Mushroom hunting on the Costa Brava

Catalan cuisine has a variety of dishes that make use of mushrooms, both wild and cultivated, and in the last few decades it has become popular for families and groups of friends to spend the days in the forest gathering up wild mushrooms like in days of old.

Would you eat this mushroom?

Would you eat this mushroom?

Following the summer and the first rains of autumn the first mushrooms start to appear, and this is the prime season for mushroom hunters. The rains encourage the growth of all types of fungus, including the edible ones that are so much in demand.

Many foods in Catalonia are seasonal, and the mushroom is no exception. While cultivated mushrooms can be found in shops all year round, it is the wild mushrooms that are so much prized for their flavour.

Mushrooms are such a craze in Catalonia that TV3 has a programme dedicated to the pursuit, called “Caçadors de bolets”, or “mushroom hunters”.

Mushroom hunting

That said, mushroom hunting is seen as a leisure activity as much as a culinary one, with people there to spend their Sundays in the forest with fresh air, taking light exercise, chatting, enjoying lunch out and generally just enjoying life; and when they get home they will – hopefully – have a basket full of mushrooms ready to be cooked.

However, there are pros and cons to mushroom hunting; the primary advantages include fresh air and exercise, which many people are in short supply of these days, and being able to eaet the end result of a day’s labour. It is always quite something to walk into a forest empty handed and walk out with a meal that, in the shops or in a restaurant, would cost many, many euros.

Other advantages include the flavour and variety of mushrooms compared with cultivated mushrooms. We’re all used to seeing the typical button mushrooms in supermarkets, but they have a limited flavour.

The downside of hunting mushrooms

However, on the downside, most mushrooms are inedible and so you need to be able to distinguish between the edible and inedible varieties.

While many mushrooms cannot be eaten simply because they are woody or have an unpleasant taste, more serious are those containing toxins; get it wrong with these and you risk becoming ill or, in extreme cases, death.

Every year there are reports of people who, after hunting for mushrooms, return home and are seriously ill afterwards. This problem is compounded by the many people from the city; some edible mushrooms look very similar to poisonous ones too if you don’t know what you’re looking for.

The answer here is that if you really know nothing about identifying mushrooms, make sure you take them to someone who does know what they’re talking about before even thinking of cooking them.

Another problem can be people, particularly elderly, who get lost in the forests. They go too deep into the trees, become disorientated and are unable to find their way back.

Also be aware that you may need a permit; mushrooming has become so popular that it may be restricted in some areas, so check before you go mushroom hunting.

Typical mushroom varieties

Typical mushrooms include Rovellons, Ceps, Llanegas negras, Rossinyols and Trumpetes de la Mort – trumpets of death. Despite their name though, the latter is a highly prized edible mushroom.

Of course, if you don’t have the time, or don’t want to risk picking poisonous mushrooms you can buy them in the shops and local markets often have stalls with wild mushrooms, although you may be amazed at the prices charged.

Some restaurants will also offer special mushroom menus during the season, giving you chance to sample a variety of varieties in a number of different dishes.

In Platja d’Aro there is at least one shop that provides seasonal fruit and veg throughout the year, and when it is mushroom season, you’ll find a selection of types on display.

Mushroom recipes

When it comes to recipes there are variety of things you can do with wild mushrooms. At the simplest level the mushrooms can be sautéed with garlic and parsley, the fungus either cooked whole or chopped up.

Catalan cuisine also makes use of mushrooms in soups, served in omlettes, as an accompaniment to meat dishes or fish, incorporated into stews to give an extra earthy depth.

Costa Brava Lifestyle

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