Would you eat foraged wild mushrooms?

Personally, I wouldn‘t mess with mushrooms if I didn‘t have full confidence in this friend. The fact that he proved himself unreliable in a few minutes of browsing by a novice seals the deal. It‘s just not worth it.

Not worth it wrote:

Personally, I wouldn‘t mess with mushrooms if I didn‘t have full confidence in this friend. The fact that he proved himself unreliable in a few minutes of browsing by a novice seals the deal. It‘s just not worth it.

agree

+1

I have eaten wild foraged lions mane, oysters, chanterelles, and turkey tail (not eaten but made a tea and drank it). I would also eat chicken of the woods, when of the woods, and dyads saddle. I have good confidence in my ability to id all of those. Probable honey mushrooms as well, but I have heard mixed results on the how goid those are so I dont hunt for them specifically. I would eat morels and have looked for them but without access so far.

I avoid all amanitas and all bolete. Bi th have a number of desireable edibles, such as amanita jacksonii, but I dont triste my ability to id these at this point. I do have some foraging friends i would trust for those ids, though. I wouldnt eat coprinus (inky caps) because of the danger of drinking alcohol with them.

I hooe the o.p.can discriminate between chanterelles and jacks. Very common look-a-like, not too hard to distinguish if you know what to look for. Jacks wont kill you but may make you with you were dead.

I don't even like mushrooms that much. OP, just curious -- what mushrooms do you think he misidentified?

David S wrote:

I don't even like mushrooms that much. OP, just curious -- what mushrooms do you think he misidentified?

I think he thought that this was edible.....

and confused it with the shrimp russula, which IS edible.

Wow, some of the pictures look almost the same, glad you noticed.

Yep, I think he did a pretty good job of talking through the differences there. But that's where his expertise seemed to end.

David S wrote:

Wow, some of the pictures look almost the same, glad you noticed.

Yeah thanks and then I went online and learned that Nicholas Evans, the author of the book, The Horse Whisperer, ate a deadly meal.....it seems like fiction but is not. Damn! See:

Better safe than sorry. As you noted many species are lethal even in small amounts, and with a few it is a slow and painful (but certain) death.

Here in Australia a chef died a few years ago after mistaking a death-cap (that hadn't fully opened) for a straw mushroom.

I also personally know someone who ate the mushrooms from their field for years without issue, and then one year got really sick (cramps, hallucinations, fever like symptoms) from what appeared to be exactly the same mushrooms. They were then advised by another local "sometimes you need to peel the skins off".

One of my favorite jokes:

An old woman stands in the market with a “Chernobyl mushrooms for sale" sign. A man goes up to her and demands: "Hey, what are you doing? Who's going to buy Chernobyl mushrooms?” / “Well, lots of people. Some for their boss, others for their mother-in-law...”

No way. Your friend/guide sounds extremely irresponsible. I'm always tempted to forage wild mushrooms but do not have any confidence in my ability to correctly identify them. I do look for them and take an interest in finding and typing the ones I happen across; but, I'd be terrified to actually eat one. I don't think I could ever overcome my fear even with professional guidance. It's funny though, because I buy wild mushrooms from a guy at my local farmer's market. The guy always looks and acts like he's tripping out on some wild 'shroom concoction. Fun person to talk to, but definitely not entirely there if you get my drift. Not sure why I trust him, to be honest.

I hate autocorrect and the one on my phone seems particularly bad, so I apologize for the nearly incomprehensible message above. The key, if you are actually wanting to forage wild mushrooms, is just to slowly accumulate knowledge. I am a pretty casual forager, so its a long learning curve. I posted a list up above and that list is the way it is because I would only consume mushrooms I can positively identify and have chosen to really learn some of the more choice edibles. Lion's Mane, for example, does not have any lookalike mushrooms except for a couple of closely related herecium species (Bear's-head tooth and comb tooth). All are edible, so it is not at all likely to mistake it for something dangerous. Chicken of the Woods (which is two closely related species, laetiporus sulphureus and laetiporus cincinattus. There are not really look alikes in my area, although there are some closely related species further west. Chicken of the Woods does cause stomach upset in some people so the recommendation is to cook it thoroughly and test with just a small amount. Oysters don't have any dangerous lookalikes in my area(there is one in Australia and Japan). The most common lookalike is angel's wings, which are also edible. This is why I stay away from boletes and amanitas. Both can be quite difficult to isolate to specific species, often requiring a miscroscope. Both group have a lot of lookalikes. In my state, selling foraged mushrooms requires certification, but this is quite variable. I would eat some species from a forager, but they would have to be ones that I would be pretty comfortable identifying on my own.

shroom'er wrote:

No way. Your friend/guide sounds extremely irresponsible. I'm always tempted to forage wild mushrooms but do not have any confidence in my ability to correctly identify them. I do look for them and take an interest in finding and typing the ones I happen across; but, I'd be terrified to actually eat one. I don't think I could ever overcome my fear even with professional guidance. It's funny though, because I buy wild mushrooms from a guy at my local farmer's market. The guy always looks and acts like he's tripping out on some wild 'shroom concoction. Fun person to talk to, but definitely not entirely there if you get my drift. Not sure why I trust him, to be honest.

You were right to be wary and cautious. Lots of people have been poisoned by cooking and eating what their 'experienced guide' told them was edible. Your friend was very irresponsible. In the worst cases, people have suffered horrific organ failure pain and death from eating what their guide said was safe

Why not call your friend and check to see if he's still alive?

I hunt and eat morels every year. They show up in the spring for a very short window. They're very easy to identify and are delicious. Its like an adult Easter egg hunt. Early season you can sell them for $15-20 a pound. Ive had a couple of occasions where I've picked more than I could consume and made a few bucks by selling the extra.

First, was your friend okay? Maybe you were wrong with your "internet" identification.

I ate mushrooms my grandparents would pick from the forest, they did this their entire life. They grew up in Ukraine where this was common practice and continued with it here in Canada. I trusted them. I don't trust myself doing this now!

Not a chance. I don't know anything about them and I wouldn't trust a 'guide' in this regard.

Always bring a book with pictures and pictured details of what you are, or not, looking for. Depending of what area of the planet you live in, you may also want to wear gloves when picking the shrooms if you are uncertain. Stay away from anything yellow as a base line for caution.

I wouldn't even eat mushrooms grown on a farm or a lab or whatever they call them. They are an alien-like life form, probably originally from another planet, and shouldn't be considered food.