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Editor’s Note: I have said this a lot in the comments before, in person and in the body of this post. Let me say it one more time, right up here in the beginning: Unless you are an expert mushroom hunter and you can 100 percent identify this mushroom, DON’T EAT IT. I wrote this post for other experts, not for just anyone to think they’ve found A. muscaria. This is serious stuff, folks. Mistake this mushroom for another amanita and you can die. Seriously. ~Hank
No mushroom presents more of an enigma than the fly agaric, Amanita muscaria. It is the most recognizable mushroom on the planet, and is widely known as the hallucinatory ‘shroom responsible for Alice’s trip into Wonderland and quite possibly our beloved images of a red-suited Santa Claus and his flying reindeer.
I am not into hallucinations. Or stomach cramping, for that matter. So for years I let this beautiful mushroom pass on my mushroom hunts. Until last weekend. We were ostensibly hunting for porcini, Boletus edulis, but as any king bolete hunter knows, the fly agaric is literally a red flag indicating that a porcino might be nestled nearby: They flush around the same time, in around the same place. And where we were on California’s Central Coast there were thousands of muscaria, a red tide in the woods.
As we walked, picking porcini and other wonderful boletes, I began having a nagging conversation with myself:Â You know you can eat those amanitas, right? Yes, but don’t they need all sorts of crazy processing first? Probably. But you will never get a better chance to experiment than with this flush right here, right now. OK, OK. I grabbed a separate bag and began picking.
I filled a grocery bag in no time. In fact, I could have filled the back of my pickup with muscaria. But I also had a huge haul of porcini, the prize of the day. So I dealt with them first. My dehydrator ran morning and night for days. I made porcini powder, dried quarts of porcini, made porcini risotto, and even gave some fresh ones as Christmas presents. All the while my sack of amanitas lay neglected in the garage.
I came up for air a few days ago and decided to do some research. I have a lot of mushroom books. Most say that Amanita muscaria is toxic and hallucinatory. A few call it deadly poisonous, which seems to be a stretch considering there are fewer than a handful of confirmed deaths by this mushroom and all have extenuating circumstances. (A side note: fly agaric appears to be attractive to dogs and cats and can kill them if they eat it, so keep it away from your pets!)
There is also, apparently, an entire modern subculture dedicated to tripping on this mushroom, and its use in visions dates back thousands of years — especially among those who live in the boreal forests of the north.
This is where Santa comes in. My colleague Greg Marley, whose excellent book Chanterelle Dreams, Amanita Nightmares: The Love, Lore, and Mystique of Mushrooms goes into this at length, says that fly agaric has been a symbol of yuletide happiness in Central Europe, Russia and Scandinavia for centuries, calling it “a red light shining bright in the winter darkness.” And the people of the North, as any mushroom hunter knows, are mad about mushrooms.
There is a common exchange between us Anglo ‘shroomers when we see various, “lesser” species of ‘shroom: Is it edible? Well, the Russians eat it… Amanita muscaria falls into this category.
Historically, the Siberians boiled fly agaric and then drank the pot liquor to get roaring drunk. They then preserved the mushrooms for eating later. As it happens, the Siberians’ livestock also loves this ‘shroom. And I’m not talking about cattle, I’m talking about reindeer.
Yep. Caribou will seek out Amanita muscaria just for the high — or at least it looks that way to us humans. So it’s not too far a stretch to conjure up an image of a jolly, roaringly drunk, fat, bearded dude all dressed up for the North Pole — in a red suit with white trim — chillin’ with flying reindeer.
But like I said, I am not into that sort of thing. So I looked deeper. It seems that the primary toxins, er, “active ingredients,” in Amanita muscaria are ibotenic acid and muscimol. Unlike the amatoxins in the deadly amanitas — the death cap and the destroying angel — ibotenic acid and muscimol are water soluble.
More research turned up William Rubel, who knows his stuff when it comes to mushrooms. Rubel wrote an article about how to detoxify fly agaric that proved enlightening.
What’s more, he and David Arora, who is even more reknowned in the mycological world, teamed up on a longer piece (which is linked to at the bottom of Rubel’s article) about cultural attitudes toward Amanita muscaria that provides all the detail you could need on why this mushroom has such a varied place in our minds: Food. Poison. Hallucinogen.
As food, fly agaric does need special handling. Apparently most people eat only the caps or the very young buttons. They must be boiled in a large volume of water for a period of time, and then you need to toss out that water. After that, most cultures will either fry them like normal mushrooms, or pickle them, or preserve them in oil; I happen to know that a certain set of Italians do this. The Japanese around Nagano eat Amanita muscaria as pickles, as do the Lithuanians, Finns and Russians.
My friend Langdon Cook wrote about eating fly agaric with none other than David Arora, and he pronounced them delicious. Lang also pointed me to a cautionary article written by two mycologists who, apparently, failed to detoxify their muscaria enough. The moral of that article is to use lots of water and boil the hell out of the shrooms.
Back to my grocery bag. By the time I’d screwed up enough courage to mess around with these things, about half had gone by. Bummer. But I still had about 10 good caps to experiment with. What follows is what I did to detoxify the mushrooms. If you choose to play around with Amanita muscaria, do so at your own risk.
- I first removed all the caps and cleaned them with a brush and the side of a knife. Then I cut the caps into 1/4 inch slices.
- I filled my 12-quart stockpot up to the top, leaving about 3 inches of room to spare. I added enough salt to make the water taste salty and 1 cup of cider vinegar. Several sources say that adding salt and vinegar helps extract the toxins.
- I brought this to a boil and added the mushroom caps, then let it roll for 15 minutes.
- I then drained the mushrooms and filled the stockpot half full with fresh water and brought that to a boil. In went the mushrooms for another 5 minutes. Why? If they had gotten too vinegary or salty, this would help. Also, better safe than sorry.
The key to boiling seems to be time and water volume. You need enough water to leach out all the toxins of the mushroom, so it follows that the more muscaria you boil, the more water you’ll need. As for time, it seems 15 minutes is a pretty good interval, according to my sources.
When the slices were done with this treatment, almost all the color was gone from the previously pretty red caps. Oh well. They were still a vague ivory-yellow, but the mushrooms themselves were pale and slippery. Not appetizing. Lang and Arora ate them fried in butter, so I did the same.
I experimented with about 1 cap’s worth of slices. It is always wise to start small with any new mushroom, and especially one that has potentially toxic effects. I put the slices into a non-stick pan and let them dry saute for a few minutes. They did not exude too much water, oddly, so I added some butter and a little salt. I was happy to see the slices fry up crispy. Now we’re talking!
I put them on a little plate, and tentatively took a bite. I’d be lying if I told you I was not at least a little nervous. I tasted butter and salt at first, always nice, but then I got a little crisp, then the squinchy crunchiness of the mushroom, then that nutty flavor everyone who’s eaten muscaria talks about. Reflexively, I reached for another slice, then another and another.
I had to force myself to stop at 1 cap’s worth. They were that good. Now it was time to wait.
The mycologists who’d boiled their muscaria in too little water for too short a time started tripping at 20 minutes. So I sat down to watch Boise State beat the crap out of Arizona State and waited. I was wondering if Boise’s crazy blue uniforms would spark some weird hallucination. But no. I looked at my watch: 45 minutes and nothing. The game got boring. Holly and I then watched a show about a bunch of Vikings getting beheaded in England 1000 years ago, which, in retrospect, was probably not ideal if I were about to go on a mushroom trip. But no. I looked at my watch again: Two hours had passed and nothing.
If a trip were coming, it would have hit by then. What’s more, I had neither stomach cramps nor any other ill effects whatsoever. Success!
Now you may be asking yourself why I would bother messing around with Amanita muscaria when I had just hauled in pounds of boletes? First off, fly agaric is one of the easiest mushrooms in the world to identify. Even though it has some color variation, like the yellow-orange one below, if you stick to the red and orange color phases Amanita muscaria is unmistakable.
Now white and light-yellow phase muscaria do exist, but I do not recommend messing with those. White amanitas are almost always deadly — the destroying angel chief among them — and mistaking a destroying angel for a white muscaria will be the last mistake you ever make.
And with the yellow ones, you can mistake muscaria for the more-toxic Panther Amanita, Amanita pantherina, which does not have a history of culinary use.
A second reason to consider eating fly agaric is because it is a large mushroom that, as I saw on the Central Coast, can flush in huge numbers. I could easily have collected four grocery bags of them on my last trip, which would have made for lots of good eating down the line.
And good eating is the real reason I will choose to eat Amanita muscaria once or twice a season. It was a delicious mushroom fried in butter, and I suspect it will make an even better preserved mushroom, if the Italians or Russians’ experience is any indication. At the very least, it will be a conversation starter, eh?
Interesting, i was out in Trent Park, Oakwood London at the kids play area and my daughter saw one by the tree and touched it. Being bright red like that can only mean danger. Googled red and white mushrooms and happy i did. But to think its growing right next to a childrens play area.
What are the dangerous look-alikes, so I can avoid them? I’ve been googling and googling and I don’t see anything very dangerous that could *easily* be mistaken for an amanita muscara. Everything I can find in red/orange/yellow with white spots seems safe except for the same ibotenic acid/muscimol thay you can boil out of the muscaria…
Andrew: Absolutely not. You cannot safely eat A. pantherina or really any other mushroom in the muscaria class. You cannot boil out the ibotenic acid/muscimol in many other species in this class — there’s too much, or the ratio of one to another is wrong. There is a reason there is no historic record of humans eating the other species. This is not a beginner’s mushroom. Be very very careful about messing with these.
Just found a flush of A.muscaria,or at least that is my best guess,right in a parking lot where I take my recycling I looked around for more but it was just one area that I found them,first I have seen around here,beautiful… I am a little uncertain about eating them,your information is much appreciated.
If you are not 100 percent sure about what ANY mushroom is, don’t eat it.
found 2 lots of troops growing, picked only the young ones and left the larger ones to spore, plus they were infested with bugs. 5 sizeable new caps prepared, boiled them for 20 minutes in the vinegar and salt solution and surprisingly the water turned red. fresh water boil and preserved in an olive oil, vinegar and garlic mix. in hind sight, olive oil only would have been better as they will be eaten soon.
will report back after consumption…
Want the truth and nothing but about this mushroom? Google mushrooms and mankind… It will blow your mind folks!
I PICKED A FEW OF THEM YESTERDAY AFTERNOON AND CLEANED THEN THEM.
THIS MORNING I SLICED ABOUT 3 CAPS UP ABOUT 1/4″ SLICES. BOILED AND THEN FRIED IN BUTTER. NICE AND CRIP ALMOST LIKE EATING FRENCH FRIES.
THIS WAS AT 6:15 AM NOW 11:17 AM AND NO BAD EFFECTS WHAT SO EVER. I DID FEEL A LITTLE UNEASYNESS BUT I THINK THAT WAS MOSTLY IN MY HEAD DIDN’T LAST LONG. STILL FEEL FINE.
My father ate a large cap yesterday morning, fried in butter. We live in ohio. My mother found him six hours later, incontinent, unresponsive, salivating excessivey in bed. Our tenant had watched him eat it, it was the only reason we knew what was wrong. Thousands of dollars in medical dept later he is awake, illegibly writing the “warm dreams” he remembers, asking what would happen if he left the hospital now. (ANSWER: 1 in 6 chance of death) I guess I wish he’d read this and boiled it, but you should be careful with this shit, some people think they are invincible…
EXACTLY. Although I am pretty sure you can’t die from eating Amanita muscaria — other amanitas are a different story. I hope your father gets better soon, and I hope everyone considering eating this mushroom reads your comment.
WOW! This is what I’ve been looking for. These are growing everywhere in the pine grove behind my house. They are so big and Beautiful I thought what a shame they are toxic. But, you have given me hope that maybe this could be a great food sourse. I will definatly try your recipe soon as they are fruiting right now. I would love to know what other mushrooms grow here in south carolina. cause I love them. If anyone could me please let me know!
Just be very, very certain that a) these are really Amanita muscaria — they have quite a few look-alikes, all of which are MORE toxic than this one is — and b) that when you are absolutely 100% sure, you follow my instructions. I’ve said it before and I will say it again: Amanitas are NOT to be trifled with. An improper identification can KILL YOU. I am serious.
I found mushrooms that look (well I THINK they look) just like these…. In Toledo, OH. I wish I could post a picture because I’m curious if that’s what they really are.
Melissa
P.S. I did not touch them.
Found a couple of these under a spruce in Maryland and was wondering what they were. They are the yellow with orange tops as pictured above. Lovely. Next time I see them I’ll have to pick them. Isn’t this a little south for them?
Charli: I’d be very, very careful about picking amanita mushrooms. They are not a beginner’s mushroom and you can get very sick or even die if you eat the wrong sort of amanita. I posted this for advanced mushroom hunters only.
Wondering where these little gems grow. Live in Southern Illinois close to So.Illinois University. What time of year do you hunt them?
I’m here on the Kenai Peninsula south of Anchorage, Alaska and every Fall during the rainy season I see these guys popping up under our white birch stands. I’ll have to invite the neighbors over and see if your boiling methods really work.
Just kiddin but next time I come across a fiery rush of them- I’ll definitely give them a try.
Loved this article and love how you’re living. I found fly agaric in my yard a few weeks ago, I googled it because we got a puppy and I was wondering if it was safe. I’ve seen them all over in Anchorage and thought it was a shame they shouldn’t be eaten. I’ll definitely try your recipe!
I picked mine on the Northern Californian Coast.
“One (…) went so far as to drink his own urine after consuming the mushroom in the manner of the Siberians who believed the urine contained a more purified form of the hallucinogenic compounds”
I also did this; after consuming 2 dry mushrooms. I recycled my urine a couple times for ~ the strongest experience of my psychedelic career. Definitely stronger than 3.5g cubensis. Astral projection.
I would generally recommend smaller tonic amounts.
I nibbled on the raw mushroom in the forest because I saw animals had been doing the same. I got great energy and was bounding through the forest in an excellent mood from a single nibble!
Sautéed in butter tastes lovely. Amanita; the secret ingredient of French chefs. I read Muscimol is a better flavor enhancer than MSG… so don’t throw out all the actives if you want a delicious and uplifting dish!
We REALLY want to try these! We live close to Las Vegas, but can easily travel to surrounding states. Can anyone give us a location, (city/state), and a time of year when they grow? We promise not to pick them all! 🙂
I know nothing about mushrooms at all. I live in the Black Hills of South Dakota and was walking in the forest with my dogs and saw this beautiful bright orange and white speckled mushroom. I had to google it, and came upon this site. It was a very interesting read. I won’t be harvesting any wild shrooms, but when I walk the forest and see them, I will think of all this interesting information, Alice, and all of you! Kari
When we tried them years ago, the smallest little bit was enough to send us over the rainbow for about 6 hours. VERY strongly dissociative! Unlike other magic shrooms which make things look smaller, Amanita magnifies things larger. Shades of Alice in wonderland? I was suddenly *seeing the secrets of the time/space continuum. Being the syllogistic forensic type, I tried to make notes, about 40 pages of gibberish that made perfect sense at the time. Went to the restroom, what a mistake (mushroom kraps: feels like you need to, but you sit there forever and the tiniest thing comes out). While on the john, the roses in the wallpaper came to life…
About 40 minutes later I came to my senses. Where was I? My face was pressed flat against the ground it seems, but no.. I was smashed into the wall. I’m certain that I had been trying to enter that rose garden.
The amount we took was miniscule, about the size of the tip of your pencil. There is just no controlling that high, and unlike dung-shrooms, smoking some good weed did nothing. Usually it provides a life-raft so to speak, and leveled out the ups and downs of a trip, but Amanita was all UP, all the time! Other mushies make my legs feel like jello, and my joints ache. Not so with Amanita, although I didn’t take enough to feel the strength of the berserkers (nor their fury), I could sense the *strength they might be referring to, but just in the background.
Same as any other trip though in the sense that I didn’t see stuff that wasn’t there. I never have! I just see stuff that is there in a different way. It breathes, there are halos of light, psychic experiences but no pink dragons, unicorns, fairies or the perfunctory visit from Jesus.
I’d do it again but only as an experiment under certain circumstances. Otherwise I advise the kids DO NOT TOUCH THIS, even if you have a babysitter, they can’t do anything to talk you down. You are just… gone.
You can see why the mystery cults had to tie their maenads up sometimes so they wouldn’t go batshit on everyone.
Hi! I did a small article about amanita muscaria and quoted you 🙂 thanks for sharing your experience! I can’t wait to try some.
just got my hands on some and will be giving these a test. interested in both the spiritual and the culinary experiences. if i can remember to come back i will definitely give my analysis of these beauties. I live in the NE US and coniferous trees are EVERYWHERE, however i have not seen these in my lifetime growing wild in my region. I will be taking specimens out and grinding them up and spreading them about in hopes that the spores will germinate a bountiful yield in time. If successful, i will become the “Johnny Appleseed” of fly agaric. lol! Wish us luck!
Awesome Article and Comments!
Where in California are the best places to hunt for the these mushrooms? I live in LA.