Mushroom Types For Cooking

EGG MUSHROOM

See chanterelle mushroom.

ENOKI MUSHROOM

These long and slender mushrooms are almost too pretty to eat. They have a mild flavor, often called fruity, and can be used raw instead of sprouts for crunch in a sandwich; or, toss them into a salad (trim the spongy base) or stir fry. We like to tie them into a bouquet with a chive and use them as a garnish, or float a few delicate mushrooms atop soups. They are cultivated year round. Other names include enokitake, enokidake, nametake, snow puff mushroom, velvet foot mushroom and winter mushroom.

ERINGI or ERYNGI MUSHROOM

See king eryngi, below.

FOREST NAMEKO or CINNAMON CAP MUSHROOM

This handsome, long-stemmed mushroom is great in light soups like miso or wonton soup. They have a firm texture and slight crunch, with mushroomy earthiness. Nameko is often found pickled, for use in sauces and noodle dishes. They are available October through February.

GIROLE MUSHROOM

See chanterelle mushroom.

HEDGEHOG or PIED DE MOUTON MUSHROOM

This mushroom gets its name from the small toothlike projections underneath its cap, rather than gills. (Other people see it differently: pied de mouton means sheep’s leg.) It is similar to the chanterelle in color and flavor; the cap is often tawny with a pale stem; the flesh is firm and dense with a very buttery flavor.

KING BOLETES MUSHROOM

See cep mushroom.

KING ERYNGI or KING OYSTER or KING TRUMPET MUSHROOM

Now cultivated indoors, this impressive-looking mushroom can grow to four inches in height. It has a firm and meaty texture and a mild and elegant flavor. Its scientific name is Pleurotus eryngii; the mushroom is also known as argonane, boletus of the steppes, bouligoule, cardarello, cardoncello, champignon de garrigue, French horn mushroom, and pleorote du panicaut and trumpet royale.

Photo of organic king trumpet mushrooms by Claire Freierman | THE NIBBLE.