Hello everyone! I'm back from a short hiatus to share a few edible mushroom species I found while searching the woods of western Michigan, USA a few days ago. The fungi that I came across were Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus sulphureus), Hen of the Woods (Grifola frondosa), and Bear's Head Tooth (Hericium americanum). Each of these three species are considered "choice edible mushrooms" and are wonderful foraged ingredients to bring home for the table. From my own experience, I would describe Chicken of the Woods as having a meaty texture with citrus-like notes, Hen of the Woods as being very earthy, and Bear's Head Tooth as being comparable in taste and texture to that of lobster, though not as sweet. Regardless, each are excellent meat substitutes for virtually any dish one could desire to prepare.

Here I will provide short descriptions along with images of each of these species so that you too may familiarize yourself with these fascinating edible fungi. I will do my best to provide identifying features for each species and their most common look-alike species when applicable; however, I encourage you to utilize additional resources such a field guides, mushroomexpert.com, inaturalist.org, etc. to confirm your findings before you attempt to eat any wild-foraged mushrooms. While many fungi are delicious edible species, others contain toxins that may sicken or even kill you once ingested. Please never consume any fungal species unless you are 100% sure of its identity! As the saying goes: "There are old mushroom hunters, and there are bold mushroom hunters. There are no old, bold mushroom hunters." I don't say this to scare anyone new to foraging wild fungi, but rather to impart the importance of developing your identification skills prior to bringing anything home for the table. Mushroom hunting can be an incredibly rewarding and fulfilling hobby for both you and your loved ones, and I wish to extend my love for and knowledge of it to others in the most safe and forthright manner that I possibly can.

This being said, I am proud to announce that I have recently been certified by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) as a Wild Mushroom Expert: a distinction that grants me the legal authority to sell a selection of pre-approved wild-foraged mushrooms to restaurants and individuals alike within the state of Michigan, USA. All three of the species described within this post are included within that list. While I will readily admit that there is much for me to still learn when it comes to the fungi, I can say with some authority that these species are indeed excellent edible specimens.

While my knowledge of fungi is specialized to the species of Eastern North America, I welcome any and all questions you may have regarding safe practices for foraging wild fungi. I also welcome the input of any other experienced foragers to supplement and/or correct any information I provide here or on any other post. The world of fungi is vast and exciting; I hope that you will join me on my journey to learn it to the best of my ability!

Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus sulphureus):

Chicken of the woods is one of the most easily recognizable and conspicuous edible fungi native to both Eastern North America as well as Europe. Living as either a parasite on living trees or as a saprophyte on dead logs and stumps, Chicken of the Woods typically fruits between the months of May and November from hardwood species as large, bright orange, shelf-like structures with bright yellow margins and undersides that possess many pores rather than gills. The flesh of Chicken of the woods is firm and sponge-like when fresh, though it fades in color and becomes far more brittle and chalk-like as it dries with age. Fresh specimens can be easily cut with a knife, and although the entirety of the fruiting body is edible, one may find that the inner-most sections of the fruiting body may be too tough to consume. Individual mushrooms typically range from 5 to 30 cm in diameter, though mature brackets may reach up to 60 cm or greater in some cases. The most common method of harvesting this species is to cut mature shelves off at their stems just above their connection to their host substrate. However, doing so will prevent the same shelf from regenerating. A more sustainable practice that will allow you (or others) to harvest from the same fruiting is to only harvest the outermost margin of the fruiting shelf (pictured below). By only removing the most tender outer margin of the shelf, enough material is retained for the fungi to regenerate from the same growth to allow for up to 2 to 3 additional harvests from the same initial growth. This is an excellent technique for making the most of this choice edible species.

Thankfully, there are no reasonable look-alike species for Laetiporus sulphureus that are considered poisonous in Eastern North America. The closest look-alike species is the very closely related, and comparably delicious White-pored Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus cincinnatus). As its name would imply, White-pored Chicken of the Woods is structurally and visually similar to its close relative, Chicken of the Woods, with the exception of it possessing a white underside rather than a bright yellow one. In addition, the upper surface possesses much more muted orange and white tones than present on fresh samples of Chicken of the Woods. White-pored Chicken of the Woods is typically found growing in a shelf-like rosette pattern at the base of trees or stumps rather than attached to trees, logs, or stumps as Chicken of the Woods tends to do.

Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus sulphureus) in the wild:

Example of outer margin of Chicken of the Woods being harvested rather than an entire shelf:

White-pored Chicken of the Woods:

Hen of the Woods (Grifola frondosa):

Hen of the Woods is a weak parasitic species that grows in in clusters of gray-brown, spoon-shaped fans that fruit at the base of their host trees. Hens are typically found at the base of oak trees, though they are on rare occasions found to be growing from other hardwood species as well. Hen of the Woods typically fruit between the months of August and October in the Eastern United States and can often be found growing from the same host tree year after year when conditions are right. Mature fruiting bodies are typically 10 to 60 cm wide and 7.5 and 40 cm tall and weighing 1 to 15 kg, though specimens in excess of 45 kg have been reported. The underside of each fan-like projection of Hen of the Woods is covered in a white pore surface that does not bruise when touched or scraped. In addition to being a delicious edible species, Hen of the Woods has been studied for its medicinal properties and has been demonstrated to have some efficacy in stimulating the human immune system against several varieties of cancer. Additional research is needed to discern which compounds contained within this species that are responsible for this response.

Like Chicken of the Woods, Hen of the Woods has no poisonous look-alike species that are native to Eastern North America. The closest look-alike species would be the species commonly referred to as either the Giant Polypore or Black-staining Polypore (Meripilus giganteus in Europe and Meripilus sumstinei in North America). Like Hen of the Woods, these species typically grow in clusters of spoon-shaped fans at the base of Oak trees, however, their fronds are much thicker than that of Hen of the Woods and bruise black when handled. Fronds of Hen of the Woods are typically 0.3 to 0.6 cm thick, whereas fronds of the Giant Polypore are typically 1.2 to 1.9 cm thick. This characteristic, along with the black staining that occurs when handling these species, is often sufficient to differentiate the species from one another.

Hen of the Woods (Grifola frondosa) in the wild:

Black-staining Polypore (Meripilus sumstinei):
Image Source: https://www.mushroomexpert.com/meripilus_sumstinei.html

Bear's Head Tooth (Hericium americanum):

Last, but certainly not least, is Bear's Head Tooth. Bear's Head Tooth is a close relative of the well-known and popular culinary and medicinal species commonly known as Lion's Mane (Hericium erinaceus). Bear's Head Tooth, like other members of the Hericium genus, are white when fresh and fade to a yellow-pink hue with age. Members of the Hericium genus are considered "tooth" fungi due to the tooth-like spines that they produce from their fruiting bodies. Members of the Hericium genus can be both parasitic as well as saprotrophic and are most commonly found growing from the months of August through November on Oaks, Maples, and Beech trees in the Eastern United States. Once specimens have begun to take on a yellowish-pink tone, they are often too old to harvest and will have a sour, unpleasant flavor if eaten. If you are lucky enough to find them when they are fresh, members of the Hericium genus such as H. americanum, H. coralloides, and H. erinaceus are often compared to shellfish such as shrimp and lobster in terms of taste and texture and make for an excellent seafood substitute for many dishes.

I will note that these species do tend to sour quickly after being harvested. If you do not intend on eating this species within the first day or two after harvesting, I recommend freezing your harvested sample. Additionally, it should be noted that samples of Hericium mushrooms are often host to a variety of small insect and spider species and require thorough cleaning with a fine brush to dislodge them from behind the spines of the mushroom prior to eating. In my opinion, this work is well-rewarded as members of the Hericium genus, including Bear's Head Tooth, are among my favorite wild-foraged species; lightly fried in butter with a bit of salt and black pepper, there are few solitary ingredients on this planet that can hold a candle to the complexly delicious flavor of these ephemeral species.

Bear's Head Tooth has no reasonable poisonous look-alike species and can be distinguished from its equally edible and delicious relatives Lion's Mane (Hericium erinaceus) and Hericium coralloides (no common name) by the size and orientation of its spines. The spines of Bear's Head Tooth are long (0.6 to 3.8 cm) and arranged in tightly branched structured that arise from a rooted base. In contrast, the spines of Hericium coralloides are much shorter (0.25 to 1 cm) and arrange in a branch-like structure. Furthermore, the spines of Lion's Mane (Hericium erinaceus) are typically longer than that of Bear's Head Tooth (1 to 4 cm) and oriented in a singular, beard-like mass that does not branch.

Bear's Head Tooth (Hericium americanum) in the wild:

Lion's Mane (Hericium erinaceus):
Image source: https://www.mushroomexpert.com/hericium_erinaceus.html

Hericium coralloides:
Image source: https://www.mushroomexpert.com/hericium_coralloides.html

If you have made it this far into this post, I would first like to thank you for reading this far! Secondly, I would like to direct your attention to one of the greatest mycological researchers and teachers of our generation: Mr. Michael Kuo. Michael Kuo is the developer of mushroomexpert.com, which is, in my opinion, one of the most valuable and accurate online resources for information on fungi available on the internet. Images included in this post of the Black-staining Polypore, Lion's Mane, and Hericium coralloides were all sourced from mushroomexpert.com. Michael has also authored several books of fungi including: Mushrooms of the Midwest, 100 Edible Mushrooms, and 100 Cool Mushrooms. I am in no way associated with Mr. Kuo, but I thought that I may bring attention to his work as I have used some of his images in this post and since his work has been incredibly helpfully in my own education of the fungal kingdom. I hope that you find his work beneficial as well!

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