Price Points: Mushroom knives

Mushroom knives

I always keep bags in my coat pockets in case I come across wild food on my dog walks in fields and woodland; blackberries, elderflowers, bilberries and the like.

October and November are peak months for fungi foraging. This year has been a good one for parasols, porcinis and horse mushrooms round these parts. With some mushrooms, you really need to slice them at the base, otherwise they may crumble or break when you try to lift them. As well as a bag, it’s a good idea to walk with one of these mushroom knives.

A good knife will be small, lightweight, sharp and have a brush to get rid of dirt and debris. The mushroom-shaped, keyring example is portable and very cute. The French company, Opinel, has the reputation as being the brand-leader and their N°08 model is an absolute beaut!

  1. Mushroom tool keychain: £14.95, NOTHS
  2. Mushroom foraging knife: £22.50, Etsy
  3. Opinel N°08 pocket knife + sheath in case: £39.95, Amazon

The Opinel N°08 mushroom knife is the ultimate tool for foraging. It will accompany you on all your outings in the forest, and will fulfil several purposes. For all nature and mushroom lovers, this is your new best friend!

shop mushroom knives

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Prices & links correct at time of publication.

Opinel N°08 pocket knife + sheath in case
Opinel N°08 pocket knife + sheath in case
£39.95
Mushroom foraging knife
Mushroom foraging knife
£22.50
Mushroom tool keychain
Mushroom tool keychain
£14.95
Opinel N°08 pocket knife + sheath in case
Opinel N°08 pocket knife + sheath in case
£39.95
Mushroom foraging knife
Mushroom foraging knife
£22.50
Mushroom tool keychain
Mushroom tool keychain
£14.95
Opinel N°08 pocket knife + sheath in case
Opinel N°08 pocket knife + sheath in case
£39.95
Mushroom foraging knife
Mushroom foraging knife
£22.50
Mushroom tool keychain
Mushroom tool keychain
£14.95
Opinel N°08 pocket knife + sheath in case
Opinel N°08 pocket knife + sheath in case
£39.95
Mushroom foraging knife
Mushroom foraging knife
£22.50
Mushroom tool keychain
Mushroom tool keychain
£14.95
Opinel N°08 pocket knife + sheath in case
Opinel N°08 pocket knife + sheath in case
£39.95
Mushroom foraging knife
Mushroom foraging knife
£22.50
Mushroom tool keychain
Mushroom tool keychain
£14.95

Mushroom pâté

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Mushroom pâté with toast

A few weeks ago on Instagram, I was singing the praises of a delicious porcini mushroom pâté that I’d discovered in Lidl.

Chopped mushrooms on a wooden chopping board

We had a punnet of mushrooms that needed to be used up, so I thought I might try my hand at making my own pâté.

Cooking off mushrooms in a saucepan

I flipped through a few of our cookbooks for a recipe and soon found one in a little booklet supplement that came with the Guardian weekend newspaper, many moons ago.

Cooked mushrooms in a food processor

It was a taster from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s Mushrooms: River Cottage Handbook No.1.

Cooked mushrooms and cream cheese in a food processor

I altered the recipe slightly, substituting the butter and garlic for 50 grams of wild garlic butter that I whipped up the previous week.

Adding seasoning to mushroom pâté

Mushroom pâté is a very simple and easy to make recipe.

Putting mushroom pâté into jars

You can use foraged wild mushrooms (so long as you’re absolutely sure they’re not a poisonous variety). Dried mushrooms such as porcini, chanterelle, morel or a mixture; chestnut or just plain ol’ closed cup white mushrooms.

Mushroom pâté

Course Appetizer
Cuisine French

Ingredients
  

  • 250 g/9oz mushrooms
  • 30 g/1oz butter
  • 3-4 garlic cloves peeled & crushed
  • 250 g/9oz cream cheese
  • sea salt & cracked black pepper to season

Instructions
 

  • Clean and trim the mushrooms before slicing thinly
  • Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat
  • Add the mushrooms and garlic and cook until softened stirring to stop it sticking to the bottom of the pan
  • Cook until the liquid released by the mushrooms all but evaporates (10-15 minutes)
  • Allow to cool before spooning into a mini-food processor and blitzing for 20-30 seconds
  • Add the cream cheese to the food processor and blitz again until well combined
  • Season with sea salt & cracked black pepper to taste
  • Decant into sterilised jars and refrigerate. Once opened, consume within 7 days
Mushroom pâté ingredients
Delicious slathered over freshly-baked ciabatta!
Keyword mushroom, mushrooms, pâté

Gimee Five: Exotic mushrooms

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selection of five different grow your own exotic mushroom kits

It’s getting to that time of year when wild mushrooms start to appear. A lovely free meal if you know what you’re picking!

Exotic mushrooms taste delicious in all kinds of pasta & rice dishes – or thrown into a simple omelette. Foraging isn’t possible for everyone though – so here are five kits that offer a convenient & safe option.

  1. Lion’s mane – £21.99, Thompson & Morgan
  2. Grow your own pearl oyster mushrooms kit – £14, notonthehighstreet
  3. Common morel morchella esculenta mushroom kit – €16.96, eBay
  4. Elm mushroom growing kit – £9.99, Amazon
  5. Mushroom windowsill kit – shiitake – £9.99, Suttons Seeds