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The Edible Mushroom
Book
No, dear reader, this isn’t a book you can eat but it will
point you in
the direction of lots of lovely fungi which you can.The Edible Mushroom Book – A Guide to Foraging and Cooking is a handy yet chunky volume, just right to keep in the pocket of your Barbour jacket. Anna Del Conte and Thomas Læssøe have produced an attractive and useful tool for the free food gatherer.
Mushrooms can be a bit mysterious. They are often hard to find and it’s sometimes ticklish to identify the mushrooms when you do find them. Both France and Italy have staff at chemist’s shops who will sift through your collection and tell you if they are all safe to eat. I suspect that the girl behind the counter at Boots might not be quite so helpful. (Oi, Doris, there’s a bloke ’ere askin’ if we know about ’is mushrooms!)
Fine illustrations are always a welcome addition to cookbooks, but these are not only lovely pictures, they might save your life. Mushroom hunting isn’t like collecting bluebells. You are going to eat these things and they might kill you if you don’t take precautions. It’s a sobering thought but it’s best to be armed with all the facts before you embark on this most serious of undertakings.
The book is divided in two, and the first part, logically, deals with identification and collection. There must be every kind of mushroom listed, as well as a collection of Poisonous Fungi, which I would keep bookmarked! There are, however, far more edible specimens than there are killer varieties, so the chances of you falling upon a real nasty are slight.
The second section is devoted to the recipes and they look scrumptious! Beef Steak in Mushroom Sauce is a tasty example that uses a mixture of wild mushrooms with robust flavours. Warm Salad of Oyster Mushrooms is tangy and light, with anchovies and vinegar. What could be nicer on a hot day, possibly served with some crusty bread and a glass of red?
This book is indispensible for anyone who is even considering collecting mushrooms from the wild. It can be a fun and healthy pastime but it’s not a game!
The Edible Mushroom Book
Authors: Anna Del Conte and Thomas Læssøe
Published by: Dorling Kindersley
Price: £12.99
ISBN 978-1-40533-213-2
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