken (of the woods) Nugget.
For the batter, Blend in a Cuisinart:
4 tbls of flour with
chopped oregano, tarragon, and lemon-scented marigold leaf,
once the mixture is fine, add
1 Tbls Olive Oil
and the whites of two eggs
Salt and pepper
Voila, and thick batter to fry and enjoy.
Spices and herbs, obviously, can be sustituted for you own purposes. Those above were on hand and made for a interesting combination, to say the least.
It was on this journey that I realized how the temperature must affect the growing of the fungal fruiting bodies, and how the temperature is related to altitude. More mushrooms were found on higher ground, on the passes of hwy 101, than were found on the floor or the tidal flats, where the most bountiful mushroom patches I have every experienced are sure to spring up in the next few weeks, as the rains of Autumn push finally the dry of summer from the memory.
Not to say that we weren't wet, but even the drenching rain doesn't seem to be enough without the temperature change signalling the mycellium to push upward. A theory I have yet to varify, is that the first frost significantly alters the cellular structure of the biomass on slow breakdown. As the water in each cell expands to freezing, the cell is ruptured, like so many ruined salad greens in a too cold refridgerator, and the mushrooms are suddenly, overnight even, gien access to a bountiful world of organic chemistry to disassemble and the fule to grow. If anyone has definitive answers to this quandary, please contact me at pacificchef@gmail.com!
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