“Advice is like mushrooms. The wrong kind can be fatal.”
— Bill Balanche
Mountain Man, Radd, a 6th generation Montanan and somewhat of a Mountain Misfit has always enthusiastically taken advantage of everything this vast land has to offer, from hiking Mountain peaks to making friends with the wildlife, to competitive bird watching, to, in his own words, “botanizing” – a hobby that encompasses science, species identification, and photographing of many many wild plants and mushrooms. Together we hunt for mushrooms and, even though I am allergic to most wild mushrooms, I still find foraging in the woods quite soothing, “natural”, and easily explained by evolutionary psychology.
Mushroom hunting, mushrooming, mushroom picking, and mushroom foraging, are all terms that describe the activity of gathering mushrooms in the wild, usually to eat. Choice culinary mushrooms, like the morels, are native to the American Midwest, the Rockies, and the Northeast of the USA, but some can be found deep in the South as well. Fortunately, there isn’t much in the way of equipment to get started. All you need is a container to store your finds, a pocket knife to pick and clean up the stems of mushrooms or cut them to check for worms, and a good identification book to keep you from accidentally poisoning yourself.
Luckily morels, are hard to mistake. These wild and tasty ‘shrooms have an overall shape of a cone, come in beige, grey, or black colors, and have distinctive irregular brain-like ridges with a hollow interior. They could only be confused with false morels that have more lobes and look more squashed with their outward bulges. Remember when in doubt, throw it out.
Once you have enough, these unctuous and meaty mushrooms are great grilled or sautéed in butter with garlic or shallot that would perfectly crown your pasta, or better yet, your tortellini. We recently had a fantastic cookout that included Italian sausages, ring-shaped Italian pasta stuffed with cheese (tortellini), and morel mushrooms cooked in delicious IPA’s, because what’s camping without craft beer?
Parks IPA, by Grand Teton Brewing in Idaho, was brewed to inspire exploration and appreciation of our national treasures. A portion of the proceeds from sales of this beer is donated to National Park funding to support trail maintenance and trash cleanup and help keep the National Parks beautiful. As avid hikers, adventurers, nature lovers, and beer nerds this is a cause we can stand behind eagerly. Parks IPA is crafted beautifully to a delightfully hoppy flavor, and gentle bitterness, with a slightly sweet and malty finish. After cooking your dinner, use the rest of the 6-pack to keep yourself hydrated on the trail.
If you ended up drinking most of your Parks IPA while waiting for the sausage and tortellini to cook, pair your gourmet camp food with 2x Dry Hopped IPA from Breakside Brewery in Portland, Oregon. This beer has a medium-high hoppy bitterness, with its citrus, tropical fruity, and piny characters emboldening the spices of any spicy Italian sausage.
Both craft beers, with their distinct piny and resinous bitterness typical of an IPA, are ideal for all you hop-heads out there.
This summer, after getting your clothes sweaty and your shoes muddy exploring the outdoors all day, have a seat with a beer in hand and a plate of a well-earned sausage and tortellini in a morel mushroom sauce. Our recipe is pretty straightforward. You could cook just about anything on a two-burner camping stove that you would on your stovetop at home. Just make sure yours is as reliable as our Coleman Compact Propane Stove easily purchased from any REI store. Have fun eating and refueling for your next unforgettable foray into the Mountains.
