Bill Clark, Chicago`s mogul of dried wild mushrooms, calls himself ”a big fish in a micro-puddle.” The city`s only major mushroom merchant, Clark loves his business, Woodland Pantry, and would like to see the public better informed about the edible fungi.
More and more consumers are looking beyond the common staple button mushroom varieties and are experimenting with dried (and fresh) fungi with names the dictionary has yet to catch up to. Still, mushrooms are not competing with corn flakes for space in supermarket carts.
Biologists have given mushrooms a kingdom of their own. Because they are fungi, they no longer are classified as members of the plant family but have an equal status with plants, animals, bacteria, and viruses.
Mushrooms replaced marine life in Clark`s affections when, after a not-so-misspent youth beachcombing the South Jersey shore, Philadelphia-born Clark moved to Chicago with his wife in 1976; so she could pursue her master`s degree at the University of Chicago. At 35, he has an MBA from Wharton with a minor in marine biology. Because salt water is scarce in the midwest, he began combing local arboretums and the forests of Wisconsin, where he discovered the delightful wild fungi that now comprise both his business and his passion.
The big four stars of the Woodland Pantry`s attractively and informatively packaged dried mushrooms are shiitake (from Japan), porcini
(from Italy), oyster (domestic), and morels, which he sees as the ”most highly prized.” Each package of Clark`s mushrooms includes a recipe, history, and suggestions for storage. Woodland Pantry combines education with food preparation.
To learn more about the flavorful, spongy morsels, Clark joined the Mycological Society at the Field Museum and now has a rather encyclopedic knowledge of mushrooms. For one thing mushrooms held a lofty place in the Roman pantheon as ”food for the gods,” he says. Even today, dedicated mushroom pickers would rather part with their worldly goods than reveal their favorite forest spot for chanterelles.
There is an important symbiotic relationship between wild mushrooms and trees, Clark explains with obvious enthusiasm. Cultivated mushrooms can be raised on decaying matter but most of the popular wild mushrooms need growing trees to enable them to survive. At the same time, the mushrooms perform a valuable service for trees, he says, by helping to break down certain matter into acceptable nourishment for their lofty hosts.
At Mt. Saint Helens, the first growth after the devastating volcano there in 1980 was the edible shaggy Inky Cap mushroom, which poked up like white buttons on the otherwise desolate landscape, Clark says.
In fact, mushrooms are among the secrets to the beautiful tone of the Stradivarius violins, he says. Somehow, the wood used in these rare instruments is lightened by the action of mushroom spores on the cells, yet it loses none of its strength. The lightness is responsible for the special sound, Clark says.
And you thought mushrooms were were just good to eat.
Clark`s four-year-old business, begun in his basement, has expanded by more than 100 percent each year. He started out very ”low-key,” just appearing at trade shows, but began to work at commercialization ”in earnest” two years ago. He wanted to avoid the packaging and marketing mistakes others were making, Clark says.
Before he began his business, Clark says, most wild mushrooms in local stores were badly presented-usually stuffed in ugly cellophane sacks in hidden corners of ethnic food shops. Clark resolved to spiff up the presentation to
”broaden their appeal.” He also determined that mushrooms, and mushroom-based products, would be his only business, a business that is . . . well . . . sprouting.
Chicago, while not a big source of fungi, is an ideal location for distribution, Clark says, though either coast would be handier for imports. It would be difficult to leave the city, he says, because it ”has been very good to my wife and me.”
Today he has expanded his product line from the original four dried mushrooms with other products including a a mixed mushroom powder that he says is good for soups and gravy. The powder, he says, ”intensifies the flavor of the fungus and is a convenient way to get it into liquids,” somewhat like duxelles.
Clark seems most pleased with what he calls his Wild Mushroom Caviar. Unique to Woodland Pantry, the mushroom caviar comes in three varieties-cepe, morel and wild mushroom-each formulated by Clark and his wife. The morel caviar, for instance, tastes rich, chewy and earthy, with a whiff of the woods mixed in. Good by itself, this caviar also can be warmed up on top of a grilled steak or used for canapes, Clark says. A dollop in spaghetti sauce also is recommended.
Finding good fungi is the basis of a worthy product. In the United States, the Pacific Northwest is the source of morels, and oyster mushrooms are farmed in the sandy soil of southern California. Picking mushrooms is more than a hobby for many people. Clark says there still are ”a lot of counter- culture people who do it seriously.” The mushrooms then are carefully selected by expert traders, who check each sack to make certain the whole lot is good. ”It`s just like beaver pelts,” says Clark, and the relationship between trappers and traders.
One of the repercussions of the Chernobyl tragedy was the great loss of
”the traditional sources of some fungi, as well as hazelnuts, escargot and peppercorns,” Clark says, and foreign buyers have mushroomed in America. As a consequence, Clark has become a major exporter of chanterelle mushrooms, which he also supplies to restaurants-still the greatest consumers of dried mushrooms.
Clark says that though fresh mushrooms are known for their relatively delicate taste, the process of drying them intensifies the flavor, making it easier to use less to get more.
Among the new product lines he plans to bring out soon are a wild mushroom soup, a mushroom pasta, and a steak sauce made with-what else? The mushroom pasta prototype tastes pleasing with a more pronounced flavor than that of spinach or tomato pastas.
Although he says mushrooms in dried form are high in protein, Clark doesn`t try to cash in on current health crazes by making any exaggerated claims about the nutrients in mushrooms or their effect on hypertension. ”Of course, they are low in calories,” he says, ”but basically, mushrooms are for flavoring.”
A DRIED MUSHROOM MORAL: LITTLE BIT GOES A LONG WAY
Dried mushrooms have a more intense flavor than their fresh counterparts and can be used sparingly.
They also have a long shelf life when properly stored and are extremely versatile. Mushrooms can elevate an omelette to culinary heights or add just the right intensity of flavor to a make a grilled veal chop haute cuisine. They can provide a little mystery to a tomato-based pasta sauce and are better than the button variety for stir-fried vegetables.
It is important to read the instructions for reconstituting dried mushrooms. Shiitake have to be soaked for three to five hours compared to morels which need only 30 minutes to plump up but need to be thoroughly rinsed beforehand to rid them of sand.
Shiitakes and morels have a pronounced earthy taste and are recommended for sauces and sauteing, while oyster mushrooms are delicately flavored and would be better for a fish stew or served batter-fried. Porcini mushrooms are good for any of the above.
Here are two mushroom recipes from Woodland Pantry:
MOREL MADEIRA SAUCE
Two cups
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/2 package dried morels, about 1/2 ounce, reconstituted according to package directions
2 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cups hot brown stock or beef broth
2/3 cup Madeira
Salt, pepper to taste
1. Melt butter and saute fresh mushrooms for 5 minutes. Slice and add morels; cook 1 more minute. Stir in flour, raise heat, cook until golden.
2. Add stock and simmer 20 minutes. Add Madeira, cook 5 minutes more. Season to taste. Serve with steak veal or chops.
Note: Sherry, brandy or broth can be substituted for warm water in reconstituting all dried mushrooms, for added flavor. Drain thoroughly. Strain the liquid and save for sauces and stews.
BRAISED BROCCOLI WITH SHIITAKE
Four servings
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 6 minutes
4 shiitake mushrooms, reconstituted
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 pounds broccoli flowerets and stalks
1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1. Reserve shiitake liquid. Remove stems and slice caps thin. Melt butter in a large skillet over high heat. Add broccoli and shiitake, stir fry 1 minute. Add 1/3 cup reserved liquid and remaining ingredients. Reduce heat, simmer 5 minutes.
Note: After soaking, cut off and discard woody stems.
