• 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
  • 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

Hen of the Woods / Maitake

Young hen of the woods mushroom, maitake, or Grifola frondosa
Hen of the Woods or Maitake mushrooms are one of the easiest mushrooms to identify I know, as well as one of the largest. Some can grow to be over 50 lbs! If you're new to them, check out my introductory guide to hen of the woods. There's tons of ways to cook them, but my original Hen of the Woods Mushroom Steaks are a crowd favorite, as are Pickled Hens.

Hen of the Woods Barbacoa

Hen of the woods or wild mushroom barbacoa recipe

Mushroom barbacoa? As in vegetarian barbacoa? *dodges tomatoes* Absolutely. It might seem odd at first glance, but mushrooms, especially in Mexico, have been eaten as a substitute for meat in some areas for a long time, so simmering them in spicy chili broth and eating with tortillas or stuffed into a burrito isn’t really that much…

Read More

Mushroom Taco Meat (Vegetarian)

Hen of the woods mushroom taco meat

Faced with a couple bags of frozen hen of the woods mushrooms this year, I set out to come up with some trusty ways to eat through large hauls of mushrooms quickly. These mushroom tacos were one of the winners, and they’re a great way to use up that winter stash before the season comes,…

Read More

Grilled Hen of the Woods with Ginger-Soy Vinaigrette

Grilled hen of the woods mushroom with ginger soy vinaigrette recipe

  There’s something so primal about a big hen of the woods and breaking off giant clusters to cook whole like a piece of meat, there a great entry level mushroom too, easy to identify, big in size, typically worm-free, delicious. I don’t know any cooking technique more raw than cooking over burning wood, so…

Read More

The Wild Harvest | Episode 6: Autumn

The Wild Harvest Show | Episode 6: Autumn

Episode six is the last entry in The Wild Harvest for 2020.  From the start, back in April, Jesse and I had planned on featuring hen of the woods for this episode, along with whatever else I could come up with. Eventually hens turned into maitake when we got closer to the shoot date and…

Read More

Sicilian Chicken of the Woods

Italian chicken of the woods mushroomrecipe

Think eating chicken of the woods is strictly an American thing? The continents separated a long time ago, but we still share many of the same mushrooms, at least as far as culinary purposes are concerned (specific species are another story). Doing research with Jesse for The Wild Harvest show as we planned Episode 3…

Read More

Roasted Chicken or Hen of the Woods Stock

Roasted chicken or hen of the woods mushroom stock recipe

Chicken of the woods stock, made with woody trim from a large haul is a good example of one of the best parts about hunting wild mushrooms: not only do you get to bear witness to the incredible volume of nature’s bounty, you get to take it home, too, and you can often find yourself…

Read More

Wild Mushroom Chili

Hen of the woods or wild mushroom chili recipe_

Back when I was the chef at Lucia’s restaurant, making vegetarian chili was a twice a week ritual as it was one of the most popular take-away items served at the deli connected to the restaurant. We served a simple vegetarian chili, filled with all the things you’d expect, and it was good, for vegetarian…

Read More

Hen of the Woods Roast with Leeks and Black Walnuts

Maitake mushroom roast with frizzled leeks (13)

Since hen of the woods can have such a large size, I love swapping them out for meat in recipes. With the maitake coming up in earnest in late September/October right now I’ve had more than my share of them hanging out in the fridge waiting to get cooked, so big ol’chunk of hen has…

Read More

  • Go to page 1
  • Go to page 2
  • Go to page 3
  • Go to Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

2022 James Beard Nominee

beard award

Subscribe (It’s free)

ORDER THE BOOK

UPDATED OPTIONS FOR CA / EU / US the forager chefs book of flora by Chef Alan Bergo

Forager Chef

Forager Chef

Footer

Instagram

foragerchef

FORAGER | CHEF®
🍄🌱🍖
Author: The Forager Chef’s Book of Flora
2022 James Beard Nominee
Host: Field Forest Feast 👇
streaming on @tastemade

Alan Bergo
Oeufs de Gaulle is a classic morel recipe Jacques Oeufs de Gaulle is a classic morel recipe Jacques Pepin used to make for French president Charles de Gaulle. 

You bake eggs in a ramekin with shrimp topped with creamy morel sauce and eat with toast points. 

Makes for a really special brunch or breakfast. Recipe’s on my site, but it’s even better to watch Jacques make it on you tube. 

#jacquespepin #morels #shrimp #morilles #brunchtime
Morels: the only wild mushroom I count by the each Morels: the only wild mushroom I count by the each instead of the pound. 

Good day today, although my Twin Cities spots seem a full two weeks behind from the late spring. 2 hours south they were almost all mature. 

76 for me and 152 for the group. Check your spots, and good luck! 

#morels #murkels #mollymoochers #drylandfish #spongemushroom #theprecious
The first time I’ve seen fungal guttation-a natu The first time I’ve seen fungal guttation-a natural secretion of water I typically see with plants. 

I understand it as an indicator that the mushrooms are growing rapidly, and a byproduct of their metabolism speeding up. If you have some clarifications, chime in. 

Most people know it from Hydnellum 
peckii-another polypore. I’ve never seen it on pheasant backs before.

Morels are coming soon too. Mine were 1 inch tall yesterday in the Twin Cities. 

#guttation #mushroomhunting #cerioporussquamosus #pheasantback #naturesbeauty
Rain and heat turned the flood plain forest into a Rain and heat turned the flood plain forest into a grocery store. 

#groceryshopping #sochan #rudbeckialaciniata #foraging
Italian wild food traditions are some of my favori Italian wild food traditions are some of my favorite. 

Case in point: preboggion, a mixture of wild plants, that, depending on the reference, should be made with 5-23 individual plants. 

Here’s a few mixtures I’ve made this spring, along with a reference from the Oxford companion to Italian food. 

The mixture should include some bitter greens (typically assorted asters) but the most important plant is probably borage. 

Making your own version is a good excercise. Here they’re wilted with garlic and oil, but there’s a bunch of traditional recipes the mixture is used in. 

Can you believe this got cut from my book?!

#preboggion #preboggiun #foraging #traditionalfoods
Oh the things I get in the mail. This is my kind Oh the things I get in the mail. 

This is my kind of tip though: a handmade buckskin bag with a note and a handful of bleached snapping turtle claws. 😁😂 

Sent in by Leslie, a reader. 

Smells like woodsmoke and the cat quickly claimed it as her new bed. 

#buckskin #mailsurprise #turtleclaws #thisimylife #cathouse
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 ·