Hericium: Magical Mushrooms

You're walking through a cool, wet, old-growth Carolinian forest in the fall. Something catches your eye, it's bright and white and stands out among the dark rotting legs and leaf litter on the forest floor. It kind of looks a like mini-tree, or a land coral, or maybe a mushroom. Or maybe it's an extraterrestrial life-form from deep-space that's bent on world denomination.

Actually, it's Hericium, a wonderful late summer to fall mushroom found across much of the world!

Hericium americanum (sp?), also known by the common name "Lion's mane". Approximately 30cm wide.

The fruiting bodies of the genus of mushroom Hericium are among the most easily identified edible mushrooms. Hericium kind of look like white and fleshy trees; a "trunk" grows from dead hardwood logs, with "branches" extending from the trunk which are covered in hanging spines (teeth) that look like stalactites. These mushrooms lack a distinctive cap and stipe ("stem"). The fruiting bodies can range from less than ten to over 30 cm in diameter. As they age the teeth will begin to brown. Spore print is white.

There are many species of Hericium, but they all share the same basic characteristics. The most common species of Hericium found in Canada include H. erinaceus, H. coralloidies, and H. americanum. All species of this genus are edible and considered a choice mushroom.

This H. americanum is growing on a dead Beech tree in an old-growth Carolinian forest.

Where can you find Hericium? These mushrooms are parasitic and like to grow on dead or dying hardwood logs (sabprobic), specifically on beech, maple, birch, walnut, oak, and sycamore. So far most of the Hericium I've seen has been growing on dead American Beech tree logs.

They are native to North America, Asia, and Europe, and are considered a delicacy in Chinese cuisine. I have even read that Asian grocery stores commonly carry this mushroom (I haven't found any yet, but now that I know how tasty Lion's mane is I will be looking for it in grocery stores).

Harvesting the Lion's Mane
This mushroom is one of the best to harvest, in terms of ease of identification and quality of deliciousness. Hericium do not resemble any other edible or inedible mushrooms, so it's fairly safe to collect and eat this fungi.

Foraging for Hericium requires a knife, bag or storage container, and access to old-growth Carolinian forest or hardwood stands (here in Ontario at least). Go for a hike in late summer or fall (Hericium will grow year round in more southerly locations) and keep your eye out for this ghost-like mushroom. Look on fallen trees and large branches. Don't harvest Hericium if it is starting to brown or decay. The more miles you cover the more Hericium you will find. If you find one clump on a log chances are there will be more growing on it if it is a large log. Look for Hericium on the top, ends, sides, or growing underneath the log in the leaf litter.

Once you have found a large, tasty Lion's mane, use a knife to but the base of the mushroom from the log it's growing out of. Try not to cut into the log, and do try to leave a bit of the base of the mushroom intact and still on the log. Place your Hericium in a bag and do not crush your precious mushroom while you finish your hike.

Eating the Lion's Mane
Once your home from your fantastic hike, refrigerate your Lion's mane. It will most likely keep for a little while, but this mushroom is so tasty that you will want to eat it immediately, trust me.

To prep your Lion's mane, give it a rinse in the sink under cold water. Once you've gotten most of the wood debris and bugs out of it, fill your sink with cold water and let your mushrooms take a quick bath to get rid of other bugs and dirt in hard to reach places (and there are many in hiding spots for dirt and insects in Hericium). Pat your mushrooms dry with paper towel once they are clean and let air dry for a bit. Hericium have a high water content and you want them to be fairly dry before cooking.

Lion's mane post-rinse and pre-bath

Up close and personal with Lion's mane. Still needs to have some woody pieces trimmed off.

There are a lot of ways to cook Hericium. I cooked mine as simply as possible to experience the flavour and texture of Hericium. But if you want to get cray-cray, Google can show you a multitude of awesome looking recipes you can try.

After washing, make sure you trim off any woody-bits or parts that look bad (i.e. browning). Using a knife or your hands, cut or peel the mushroom into bite size pieces:

Roughly 2-3 cups of chunks o' Lion's mane

In a frying pan heat about 1 tbsp. olive oil on medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot add the mushrooms. Hericium has a high water content so it will take a bit of time to cook off the water.

After I cooked my mushrooms for 5-7 minutes most of the water had evaporated and the teeth were beginning to brown. When I do this again I will cook it a little longer, maybe 10 minutes. Make sure the water is mostly evaporated out, but don't let your precious Hericium burn. Now add about 0.5-1 tbsp. of butter and some minced garlic (I used one clove).

The magic is happening

Cook to suite your preference; Hericium is best when it is browned and the teeth are slightly crispy. 

Voila! You have one tasty mushroom dish!

First Impressions: Hericium
Both Tom and I LOVED this mushroom. It is probably the tasty thing we have foraged for. 

The texture of the fleshy parts reminds me of crab legs. Tom said the Hericium was reminiscent of escargot, which I agreed with. The taste was distinctly like seafood, but a very light and mild seafood taste. The addition of butter and garlic nicely complimented the seafoody-mushroomy taste and texture of Hericium. 

This is definitely something I look forward to foraging for again. Here in SW Ontario the season is starting to get a little late, but Hericium may be edible for another couple of weeks. When we are out hiking again I will update as to the condition and growth of any Hericium we find.

What Makes this Mushroom Magical?
No, this mushroom won't make you "trip balls", but it apparently possesses a number of attributes that make it worthy of super food status. I will update shortly on the benefits of eating this delicious mushroom!