Horn of Plenty – Craterellus cornucopioides
(In Irish: troimpéad an phúca)
Walking across woodlands and along old ruins and walls, my inner forager leaps into action.
This week on the survival series, I’m going back to fungi and am looking at another edible treat that is worth nabbing if you’re in a hurry.
Horn of Plenty
Its nickname is “the Trumpet of the Dead” which sounds terrifying but don’t let this mushroom’s ominous-sounding name deceive you – it’s actually a very safe one to eat.
Other equally ominous nicknames include the black chanterelle, trompette de la mort (French) and trompeta de la mort (Catalan).
How to identify the horn of plenty
A horn or funnelled-shaped mushroom with a rough, and crinkly dark brown cap, the horn of plenty can be found in the woods but especially in autumn (October is a great month for mushrooms).
The mushrooms have no gills and their caps’ undersides will always be smooth or slightly wrinkled – they grow up to about 10cm in height.
The fruiting body is shaped like a funnel expanded at the top, the stalk seamless with the cap, which is .5–7 cm in diameter. The upper and inner surface is black-ish or dark grey while the the lower and outer fertile surface is a much lighter shade of grey.
They’re cousins to chanterelles and are often called “black chanterelles” given their similar shape.
Where to find the horn of plenty
Horn of Plentys are delicious but unfortunately are not the easiest mushrooms to find as they blend well into the woodland floor – so keep an eye out! They love hardwood forests, particularly if there are beech or oak trees around and also have a tendency to grow in clusters.
It can be found in North, Central and South America, as well as throughout Europe and Asia.
How to eat the horn of plenty
Tasting far better than it looks, when cooked this mushroom can be made into a lovely mushroom sauce, added to a wild mushroom soup or used in a risotto. It has a rich and smoky taste and dries very well.
Recipe: Sautéed Mushrooms
This is a handy side dish to add to your meal. I’m on the presumption that you’re looking to share this dish!
Ingredients:
- 50g butter
- 450g horn of plenty mushrooms
- At least 2 cloves of garlic (I just love garlic!)
- 5g chopped fresh parsley
Method:
- Gently wipe the mushrooms clean.
- In a hot pan, add the butter and melt over medium heat.
- Add the mushrooms and garlic cloves and cook, stirring, until tender. Basically you want to check that any liquid from the mushrooms has evaporated.
- Stir in parsley and more butter (1 tablespoon) if you’d like! Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
As with all foraged mushrooms, it’s vitally important that you can identify them with complete certainty before eating them.
Mushrooms are the type of food that prefer to breathe so if you’re foraging, it’s better to store them in a paper bag or basket rather than a plastic bag; if it smells rotten and soggy, don’t pick them up.
If you are satisfied you have correctly identified this plant, you can submit your sighting to the National Biodiversity Data Centre here.
As always, please do not forage any plant or mushroom you’re not 100% certain you can identify.
(Lead image via Wikimedia Commons/Jason Hollinger)