The chanterelle mushroom is one of the most readily available and easiest to find edible mushrooms in Louisiana. They're especially prolific with the super rainy, hot, and humid weather that we're so famous for in the deep south.
That's not to say the deep south is the only place to find wild chanterelles growing. It's one easy to forage mushroom that you'll find in not only 49 out of 50 states in the US {Hawaii is the only one missing out} , but growing prolifically worldwide!
00:00 Welcome!
00:51 Walk & Chat
01:45 First Chanterelle Patch
03:00 Hiking To The Next Patch
03:33 The Motherlode!
06:51 Mushroom Identification
07:25 To Cut Or Not To Cut
07:54 Our Bounty Of The Day
08:42 Back Home
09:19 Washing The Chanterelles
09:47 Cooking Them
12:05 Thank You For Watching
12:38 Bloopers
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The chanterelle is the perfect gateway to mushroom foraging because it is so easy to spot and also has few lookalikes that are easy to distinguish with a little studying beforehand.
Now, before we go any farther...DISCLAIMER: Do your research before you start eating anything including mushrooms that you pick from the wild. There are things growing in the woods that will not only make you very sick but that can actually kill you. Also, many wild edibles have lookalikes that can be extremely difficult to distinguish from the real deal. My dad is convinced that I'm going to kill myself eating something that I picked out of the woods!
Do your research and be double sure that you're selecting the right mushrooms to collect when you go foraging. If you can find an experienced forager in your area who is willing to let you go out to the woods with them for some hands on experience, that's even better! If you have any doubt, don't eat them! It's really not worth getting sick over {or dying with other wild edible lookalikes}.
We're fortunate enough to have Chanterelle mushrooms growing right here on our little homestead. It's such a treat to be able to walk out the front door and be picking beautiful chanterelles within minutes!
So where do you find chanterelle mushrooms?
Look for the chanterelle mushroom in established woods and forests where hardwoods are growing like oak, beech, sweet gum, birch and poplar. Although not as common, they can sometimes be found near pine as well. They can be found popping up through the thick bed of leaves around their preferred "host" trees. I put it in quotes because although the chanterelle mushroom forms a symbiotic relationship with certain hardwoods, it doesn't actually grow ON the trees like it's common lookalike the jack-o-lantern.
Don't discount other places to look though. We have a clump growing up through the gravel right on the edge of our driveway!
Another distinct different between the chanterelle mushroom and the jack-o-lantern mushroom is how they grow. Chanterelles grow either singly scattered about or in a small cluster of no more than 4 or 5 with separate stems whereas jack-o-lanterns grow in large clusters with their stems attached. Another telling difference is the gills. Chanterelles are often described as having "false" gills since they're more like ridges rather than true gills like you're used to seeing on a mushroom...thin, papery, and deep that can be easily removed from the cap.
Happy Hunting!
I hope you found this encouraging and it inspired you to go out and hunt for your own chanterelles! There's something especially satisfying about finding something edible growing wild, picking it, bringing it home and eating it. The "work" is just as enjoyable as the reward!