Top 20 Edible Mushrooms Popular in Exeter

1. Blusher

The blusher mushroom is so named because it “blushes” to a pinkish red color when cut or bruised. It is found in many countries around the world, although it may not be native to the southern hemisphere. It contains a hemolytic toxin that can cause anemia if eaten.

2. Ochre brittlegill

The ochre brittlegill is a large and ubiquitous russula that can be found growing in mixed temperate woodlands across the Northern Hemisphere. This mushroom is distinguished by its smooth ochre cap, which may sometimes have tinges of green, brown, or even purple to it. Ochre brittlegills have brittle gills and bulbous, white stalks.

3. Common laccaria

Common laccaria may sound like a malevolent name for a mushroom, but fret not! This species is so-called because its appearance is highly variable, with individual caps taking on a whole host of colors, from whitish to pinkish to dark brown.

4. Amethyst deceiver

The amethyst deceiver (Laccaria amethystina) is a breathtaking mushroom that pops up from coniferous forest floors. The caps are a striking violet color in youth and are generally flat with a small indentation when the stem connects. As they mature, this violet color transforms to a less than breathtaking grey color, making it quite hard to identify after a certain age positively. Not edible.

5. Deer mushroom

The deer mushroom is can be found sprouting up from rotting logs, branches, and roots, and while it may have a preference for hardwoods it isn't very picky. Unlike many other mushroom species, the fruitbodies can be found blooming across a wide range of seasons. They have a faint, radish-like odor.

6. Common stinkhorn

The common stinkhorn (Phallus impudicus) grows incredibly quickly, sometimes nearing 30 cm in a single afternoon. Their caps are pitted in a way which makes them reminiscent of morels. However, there's little mistaking the common stinkhorn for a morel; the former, in addition to sporting a much longer stalk, has a clear and pungent odor.

7. Golden chanterelle

Golden chanterelle mushrooms are popular in gourmet cuisine across Europe, where they grow wild during the warm (but not too hot) months. Similar species grow in other countries. Extremely popular with foragers, the golden chanterelle emits an apricot-like scent and contains an array of nutrients that benefit the human body. Several studies suggest consuming extremely large amounts may have detrimental effects on the eyes and muscles.

8. Red cracking bolete

The red cracking bolete mushroom is considered difficult to accurately identify, due to its similarity in many ways to others of its genus. It seems to occur only rarely around the northern hemisphere, but it may have been misclassified in some sources. In spite of the name, the surface of the red cracking bolete's cap only rarely appears "cracked."

9. Common puffball

These puffy mushrooms grow in small groups on the forest floor. Once they're mature, common puffballs turn yellow and "puff out" smoke-like spore clouds when disturbed. Be very careful when identifying these mushrooms, as their young, immature form looks very similar to the lethal Deathcap.

10. Buttery collybia

Buttery collybia mushrooms grow mainly on the floors of coniferous forests, from summer to winter across Europe and North America. This mushroom is called “buttery” not for its flavor, but rather the greasy texture of its surface. In the genus name, “rhodo” means pink, a reference to the shade of the gills beneath its cap.

11. Brown birch-bolete

The brown birch-bolete is common around the northern hemisphere. It grows beneath birch trees and is usually easy to identify by its brown cap and scaly stem, the latter of which is referenced in its scientific name Leccinum scabrum. Occasionally, however, it can be found sporting a white cap.

12. Tawny grisette

Tawny grisette (Amanita fulva) is a common species most commonly found in Europe's broadleaf and coniferous forests, with a potential but unverified range in North America. Its name comes from the burnished orange color of its cap, which sits atop a cream-colored stem.

13. King bolete

Extremely popular in many cuisines, this edible wild mushroom grows around the world near the roots of forest trees. In some regions, king bolete mushrooms are collected in great enough volumes that their sale can support entire families during the harvest season. King boletes are reported to be high in fiber, vitamins B and C, calcium, potassium, magnesium, zinc, and several antioxidants.

14. Porcelain mushroom

Porcelain mushroom can be found on a variety of deadwood including logs, dead standing trees, and dead upper branches. However, this mushroom is pickier about the type of deadwood, as it only grows on beech trees. This mushroom prefers to keep these trees to itself, releasing fungicides that can kill other mushrooms.

15. Bay bolete

The common bay bolete is found across the northern hemisphere, often in spruce and pine forests and occasionally under deciduous trees. While it lives in a symbiotic relationship with a living tree, the mushrooms are most often found near well-decayed, mossy stumps, usually singly or in very small groups.

16. Oak milkcap

Oak milkcap (Lactarius quietus) is a mushroom known for its oily scent. It lives under oak trees, forming a mutually beneficial relationship with its host tree that helps both to thrive. When the gills are cut they produce a milky sap. This is referred to by the milkcap of its common name and Lactarius of its Latin name.

17. Pear-shaped puffball

The mushrooms of this species grow in such tight clusters that they may cover fallen trees and stumps almost entirely in a brownish, puffy coat. Pear-shaped puffballs appear all around the northern hemisphere on decaying hardwoods from fall through winter.

18. Charcoal burner

Most commonly found under beeches in forests or parks, this crumbly mushroom can appear in colors ranging from red and yellow to violet, blue-grey, or even green. Its scientific name represents this variability: Russula cyanoxantha means “reddish blue-blonde.”

19. Winecork brittlegill

Winecork brittlegill is a widespread mushroom species that typically makes its home on acidic soils in coniferous forests. It gets the name winecork from its smell, which is similar to that of empty wine barrels or bottle corks. The specific Latin name adusta translates as burn or toast and refers to the color of the stem.

20. Jelly ear

The distinctive jelly ear grows mainly through winter and spring, mostly on the dead trunks and branches of elder trees. It occurs around the world and is often cooked into dishes in Asian countries. This ear-shaped jelly mushroom is often available in stores both fresh and dried.

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