• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

FORAGER | CHEF

Award-winning chef, author and forager Alan Bergo. Food is all around you.

  • Home
  • About
  • Wild Mushrooms
    • Mushroom Archive
    • Posts by Species
      • Other Mushrooms
        • Lobster Mushrooms
        • Huitlacoche
        • Shrimp of the Woods
        • Truffles
        • Morels
        • Shaggy Mane
        • Hericium
        • Puffball
      • Polypores
        • Hen of the Woods
        • Dryad Saddle
        • Chicken of The Woods
        • Cauliflowers
        • Ischnoderma
        • Beefsteak
      • Chanterelles
        • Black Trumpet
        • Hedgehogs
        • Yellowfeet
      • Gilled
        • Matsutake
        • Honey Mushrooms
        • Russula / Lactarius
          • Candy Caps
          • Saffron Milkcap
          • Indigo Milkcap
      • Boletes
        • Porcini
        • Leccinum
        • Slippery Jacks
    • Recipes
      • Fresh
      • Dried
      • Preserves
    • The Basics
  • Plants
    • Plant Archive
    • Leafy Green Recipes
      • Leafy Green Plant Varieties
    • Ramps and Onions
    • Wild Herbs and Spices
      • Spruce and Conifers
      • Pollen
      • Prickly Ash
      • Bergamot / Wild Oregano
      • Spicebush
      • Golpar / Cow Parsnip
      • Wild Carraway
    • Wild Fruit
      • Wild Plums
      • Highbush Cranberry
      • Wild Grapes
      • Rowanberries
      • Wild Cherries
      • Aronia
      • Nannyberry
      • Wild Blueberries
    • From The Garden
    • Nuts, Roots, Tubers and Grains
    • Stalks and Shoots
  • Meat
    • Four-Legged Animals
      • Venison
      • Small Game
    • Poultry
    • Fish/Seafood
    • Offal and Organ Meat Recipes
    • Charcuterie
  • Recipes
    • Pickles, Preserves, Etc
    • Fermentation
    • Condiments
    • Appetizers
    • Soup
    • Salad
    • Side Dishes
    • Entrees
    • Baking
    • Sweets
  • Video
    • Field, Forest Feast (The Wild Harvest)
    • Foraging Videos
    • Lamb and Goat Series
    • YouTube Tutorials
  • Press
    • Podcasts / Interviews
  • Work
    • Public Speaking
    • Charity and Private Dinners
    • Forays / Classes / Demos

Gnocchi with Chicken of the Woods Lemon Cream

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
Chicken of the woods mushroom gnocchi with lemon cream and wood sorrel

Gnocchi with chicken of the woods mushrooms and lemon cream.

In the world of wild mushrooms, chicken of the woods / sulphur shelf mushrooms are pretty special-as long as they’ve been harvested when young and tender. Mixing them into a simple pasta with lemon cream is one of my favorite things to do with them, and an annual tradition for a couple serious mushroom hunter friends of mine. 

I’ve cut large, young chickens off a tree and had them gush orange juice down my arms as I cut–not the average experience of harvesting a mushroom. The juice the give off smells mushroomy, but it has another note to it too, a sort of strong citrus scent that I’ve described as orange or citrus peel before. That aroma isn’t just a weird anomaly though, young mushrooms will keep the high citrus notes and a sort of “twang”, along with the mushroom flavor.

Chicken of the woods mushrooms or Laetiporus sulphureus

Thanks to a tip from a friend, we were able to capture a stunning chicken of the woods tree.

From there, it’s only a hop, skip, and a jump to pairing them with some citrus. A method where mushrooms are finished with a dash of lemon juice like in classic French champignons Bordelaise is good, but even better is a recipe where the mushroom flavor’s transferred to another medium to mix with the juice. Enter cream.

A know a couple old, bold mushroom hunters who swear by chicken of the woods with lemon cream sauce (see Michael Kuo’s 100 edible mushrooms) and, yes, it is really, really good. But, most importantly, it just wouldn’t be the same if you made it with a similar mushroom like hen of the woods or Ischnoderma resinosum.

A lot of times mushrooms are interchangeable in recipes, but for this, chicken of the woods shines front and center. Try it the next time you have a nice haul of young ones.

Variations 

This is a super simple wild mushroom recipe you can adapt to what you have on hand. If you don’t feel like making gnocchi from scratch, it’s fine to use your favorite pasta. Fettucine, penne, and angel hair would all work just fine. Changing things up and using the same ingredients/flavors in risotto would also be good. 

Chicken of the woods gnocchi with lemon cream recipe
Print Recipe
5 from 3 votes

Gnocchi with Chicken of the Woods Mushrooms and Lemon Cream

Potato gnocchi with chicken of the woods in a lemon cream sauce.

Equipment

  • Potato ricer, gnocchi board

Ingredients

  • 1 lb gnocchi cooked (see note)
  • Kosher salt to taste
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 6 oz fresh tender chicken of the woods mushrooms, sliced into ¼ inch pieces
  • A few scrapes fresh lemon zest
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • Fresh lemon juice to taste, about 2 teaspoons
  • Fresh grated parmesan to taste
  • 2 tablespoons sliced wild garlic shallots, green garlic, or garlic scapes
  • Chive flowers to garnish (optional)
  • Wood sorrel leaves to garnish (optional)
  • ¼ cup dry white wine

Instructions

  • Sweat the chicken of the woods in half the butter, then add the wild garlic or other allium and cook for about 30 seconds, just until they turn bright green.
  • Add the wine and cook for a minute, then add the cream and gnocchi, bring to a simmer, and cook until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Meanwhile, season the sauce to taste with salt, pepper, and lemon zest.
  • Finally, finish the sauce with the lemon juice to taste, and swirl in the butter.
  • Finally a small amount of parmesan off the heat, tossing to mix, then divide between preheated serving bowls, garnishing with the chive flowers and sorrel, if using.

Notes

Note
Par-cooking gnocchi is my preferred way of making them, just cook in rapidly boiling water, drain and toss with a bit of oil up to an hour or two before serving.
Chef potato gnocchi recipe
Print Recipe
5 from 2 votes

Basic Potato Gnocchi

Yield: enough gnocchi to serve a dinner for 4 after dressing with a sauce and some other ingredients.
Prep Time20 mins
Cook Time30 mins
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: Gnocchi
Servings: 4

Ingredients

  • 1 lb russet potatoes
  • 3/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • Kosher salt and pepper

Instructions

  • Wrap the potatoes in foil and bake at 350 until they can be easily pierced with a knife, about 30-45 minutes depending on size. Remove the potatoes from the oven and cool completely.
  • The potatoes can be riced the next day after chilling in the fridge as well. Skin the potatoes with a paring knife, Then cut into pieces and press through a ricer.
  • If you have a circular rotating ricer, work in small batches to avoid making the potatoes gummy. Put the riced potatoes on a bowl, add the salt, numeg, and egg yolk and mix until combined, then add the flour and mix (don’t knead) until an even dough is formed.
  • Transfer the dough to a cutting board, cover with a towel and allow to rest for 5 minutes before rolling out. Roll the dough into logs about 1 inch in diameter, then cut using a bench knife and roll off a fork or gnocchi board if desired.
  • As you cut the gnocchi, toss them lightly in flour and either boil fresh, toss with oil and reserve for dinner, or freeze, lightly floured on cookie sheets, transferring to freezer or vacuum bags for cooking straight from the freezer.

More Chicken of the Woods 

Related

Previous Post: « Cattail and Milkweed Shoot Salad
Next Post: The Wild Harvest | Episode 3: Early Summer »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Erica Coda

    August 21, 2020 at 10:29 pm

    5 stars
    This dish is amazing! I watched you make it in one of your Wild Harvest videos and knew the next time I got my hands on chicken of the woods I had to try it. I made ricotta gnocchi because that’s how my family always makes them. I’ll be making this again. Thank you!

    Reply
  2. Harry Wininger

    August 26, 2020 at 1:38 pm

    5 stars
    I just wanted to thank you for this recipe. As luck has it I’ve come across a good amount of Laetiporous Cincinatus this summer and my parents are sitting on a mess of homemade gnocchi. I had them over for dinner on their 58th wedding anniversary and this dish turned out spectacular. I knew the simplicity of the recipe would be a classic example where less is more and that certainly is the case. Great recipe!!!

    Cheers!
    Harry

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

James Beard Award Winner

beard award

Subscribe (It’s free)

Forager Chef

Forager Chef

Footer

Instagram

foragerchef

FORAGER | CHEF®
🍄🌱🍖
Author: The Forager Chef’s Book of Flora
James Beard Award ‘22
Host: Field Forest Feast 👇
streaming on @tastemade

Alan Bergo
HALP! I’ve been keeping an eye on two loaded mul HALP! I’ve been keeping an eye on two loaded mulberry trees and both got a bunch of fruit knocked down by the storms and wind. 

If anyone in West WI or around the Twin Cities knows of some trees, (ideally on private property but beggars can’t be choosers) that I could climb and shake with a tarp underneath, shoot me a DM and let’s pick some! 🤙😄

TIA

#throwadogabone #mansquirrel #beattlefruit #mulberries #shakintrees
Lampascioni, or edible hyacinth bulbs are one of t Lampascioni, or edible hyacinth bulbs are one of the more interesting things I’ve eaten. 

These are an ancient wild food traditionally harvested in Southern Italy, especially in Puglia and the Salentine Peninsula, as well as Greece and Crete. I’ve seen at least 6-7 different names for them. 

A couple different species are eaten, but Leopoldia comosa is probably the one I see mentioned the most. They also grow wild in North America. 

The bulbs are toxic raw, but edible after an extended boil. Traditionally they’re preserved in vinegar and oil, pickled, or preserves in other methods using acid and served as antipasti. (Two versions in pic 3). 

They’re one of the most heavily documented traditional wild foods I’ve seen. There’s a few shots of book excerpts here.

The Oxford companion to Italian Food says you can eat them raw-don’t do that. 

Even after pickling, the bulbs are aggressively extremely bitter. Definitely an acquired taste, but one that’s grown on me. 

#traditionalfoods #vampagioli #lampascione #cucinapovera #lampascioni #leopoldiacomosa #foraging
Went to some new spots yesterday looking for poke Went to some new spots yesterday looking for poke sallet and didn’t do too well (I’m at the tip of its range). I did see some feral horseradish though which I don’t see very often. 

Just like wild parsnip, this is the exact same plant you see in the store and garden-just escaped. 

During the growing season the leaves can be good when young. 

They have an aggressive taste bitter enough to scare your loved ones. Excellent in a blend of greens cooked until extra soft, preferably with bacon or similar. 

For reference, you don’t harvest the root while the plant is growing as they’ll be soft and unappealing-do that in the spring or fall. This is essentially the same as when people tell you to harvest in months that have an R in them. 

#amoraciarusticana #foraging #horseradishleaves #horseradish #bittergreens
In Italy chicken of the woods is known as “fungo In Italy chicken of the woods is known as “fungo del carrubo” (carob tree mushroom) as it’s one of the common tree hosts there. 

My favorite, and really the only traditional recipe I’ve found for them so far is simmered in a spicy tomato sauce with hot chile and capers, served with grilled bread. 

Here I add herbs too: fresh leaves of bee balm that are perfect for harvesting right now and have a flavor similar to oregano and thyme. 

Makes a really good side dish or app, especially if you shower it with a handful of pecorino before scooping it up with the bread. 

#chickenofthewoods #fungodelcarrubo #allthemushroomtags #traditionalfoods #beebalm
First of the year 😁. White-pored chicken of t First of the year 😁. 

White-pored chicken of the woods (Laetiporus cincinnatus) are my favorite chicken. 

Superior bug resistance, slightly better flavor + texture. They also stay tender longer compared to their more common yellow-pored cousins. Not a single bug in this guy. 

#treemeat #ifoundfood #foraging #laetiporuscincinnatus #chickenofthewoods
TBT brisket face 💦. Staff meal with @jesseroes TBT brisket face 💦. Staff meal with 
@jesseroesler and crew @campwandawega
📸 @misterberndt 

#staffmeal #brisket #meatsweats #naptime
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Privacy

  • Privacy Policy

Affiliate Disclosure

 I may earn a small commission for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this website. Your purchases help keep this website free and help with the many costs involved with this site as it has continued to grow over the years. 

Copyright © 2022 ·