Oyster mushrooms will grow on just about any organic plan materials, from coffee grounds to newspaper pulp. I discovered this cluster on a heap of four-year-old ground oak trees at a local park. Always consult an expert when harvesting wild mushrooms for consumption.
They are one of the best edible mushroom and are grown commercially all over the world. They get the name due to a faint taste of oysters or abalone.
I found this cluster in a local park growing on a compost heap. Unfortunately, the bugs found them before I did.
Here a a few shots of a recent dish we made for a drop-off catered luncheon. I made a vegetarian version of a mufulata sandwich, a New Orleans classic. I used the usual chopped relish along with roasted mushrooms, cheeses, vine tomatoes, peppers and watercress. Great bread is essential and I used d'Angelos baguettes.
Morel mushrooms are one of the top *ten wild mushrooms found all over the world. In the early part of my career, dried morels were the standard. Now, we can look forward to springtime when morels are harvested in the wild. Here in Santa Barbara they are a rarity. Only on one occasion did I see a large bloom. It was at the home of Bob Cummings, the mycologist on staff at the local college. He had decorated his garden with fir bark from Oregon and it had the spores of the morel in them. Bob managed to harvest over 15 pounds from his yard.
Be sure to wash them well as they can be sandy and cook them all the way. There is a heat sensitive toxin called hydrozine, a component of rocket fuel! Always consult an expert when hunting wild mushroom for consumption.
Back in my apprenticeship days at the iconic Chez Carey on Orange, CA I manned the broiler station. I did double duty as the vegetable cook as well. My prep included making wild rice, baked potatoes, potatoes Dauphine and creamed peas. Back them, cream peas meant opening a can of peas and binding the sauce with a little roux.
Now, any respected chef would only use fresh peas in season, like Escoffier did in the early 1900s. The local farmers market is awash right now in fresh English peas and some even sell them shelled and ready to use at $8.00 a pound!
