A LOCAL mushroom forager is planning to supply exotic wild mushrooms to restaurants in the Isle of Man and is asking the Manx public to help find new sources of edible varieties.
It is intended that wild mushrooms such as chanterelles, porcini and pied de mouton will be gathered around the Island at certain times of the year for restaurants and possibly for retail sale.
The project is the idea of Bill Dale who has been collecting and cooking wild mushrooms on the Isle of Man for a number of years.
“Wild mushrooms are in abundance at this time of the year all over the Island and I have thought for some time that there must be a market for varieties such as porcini and chanterelles in local restaurants,” he said.
“As far as I’m aware no one has ever supplied local wild mushrooms on the Island before and I’m sure the fact that they are so difficult to find is largely the reason.
“I have spent the last five years tracking through the Island’s glens, tracks and some private gardens and I’ve found dozens of edible varieties and cooked some fantastic dishes.
“But I realise that the supplies are totally unpredictable and to make this idea work I need to find more sources of mushrooms like porcini. If I can find some more regular supplies then I know there would be a lot of interest amongst local chefs.”
For anyone who can help source edible wild mushrooms there is also a financial incentive.
Bill Dale added, “Wild mushrooms are notoriously expensive to buy and can fetch huge prices in London where they are usually snapped up by Michelin-star restaurants and treated as a rare delicacy. If local restaurants want regular supplies then there is obviously a financial gain for anyone who can help.”
He is sticking to just three well known varieties. “There are many wild mushrooms which can be eaten, but for obvious reasons there is a reluctance amongst the public to try such things, so it makes sense to concentrate on three which are impossible to get wrong.”
Chanterelle mushrooms have a distinctive rich yellow colour and are particularly identifiable by the dense smell of apricots. Their gills are also distinctive in shape and appearance.
Pied de Mouton is also known as hedgehog fungus and is identifiable by the tiny hedgehog-like “spines” on the underside, together with their creamy colour.
Porcini - also known as ceps - are the king of wild mushrooms and are gathered all over Europe at this time of the year and are most frequently bought dried in tiny packets. Porcini can be identified by their “penny bun” appearance and come in a variety of sizes, sometimes weighing as much a 2lbs or more each.
However, Bill Dale has a warning. “It is absolutely imperative that you know what you’re doing with wild mushrooms. Under no circumstances should anyone eat a wild mushroom if they have the slightest doubt about what it is.
“There are a number of very good imitations amongst wild mushrooms and some are absolutely not to be eaten and can cause serious stomach upsets and in some cases death. No one should attempt to eat any wild mushroom unless they have it properly identified by someone who knows the subject properly.”
Anyone who has what they believe to be porcini, chanterelles or pied de mouton is asked to contact Bill Dale on 496560 or billdale@manx.net and he will visit to examine them.
