Chanterelles
Cantharellus cibarius
Chanterelles were the first wild mushroom we harvested together and we had so much fun that first summer discovering new plots and harvesting bags and bags of them. Before we successfully foraged and dined on these delectable orange fungi the thought of harvesting wild growing mushrooms always came with a twinge of unease. Steve had tried wild morels before but that was the extent of our experience.
But then, in the summer of 2019, we started noticing clumps of orange mushrooms sprouting in different areas on the property. Steve was pretty certain that they were chanterelles but just to be sure we got out our mushroom identification books and did some more research. The mushroom they most closely resemble, and which also grows abundantly in this area, is the Jack o’lantern, a toxic look-a-like that will give you nasty stomach troubles, so we wanted to make absolutely certain we were picking the right ones! Luckily there are noticeable differences in their colour, size and growth habits so with this in mind we headed out for our first foraging mission.
That first day we hit the jackpot and came back with a couple of big bags full, we were so excited! We thought we would keep it simple that first night, so we could savour the actual taste of the chanterelles, and sautéed them in butter with some garlic, salt and pepper. They were delicious and we were hooked!
The chanterelle adventures continued throughout the summer and we found several hotspots on the property where they grew in abundance. In total we harvested about 15 gallons in a couple of months, enough for many fresh meals and to stock our freezer for the winter.
Recipes
As the summer progressed and we found more and more of these delicious mushrooms we got more adventurous with our culinary experiments and over the next few months we enjoyed them on pizza, in our home-made pasta sauce, added to spinach and cheese lasagna, in spinach quesadillas, in frittatas and so much more. They are such a versatile and tasty mushroom that are a great addition to many dishes. We’ve included some of our favourite recipes below:
Freezing Chanterelles
We found chanterelles in such abundance that we would come home from a successful foraging trip with bags of them, too many to eat fresh! A little research taught us that they froze well though. The best method is to dry sauté them first, no butter or oil needed. Just sauté in a frying pan on low heat until all the moisture comes out of the them, then keep cooking until all the liquid has evaporated. Spread on cookie trays covered in paper towels to soak up any left over moisture and let them cool down. Fill zip-lock freezer bags with meal sized portions, suck out excess air with a straw, seal and freeze. They will freeze well for up to a year.
