from the Peak District to Slovakia

[patrick25]

Ever felt a bit strange walking back through town with your basket? Funny looks on the bus?

For me, no longer! I've recently moved to Slovakia and from what I've heard from my students, it's pretty much a national passtime!

Roll on Morel season! I've been showing my students pictures during lessons. Apparently they hunt not only morels but also false morels. I'm informed that they can be parboiled and are something of a delicacy. Any thoughts?

I'm making my first journey into the woods tomorrow to see what's about. I'm hoping for at least an artists conch with which to decorate my new room.

[Lancashire Lad]

Hi Patrick,

It's WAB policy not to make comment on the edibility or otherwise, of fungi: -

Is my fungus edible or psychotic requests

Regards,
Mike.

[SheffieldLass]

I'm not sure whether your post comes under the edibility rules or not, but I will refer you to 2 old WAB threads which you might find interesting. Probably covers the basic points about False Morels. They are discussions about edibility/poisonous ones rather than asking whether a particular fungus with picture attached is edible.

Toxicity of Mycena Pura - Lilac Bonnet

Contradictory Fungi books?

What is also interesting is that if you do a google search on WAB for False Morel, most come up referring to Gyromitra esculenta, but one calls Helvella crispa False Morel too, so I think the moral of the story is, that discussions of edibility or otherwise can become very confused, particularly if the same common names are used for more than one species. Or where nations/books views on the edibility or otherwise of a particular species are contradictory. And probably why WAB has this rule, to protect its own backside if someone gets wrong information off WAB, in terms of incorrect id or incorrect information on edibility.

Anyway, enjoy your time in Slovakia, and learn as much from the people there, but do double check their knowledge too ... often it is handed down through the generations and can be quite suspect .... A local guy to me, whose father came from Poland (I think, or possibly Czechoslovakia), was really into fungi, very good at id, had studied the books as well as learning from his Dad, and was saying how many of his father's and grandfather's 'rules' on fungi, on which were and were not edible were extremely dodgy! Would rule in some that were really poisonous.

Melanie

[Chris Yeates]

when I lived in Leeds, with its sizeable Polish community, one often came across people out collecting - this was at the time when most Brit's wouldn't have dreamt of doing anything of the sort

I remember one elderly chap (who had obviously survived) carrying a very mixed basket-full with all sorts of indeterminate stuff in it . . . . he held up one agaric which would probably take an evening at the 'scope to work out and pronounced:

"Dem's good - brown 'uns"



Chris

[FungiJohn]

Originally Posted by SheffieldLass

They are discussions about edibility/poisonous ones rather than asking whether a particular fungus with picture attached is edible.

Melanie

And discussions are absolutely fine! No problem.

It is the post ‘asking whether a particular fungus with picture attached is edible etc’ where we have to strongly apply the rule.

Yes, enjoy your time in Slovakia Patrick and welcome to WAB btw

John

[Leif]

If you do some reading you will discover that the False Morel is of questionable edibility, and when raw is undoubtedly deadly poisonous. Even the cooking fumes are toxic if inhaled. It might be edible when cooked, but some experts suspect that the toxins are cumulative, so surviving one meal is no guarantee that it was okay. There is evidence that toxicity of American specimens varies according to the region, so that might be true in Europe too.

My only advice would be to take care. It is not uncommon in Eastern Europe for people to be posioned and even killed by eating fungi.

I am not much of a mycophagist, but I must admit that true morels are well tasty. I have eaten them in noodle soups, and the flavour and texture are very good, unlike many fungi, which are often overrated. But I tend not to pick them as they are rare where I live. (Oh dear, I can see in the distance a dust cloud, indicating FJ rapidly approaching with tales of collecting baskets of morels. It happens very year. I feel a green sensation coming on. )

[FungiJohn]

Originally Posted by Leif

I am not much of a mycophagist, but I must admit that true morels are well tasty. I have eaten them in noodle soups, and the flavour and texture are very good, unlike many fungi, which are often overrated. But I tend not to pick them as they are rare where I live. (Oh dear, I can see in the distance a dust cloud, indicating FJ rapidly approaching with tales of collecting baskets of morels. It happens very year. I feel a green sensation coming on. )

Who, me

[patrick25]

Thanks for all the responses, It's triggered me into doing a little more research, unfortunately all my books are back home so I've been looking for some useful stuff online to supplement your responses.

On reflection I think I'll hold out for a good year on the true Morels. Last year was a total wash out. I don't have any spots yet and after weeks of wandering around, the White Peak failed me. Perhaps the Carpathians will be kinder to me.

As regards not discussing the edibility of named species in this forum. That would be a silly misapplication of a sensible rule, surely? We seem to have come to that conclusion anyway.