A recent class at the Bristol Bay Campus aimed to help unravel which are "delicious edibles," which are really bad for you, and how to play the big gray zone in between.
As foragers stepped out into the tundra for berries and hunters hiked the woods for game, many noticed it was quite the year for mushrooms. Many of us were caught off guard by the variety, the size, and the sheer numbers seen around this season. A recent class at the UAF Bristol Bay Campus aimed to help attendees learn a little more about which ones to pick and eat, and which ones to leave be. KDLG's Tara Henry has more:
Audio transcript: A true mushroom connoisseur, UAF's Dr. Gary Larson is on a mission to categorize all the fungi across the state of Alaska. He says it has not ever officially been done. In the process, he wants to bring knowledge and enthusiasm of the subject to the public.
Two weekends ago he shared knowledge with a weekend class of about 20 students at the Bristol Bay Campus. There was an eagerness to learn which wild shrooms we can eat, but more curiosity about which varieties can kill a person. Lucky for us, most can't.
Dr. Larson says only 5 percent of Alaska mushrooms are actually poisonous, 5% are considered delicious edibles, and that leaves 90% in the grey zone.
Those in the gray zone might leave an average person with either a bad taste in his or her mouth, or some bad feelings in the stomach.
To really sift the good from the gag-inducing, you have to ID them. To practice that, the class went mushroom hunting in the tundra near the VOR, the forest along Snake Lake Road, and in one of our neighbor's yards off Wood River Road. Though late in the season, we found mushrooms aplenty at each location with just a few hours foraging.
Our fruitful bounty was brought back to the classroom, and the variety was shocking. Some mushrooms look like flowers, some ooze liquid, and some spray spores into the air when you touch them. To be a hundred percent certain on the identification, spore prints, mushroom splitting and magnifying lenses were needed.
Most edible mushrooms in Bristol Bay fall into what I call the “tan” category. Large, round spongy mushrooms. The King Bolete, for instance, is a favorite here. One edible stood out from the rest. A little red/orange fungi commonly known as the “waxy cap”. You can easily mistake it for a berry in the tundra. With a little butter, garlic and cooking, Larson claims it's a delicious little morsel.
David Burkhardt, from Dillingham, took a lichen to the class. He was surprised by what he learned. “When I’d find them out in the woods I’d be like “This has gotta be good, it smells so good. And...it’s not very good for you, you shouldn’t eat it."
The consensus is that the mushrooms peaked about three weeks before the class. Still, we gathered over 120 species, including quite a few delicious edibles.
“It’s overwhelming when you put everything out and see the diversity that’s really out there at the time you go out searching," said Larson, who was pleased by the turnout and enthusiasm. "I was hoping it really surprised students in the class, because the diversity is phenomenal.”
Just a few days later, while walking my dog in the evening, I recognized a bolete growing on the tundra. Knowing how fast they can go bad, I cooked it that night in some butter. Delicious. Similar in taste to a store bought mushroom but with more flavor, she says with a light touch of an amateur forager's smugness.
Want to learn more? Keep an ear to the ground for the same class next year, or pick up a copy of Dr. Larson's book.