Pine mushrooms, white matsutake, American matsutake, Wood mushroom, Japanese mushroom, Mountain mushroom
Champignon de pin (French), Kieferpilz (German), Matsutake (Japanese),seta del pino (Spanish)
(Tricholoma magnivelare also known as Armillaria ponderosa – Family Tricholomataceae)
The name “matsutake” means ‘pine mushroom’, and is the common name given to a group of similar mushrooms in the Tricholoma species. The American matsutake (T. magnivelare) grows primarily in the Pacific Northwest, and is a relative of the Japanese matsutake, considered to be second only to the Alba and Perigord truffles. Listed from the greatest to the least in cash value, large scale cultivation concentrates on matsutakes, morels, chanterelles, boletes, black Oregon truffles, and hedgehogs. Japan is the main importer of the American matsutake, followed by other Asian communities in the US and Canada. Because of the dollar-value placed on these mushrooms, foraging can be a dangerous affair; and deaths have resulted when one crosses the imaginary boundary of another forager. Often pickers are nomads who follow the wild mushroom season as it moves down the coast. The Japanese have an insatiable desire for the pine mushrooms and have driven up market levels, reaching several hundred dollars a pound. The result has been a “gold rush” of pickers, leading to overcrowding, tension, and, occasionally, violence in the picking regions. Matsutake is highly valued in Asia and has been so for hundreds of years, but the American Pacific Northwest has been identified as a region with substantial numbers of pine mushrooms and a healthy growing industry surrounding it. The pine mushroom has a firm, dense flesh and a spicy aroma that is reminiscent of cinnamon. Its scent is a key factor in determining its identity. It can be found at high altitudes near mature Douglas fir trees, and starts fruiting in late August and continues until the first hard frosts. Prone to worm infestations, a good matsutake should be free of worm trails when cut open and will have a firm stalk.
Caution: There is a poisonous look-alike called Smith’s Amanita (Amanita smithiana) which is very similar in appearance to pine mushrooms, but whose odour is not as spicy. The cap will tend to rotate upward if the mushroom is placed on its side.
