Lobster mushroom

Hypomyces lactifluorum is also known as the lobster mushroom. In fact it is the product of one fungi attacking another. The host mushroom is either Lactarius piperatus or Russula brevipes. The attacking fungus is a sac fungus, or ascomycete. It’s the red stuff. It colonizes the host and when that happens, the host tends to contort in shape and it turns the colour of cooked lobsters – hence the name. It also makes the otherwise unpalatable host into a delicious edible mushroom. When you find these in the woods, they’re often partially obscured by leaves on the forest floor. Sometimes the colour isn’t as intense as the one in the photo. If it turns from red-orange to more of a crimson, that’s usually an indicator that it is past its prime.

Bugs and slugs and worms love lobsters and so they require some special cleaning. First of all they are very firm and can be washed under running water. The next step is to slice then into roughly eighth inch thick slices. Then it’s a matter of cutting away anything that isn’t white or red. It’s worth the extra work to do this. Lobsters also dry up nicely in a dehydrator and are excellent in soups and stews. Even after drying and rehydrating, they retain their firm texture.

I have to remind you here to be exceptionally careful when foraging any wild mushrooms for the table. If you can’t identify a mushroom with total certainty, don’t eat it. Don’t take risks. There are some nasty mushrooms in the woods. If you’re interested in mushrooms, start with a couple good field guides but even better, find a friend who has plenty of experience who can teach you. When I started, my brother helped me out and I learned way more from him in a short time than I could have by studying books.

lobster in the woods