Mushroom myths

[Cannonman17]

I decided to make this post for the good of the group in the hopes that more people will look into it. Wild mushrooms are not as scary as the naysayers would have you believe!! Are there ones that are poisonous? You bet! Here's how you avoid that, don't pick anything you're not completely familiar with. There are a number of mushrooms that are SUPER easy to identify, have NO poisonous look alikes and there for are great beginners mushrooms. Some of them are quite common and being so easy to identify could potentially add a good sized meal to somebody lost in the wild.

Nutritional value: Without fail, every single "survival" type site I have ever seen there is somebody posting "mushrooms have NO nutrional value, zip, zero, zilch." Nobody seems to question that at all for whatever reason. Go do a google search and find out the truth. In fact mushrooms contain tons of trace minerals and vitamins that your body needs and are hard to find in an ordinary diet!!! Most species are a fantastic source of phosphorus, magnesium, potassium and selenium. Some species, when fresh contain as much potassium as a small bannana! Here's a snip of a page I copied from web blog by a chef (NOTE: I have no affiliation with this blog site) "

"Mushrooms are about 85 percent water. The rest are protein, carbs, and minerals.
- Mushrooms are high in dietary fiber, but that fiber is low in fat.
- Mushrooms are rich in potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, iron and calcium.
- The proteins found in mushrooms are of better quality than found in vegetables, therefore they are more wholly nutritious than those other vegetables.
- Mushrooms are also rich in vitamins necessary for nutrition: Thiamin (B1), Pyridoxine (B6), Pantotecnic Acid, Nicotinic Acid, Folic Acid, Ascorbic Acid (vitamin C), ergosterine (Provit, D2) and Biotin (Vitamin H).
- Mushrooms contain an elevated amount of Folic Acid -- folic acid is rare in most vegetables."

I don't know about you folks, but they sound pretty healthy to me. The Chinese have considered mushrooms a helth food for thousands of years already, the Romans called them the food of the Gods (there may be other reasons for that one other than health of course)

On top of all that these suckers are deliceous! I mention mushrooms and the very first thing that many people do is wrinkle up their nose and say ewwww! Those are almost ALWAYS people who have never tried a fresh mushroom but just some slimy canned and very generic mushrooms. The wild varieties come in many flavors and textures with no two being exactly alike.

Also consider this: Frequently mushrooms can be EASILY gathered from Spring to Fall. Easy being stressed because it means you wouldn't be burning any extra calories by stopping to pick them as you walk through the woods. In a survival type situation you always have to be careful to not expend more calories than you must to obtain the basics. If there's free food along the path why not grab it!

Am I suggesting all of you go out and start picking wild mushrooms, NO. At least open your mind to the thought and do a little bit of research now, rather than being forced to pass up a twenty pound chicken mushroom growing off an old oak stump because you're not sure if it's good or not.

Here's a good one for anybody to learn and you're not going to confuse it with anythign poisonous... the chicken mushroom, aka sulpher shelf. Bright orange on top, yellow underneath, grows on dead or dying hardwoods. No gills underneath, grows in plates. This mushroom has the consistancy of chicken breast meat! It's super good to eat and is common up North at least. Go on, go take a look! You don't know what you're missing out on!

Too many mushroom experts like to come online and spew out their latin names of all the mushrooms and then all the people who aren't familar get even more scared off.. In my opinion anyway. Then they tell you about taking spore prints under a microscope and all that....... "stuff". Yeah, I do that to for the species who have similar look alikes but for the VAST majority it's not needed at all! Know that most mushrooms have common names and they aren't as bad as they sound!

Just Remember:
Never eat anything you aren't sure about! Do your research now.

There is no general rule of thumb, the only way to if you can eat it is to know the species!

Find somebody to go with, learn first hand if you can.

Field guides are cheap, and you will see a number of mushrooms that don't look like any of the other ones, focuss on those first!

always cook your mushrooms! Raw mushrooms are hard to digest!!

While it is very rare, mushroom, like any other food, can cause allergic reactions in people. Eat only a small amount to start and wait it out to make sure you don't get the itchy scratchies!!

Have fun!

[Sarge47]

This topic has been covered extensively with one member getting angry & shutting down for awhile. As for me I don't care to rehash the same old ground.

[Cannonman17]

I can't imagine how a talk about mushrooms could get mean but I don't want to know, that would take the fun right out of it! Okay then.... moving right along....

[Sarge47]

I can't imagine how a talk about mushrooms could get mean but I don't want to know, that would take the fun right out of it! Okay then.... moving right along....

I just ran a search on "mushrooms" & got a listing for 131 threads discussing the subject, some created especially for mushrooms. The summary is that mushrooms contain a lethal threat to the uninformed, questionable benifit regarding the time spent to look for & gather them vs. the nutritional value, & a plea from yours truley for any one finding Morels to ship them to me for save disposal. (Unfortunately that one didn't fly)

[Cannonman17]

I did a quick search on mushrooms also before making the post, guess at a glance it looked as though most of the posts dealing with mushrooms were from a while ago. I didn't of course realize that it had been a hot topic. Interesting that the amount of work vs. calories gained was amongst the discussion, I guess I'm so used to finding the mushrooms as I'm walking to or from that I very seldom ever go out looking just for them, except morels, cuz I find enough on my journeys as it is, darn things are everywhere. Throw 'em in the bag and cook them with whatever else was found along the way when you settle down for the night I guess. Hmm.. oh well. By the way Sarge, did you check my personal info page? I have a pic of a big yellow morel on there... I look at that pic all winter long waiting for the Spring to come!!

[Rick]

I don't disagree with anything you've posted. In my book, there is nothing better than to happen upon a patch of morels. But if you want to set the record straight then consider this. Mushrooms do not contain significant nutritional value for the energy expended searching for them. In a survival situation, you would be better off searching for more plentiful flora and fauna. And....don't forget that in a survival situation, you may be stressed mentally as well as physically and just might miss a vital clue that would have told you that particular mushroom was toxic (not necessarily deadly).

Otherwise, you were right on the mark. And yeah, the talk wasn't just mean. It was vicious.

[Cannonman17]

I see what you're saying and agreeing. Going out and actively searching for mushrooms, in most instances, would not be productive in terms of energy spent vs. collected. Guess I was thinking more along the lines of the fact that so many people completely avoid them and know nothing about them that in a real situation, where you're lost or what not, and walking long distances, you're bound to come across some edible mushroom species. Now the guy who says, they aint worth collecting and don't have any value just missed out on a free meal, and a nutritious one. The guy who spends a little time to learn the most easily identified species just gave himself a big boost by collecting a mushroom that he was already walking past anyway (no extra energy spent to get it).

Anyhow, sounds like the previous mushroom discussions got downright ugly, that's too bad. I go to places like this to learn not fight.. but it's easy to let your feelings get in the way some times, happens to everybody at some point I guess. I don't want this thread to turn into a battleground! I caused enough problems with my .22 post!!! LOL!

[Rick]

Scavenging as you walk along is just a great way to collect all sorts of thing. Fire tinder, edibles, "tools", medicinal plants. The boys are always far ahead of me. Occasionally, they come back to see if I died along the way. They always seem to find me picking something up. No one complains about me being "slow". They usually enjoy whatever goes in the pot at dinner time.

[Sarge47]

Guess I was thinking more along the lines of the fact that so many people completely avoid them and know nothing about them that in a real situation, where you're lost or what not, and walking long distances, you're bound to come across some edible mushroom species.

...one mistake on id'ing the right 'shroom can be deadly! It's best to avoid if you're not downright sure of what you're doing. BTW, there was a report that all Morels are now toxic, so I'm asking all members to send me whatever they find for proper disposal.

[nell67]

Trying it again,eh Sarge?

[Pict]

Cannonman,

I'm a mushroom naysayer and a mushroom lover. You present good information and the advice you give is sound as to safety. I grant you that mushrooms aren't little balls of nothing, they do have some food value. How many calories are in a pound of fresh mushrooms? IMO (limited) that benefit has to be weighed against the possibility of getting it wrong.

If you are 100% positive and feel that risk is worth taking then go for it, you would be a good guy to have along if you could. You'll have to forgive me if I watch you closely for a day.

BTW I wasn't part (that I can recall) of any acrimonious mushroom discussions and I don't want to get into one here. I would encourage you to post what you know about the ones that can't be confused with anything else or don't have deadly mimics. I would find that useful and I promise to keep an open mind. Mac

ETA - I found this on the net..."There are 6 calories in one ounce (28g) of raw mushrooms so 20g probably contains about 4 calories." That works out to about 100 calories for a pound of harvesting. "$hitaki Mushrooms are low in calories (125 per fresh pound) and low in fat."

By contrast - 100 grams of cricket contains: 121 calories, 12.9 grams of protein, 5.5 g. of fat, 5.1 g. of carbohydrates, 75.8 mg. calcium, 185.3 mg. of phosphorous, 9.5 mg. of iron, 0.36 mg. of thiamin, 1.09 mg. of riboflavin, and 3.10 mg. of niacin.

So 20 grams of mushroom gives you 4 calories when the same weight of crickets will give you 24 calories.

[Rick]

Yeah, but those 6 calories sauteed in a little butter are just soooooooo good. And they don't make you chirp when you burp.

[Pict]

For the record I, like eating mushrooms. In fact I ate mushrooms today. I also fed a handful of crickets to our two pet toads and wasn't tempted in the slightest. Mac

[Cannonman17]

Oh I hear ya loud and clear on the calorie thing, nobody is going to get fat eating them, that's for sure. All I'm saying is it very much pays to have knowledge of the easy to identify varieties, your belly doesn't have a clue how many calories are in what you eat and doesn't care, sometimes you just need a full belly IMO and in long term survival type situations mushrooms are an excellent source for trace minerals and vitamins that are otherwise somewhat difficult to find in a diet, like potassium for example.

Here's a link to one of the most easy to identify types.. and super good, with a consistancy like chicken breast. (Note to mods, I don't have any affiliation with this site) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laetiporus No poisonous look alikes. No gills, bright orange on top, yellow underneath, grow in plates from dead or dying hardwoods. A good beginners mushroom, no spore print needed or any of that stuff.

[crashdive123]

Yep - here they are - posted in the site mushroom data base by Nell. http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forage/plant/136/

[Sarge47]

Oh I hear ya loud and clear on the calorie thing, nobody is going to get fat eating them, that's for sure. All I'm saying is it very much pays to have knowledge of the easy to identify varieties, your belly doesn't have a clue how many calories are in what you eat and doesn't care, sometimes you just need a full belly IMO and in long term survival type situations mushrooms are an excellent source for trace minerals and vitamins that are otherwise somewhat difficult to find in a diet, like potassium for example.

Here's a link to one of the most easy to identify types.. and super good, with a consistancy like chicken breast. (Note to mods, I don't have any affiliation with this site) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laetiporus No poisonous look alikes. No gills, bright orange on top, yellow underneath, grow in plates from dead or dying hardwoods. A good beginners mushroom, no spore print needed or any of that stuff.

They say it really DOES taste like chicken! However, Cannonman, please take note; the following came off of the same page you just linked:

"Edibility:

However, a small percentage of people can have an allergic reaction when ingesting it. To quote Michael Beug " causes mild reactions in some, for example, swollen lips" or in rare cases " nausea, vomiting, dizziness and disorientation." This is believed to be due to a number of factors that range from very bad allergies to the mushroom's protein, to toxins absorbed by the mushroom from the wood it grows on (for example, Eucalyptus or Cedar), to simply eating specimens that have decayed past their prime. As such, many field guides request that those who eat Laetiporus exercise caution by only eating fresh, young brackets and begin with small quantities to see how well it sits in their stomach."

The point being that I never suggest something as a "wild edible" that can have tragic results; or, in this case, even intestinal discomfort; which, out in the woods, can be bad. However, if I had the opportunity to learn from someone like you in the field, I'd take it in a heartbeat. Of course, you get to eat any specimens found 1st & I get to watch you for a day or two to see if you keel over or not.

[crashdive123]

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[Cannonman17]

Sarge, you're absolutely right, they can cause an allergic reaction in some people, as any food can. Likewise, eating fruit or vegies past their prime can also be nauseating. I suggest only eating fresh examples of any of the mushrooms, once they go past their peak the taste often heads south quickly as well. I thought I mentioned the allergy thing and to only eat a small bit the first time around, I'm too lazy to go back and look to see if I actually included that info or not. Those rules aren't just for this mushroom by the way, the first time I eat any mushroom I only eat a small bit just to make sure I don't have any reaction to it.... not really needed as I'm not allergic to anything and if a person has to be that anal about it then they should really be taste testing ALL new foods a little at a time because I don't think (my opinion only here) that mushrooms have any higher rate of people who are allergic to them than say dairy products or nuts, or whatever. I guess when I first started learning mushrooms I went way overboard on the safety aspect... studying specimen after specimen and following all the rules to verify what I had and the testing for an allergic reaction became a habit over time.

[Sarge47]

Trying it again,eh Sarge?

He's new, so I thought....why not?

[wareagle69]

welcome to the learning circle cannonman
now onto the discussion of mushrooms that i usually avoid because it seems like you cannot change some peoples minds, study study study is what i say and yes you are quite correct in that there are about 5 basic mushrooms that you can easily id with no toxic look a likes when out in the bush in a survival situation its not like you are expending caloreis looking for mushrooms and stepping over other useful flora and fauna you are incorporating all aspects of you training into your efforts so if i have one more tool in my arsenal then i am that more prepared and if i have said this once i have said it a hundred times-always be prepared-prepare all ways.
you will find folks like canid and erikiswildernesssurvival very educated in mycology i am but an avid amatuer in wild edibles but do often include shrooms into my training
to the rest of the naysayers don't eat them but don't berate the rest who have trained open your minds just the slightest bit and maybe just maybe you'll learn something