Wild Edible Mushrooms In Northern California For Later In The Season
Below, we’ll take a look at a few awesome mushrooms that avid foragers can find in Northern California during the colder months.
Winter Chanterelles (yellow foot)
Winter Chanterelles are trumpet-shaped mushrooms with hollow stems that make them easy to preserve by drying. As their name suggests, these mushrooms start popping up in numbers later on in the season. Due to their symbiotic relationship with other wild organisms, Winter Chanterelles are difficult to cultivate. This means non-mushroom foragers are really missing out on one of Northern California’s most delicious wild mushrooms!
Since Winter Chanterelles are easy to identify and don’t have any toxic lookalikes, it is an excellent mushroom to start with. You’ll find these mushrooms in proximity to conifers, often growing on moss and decaying wood. Keep your eyes open for their pronounced yellow stems. Winter Chanterelles are highly regarded by mushroom enthusiasts for their peppery flavor and appetizing texture.
Black Trumpet Mushrooms
Black Trumpet mushrooms are known for their potent and unique taste. They are considered as some of the best-tasting mushrooms in Northern California. If you get the urge to hunt mushrooms in the winter, Black Trumpet mushrooms are still readily available. However, because of their dark color and tendency to blend into their environment, Black Trumpet mushrooms can be quite difficult to spot.
Like Winter Chanterelles, Black Trumpets are hollow and shaped like a trumpet. This means that they are easy to preserve and can be cooked up quickly. Their flavor and odor are woodsy, potent, and sweet. A lot of people like to add Black Trumpets to cream sauces. They can also be used to enhance salads, pastas, soups, and much more.
Candy Cap Mushrooms
These small mushrooms have a distinct burnt orange color. They are sweet in both odor and flavor, opening up unique culinary possibilities. In fact, Candy Cap mushrooms are used to make dessert foods like ice cream and cookies. These mushrooms like to grow on rotting wood and moss.
When you dry Candy Cap mushrooms, their scent becomes a lot more potent. They can then be powdered and added to different dessert recipes, acting as an organic sweetener. Keep an eye out for these mushrooms later in the season when other wild edible mushrooms are no longer in their prime.
Whenever you are searching for wild edible mushrooms, make sure you research any toxic lookalikes. There are a lot of beginner-friendly mushrooms in Northern California that are unlikely to be mistaken for anything poisonous. If you aren’t sure, never take the chance. Once you’ve correctly identified the mushrooms and brought them home, make sure to clean them thoroughly. We’ve highlighted three popular winter/spring mushrooms above, but there are several more species out there ready to be picked!
Want to find your own? We have mushroom foraging classes all season in Marin, Sonoma, and the Santa Cruz Mountains.