Rare Expensive Mushrooms

[Mylegsbig]

Hello there, i was in the market last week at a very nice place, and noticed some mushrooms id never seen before. They were mostly bright colors and in huge balls, with shrooms sprouting out, and these mushrooms were between 20 and 40 dollars a pound.

The only name i remember is Lobster Mushrooms was one of them( i think)

Why are these mushrooms so expensive? Are they extremely rare? I had never seen mushrooms that cost more than prime beef tenderloin

what can you use these for? can you use them in pasta dishes with a pesto sauce?

any info on these exotic mushrooms would be great

 

[Andy M.]

Often, exotic mushrooms are wild and hand collected by trained mushroom pickers. I think the term is mycologist.

Because collection is so labor intensive, exotic mushrooms cost a lot.

As to why to use them. Every mushroom has a different flavor.

 

[ironchef]

I think the best way to do lobster mushrooms is to simply saute them in butter with shallots, salt, and pepper. That will bring out the flavor of the mushroom without masking or overpowering it. The same can be said for most any exotic mushroom. Serve it as a side with grilled meat or seafood.

 

[AllenOK]

Lobster mushrooms are a really hard one to find, as they start out as one species of fungus that is then parasitized by a second fungus, turning it that bright pink-red color. That second fungus can also parasitize other mushrooms, even poisonous mushrooms, so when you're picking wild lobster mushrooms, you can't go by just the color, but by shape as well.

Chantarelle and Oyster mushrooms are becoming a common sight in some grocery stores.

Morel mushrooms, however, still cannot by cultivated, so they must be picked wild. Morels are rather finicky mushrooms, as they need the right amount of temperature, moisture, and the right kind of dead or dying trees to grow.

 

[mish]

Did some poking around. You can use them in various dishes, soups, etc., but like IC mentioned, I would not want to mask the flavor (particularly at those prices). This looks very good.

http://www.stephencooks.com/2005/09/lobster_mushroo.html

P.S. They do look very pretty.