Spring is the season for these cute furry mushrooms! We have been finding many on our hikes this Spring of 2024. This species grows on decaying wood and is one of several edible mushrooms native to the Atlantic Forest, in addition to also occurring in other biomes in Brazil and throughout the Americas.
It has a funnel shape, hairs on the cap and a hymenophore (underside) with lamellae (gills). Its size is on average 5 cm in height and diameter. It’s common name in English is Fringed Sawgill.
This and other species of Lentinus are traditionally consumed by the Yanomami indigenous people of the Amazon, and known to them as Siokoni amo, a name that also includes some other species of the genus Panus. This name translates as “hairy anus”, now I always think of that when I see them, lol.
Lentinus crinitus mushroom – Testing preparation methods
Although Lentinus crinitus is an edible mushroom, it is difficult to find a way to prepare it so that it can actually be consumed, as it has a leathery texture, being very fibrous and hard.
The information I found on the internet was that the Yanomami usually roast them on the grill, or cook them in water, so since we have been finding a lot of them lately, I decided to test some different methods.
The first step is always to remove the hairs, as they can cause throat irritation – this information is in the Primavera Fungi Guide. I remove them by scraping them with a knife, or simply rinsing them under the tap and removing them with my fingers, they come off easily and this is one of the mushrooms that can be washed without losing its texture.
After that, the first time I tried it, I did a basic way of preparing mushrooms, sautéing them in oil for a few minutes. It has a nice flavor, which even reminded me of beef, but the texture is still very hard and leathery, so I just chewed it and spit out the “flesh”, lol. I read the tip about soaking them before sautéing to soften them a little, and I tried that too, but it didn’t help at all, lol.
Then I tried to dehydrate them to make a powder so I could use them as a seasoning, but even when dehydrated they are still leathery and it was hard to turn them into powder with my food processor. I only managed to do a little bit, maybe it works better with a more powerful food processor.
The next attempt was to bake them in the oven to make them like chips, and it worked out more or less well, but they need a lot of time to get really crispy and lose their leathery texture and it’s hard for them not to burn a little.
In the end, the most practical and tasty way to prepare them that I have found so far was to boil them (I did it for about 15 minutes) and then discard them, keeping only the broth, because even after boiling them for a long time they remain hard. The broth is very tasty and can be added to soups, risottos or any other recipe, in addition to, I believe, maintaining the nutritional and medicinal properties of the mushroom.
Another tip I recently read is to cut them into very thin strips, which may help to soften them more when boiling in a soup for instance, but I haven’t tried it yet.
⚠ Remember to never eat wild mushrooms without proper identification.
📸 Pictures made in São Francisco de Paula, Rio Grande do Sul (Serra Gaúcha, South of Brazil).