Picking mushrooms

Mushrooms chanterelle on table. Raw wild mushrooms chanterelles. Composition with wild mushroom.

The world of wild mushrooms remains a mystery for most of us. We are often afraid of them. We consider them sometimes hard to find, sometimes very plentiful, and believe that picking them can often turn into a real treasure hunt. If, like others, you hesitate to venture into the forest with basket and knife in hand, here are a few tips to help you uncover the amateur mycologist that lies within you.

First, you don’t have to know everything! Québec has close to 3000 species of mushrooms of which fifty or so are kitchen-friendly. The best way to get started into picking is to begin with one or two common species that are easy to identify. Personally, I picked only a few varieties of mushroom for years, but it was more than enough to eat regularly. Start with chanterelles, which are very abundant in the Laurentians, then, when you have some experience and your eye has become more accustomed to the practice, add one species to your repertoire each season.

Obtain several works to guide you in your learning. The perfect book doesn’t exist! Some are amply illustrated, others are well documented, others come in a pocket format that’s practical for hiking. At Gourmet Sauvage, we have a complete library of reference books that we consult in turn.

Join a group of mycologists or attend a forest workshop like those we offer. There’s nothing better than peers and a real, on-the-ground experience for learning.

Lastly, be careful, and be sure always to identify your harvests carefully. But do dare to make a foray into the world of mushroom picking. It will change your perception of the forest. 

Cercle des mycologues des Laurentides

http://www.mycolaurentides.ca/

 Ateliers Gourmet Sauvage (workshops)

www.gourmetsauvage.ca

 Guide des bonnes pratiques en matière de consommation de champignons sauvages

https://www.mapaq.gouv.qc.ca/fr/Publications/Fiche_Champignons_final_web.pdf

Translated from French by Anne Jonhston.

 

Gérald Le Gal8 Posts

Enseignant, agent de développement, pêcheur commercial, conférencier et coanimateur avec sa fille Ariane de la série télévisée Coureurs des bois sur les ondes de Télé-Québec, Gérald Le Gal a exercé mille métiers au Québec, au Canada et à l’étranger. Du Grand Nord aux forêts boréales de l’Ontario, en passant par les côtes maritimes du Québec, Gérald est entré en contact avec les peuples autochtones ojibwé, inuit et innu. Il passe des mois en forêt à s’initier aux méthodes de survie ancestrale des peuples amérindiens. Sa passion: la nature et la relation des êtres avec celle-ci. En 1993, Gérald Le Gal fonde Gourmet Sauvage. Cette petite entreprise assure la récolte et la transformation des plantes sauvages comestibles du Québec à des fins culinaires. / Teacher, development agent, commercial fisher, speaker and co-host with his daughter Ariane of the television series “Coureurs des bois” on Télé-Québec, Gérald Le Gal has practised a thousand different callings in Quebec, the rest of Canada and abroad. From the Great North to Ontario’s boreal forests by way of the seacoasts of Quebec, Gérald came into contact with Ojibway, Inuit and Innu peoples. He spent months in the forest learning the ancient survival methods of Indigenous peoples. His passion: nature, and the relationship of humans with it. In 1993, Gérald Le Gal founded Gourmet Sauvage. The small company undertook the harvest and transformation of Quebec’s edible wild plants for culinary purposes.

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