Resinous Polypore Stew

Resinous Polypore has been one of my favorite fall mushrooms since the first time I was lucky enough to find them 3 years ago. These bracket fungi are often found in great abundance and posses a lot of culinary and medicinal interest.

Resinous polypore is a relative of the Reishi and can be mistaken for Reishi at first glance. Here are some ways to distinguish them.

Harvesting some Resinous Polypore

The Resinous Polypore, Ischnoderma Resinosum, is typically found:

1. On dead or dying hardwood trees.

2. In Connecticut, in the fall usually when the nights have started to get cold but before the first hard frost.

3. It has pores.

4. It feels a little bit like velvet and will sometimes have reddish brown spots of "resin" on the top of the bracket.

5. Edges will be lighter in color than the part attached to the tree.

North American Reishi

The North American Reishi, Ganoderma Tsugae, is typically found:

1. On dead or dying Hemlock (Tsugae Canadensis)

2. In Connecticut, in the spring, typically may and June when the weather is warm but not hot.

3. It has pores

4. It will be soft and smoother when young but will harden and feel like varnished wood as it ages.

5. Edges will be lighter in color.

On to the recipe, I was staying with my parents at the time of the making of this stew. As I was away from my kitchen I was presented with a new pantry and list of available ingredients to use and that presented a fun challenge which allowed for the use of some different ingredients. There is a video to accompany this recipe on my YouTube channel.

Recipe:

Ingredients:

• Resinous Polypore, (The amount added is dictated by what you can find. For this stew we had a generous 2c of raw mushroom)

• About 2-3 lbs of stew beef

• Butter

• 5 Black Olives

• 2 white onions

• A handful of baby Carrots

• A few cherry tomatoes

• Some wild garlic bulbs

• A large pinch of fermented Ramp Leaves

• A large pinch of Fermented Chanterelles

• A container of white button mushrooms, sliced

• Some dried sausage, sliced

• A generous bunch of :

  • Parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, chives, oregano, fennel, basil

• about 10 coriander seeds

• 3 dried spice bush berries

• A small wild apple

• A plum or two

• A splash of rum

• A handful of roasted chestnuts

Method:

Browning Beef

Add in the veggies

Add the mushrooms and sausage

Add in the herbs

Add the rum

Re add the Beef

Add the water

Simmer for several hours

Serve with mashed potatoes

1. In a large heavy pot, melt some butter over high heat and brown the beef well on all sides.

2. Remove the browned beef from the pan and add a little more butter.

3. Add in your fresh and fermented vegetables and cook until the begin to get translucent.

4. Add in your button mushrooms and sausage. Cook until soft

5. Add in your herbs and spices.

6. Add in the rum and the fruit

7. Put the beef back in.

8. Cover with water and add in a handful of roasted chestnuts.

9. Simmer for at least 2 hours but up to 8.

10. Serve hot with mashed potatoes and a sprig of thyme.