What Are the 4 Types of Mushrooms? Edible Mushrooms (2024)

FAQs

What Are the 4 Types of Mushrooms? Edible Mushrooms? ›

There are four types of mushrooms: saprotrophic, mycorrhizal, parasitic, and endophytic. While there are many different types of mushrooms within these categories, not all of them are edible.

We can put these various species in one of 4 categories: saprotrophic, mycorrhizal, parasitic, and endophytic. These categories describe how the organism feeds itself. (Note: If you're more interested in how YOU feed yourself, check out the edible mushrooms page).

Common edible mushrooms include chicken of the woods, morels, chanterelles, and giant puffballs.

Below are four wild mushrooms in Northern California that are great ones for beginners since they do not have any toxic lookalikes. The standard “Foolproof Four” are Puffballs, Chicken of the Woods, Morels, and Chanterelles.

Some of the mushrooms considered best for human health include chaga, lion's mane, reishi, turkey tail, shiitake, cordyceps and maitake. Often considered vegetables, mushrooms are neither plants nor animals. They belong to a unique kingdom of fungi.

Cremini (Italian Brown) Mushrooms

They're sometimes called "baby bella" mushrooms because they are the younger, smaller version of portabella mushrooms. Substitute for button mushrooms in soups, sautés, and more to add a more full-bodied flavor.

Amatoxins, the class of toxins found in these mushrooms, are thermostable: they resist changes due to heat, so their toxic effects are not reduced by cooking. Amanita phalloides is the most poisonous of all known mushrooms.

Avoid mushrooms with white gills, a skirt or ring on the stem and a bulbous or sack like base called a volva. You may be missing out on some good edible fungi but it means you will be avoiding the deadly members of the Amanita family. Avoid mushrooms with red on the cap or stem.

While the largest organism in the world is a fungus currently consuming Oregon, Termitomyces titanicus is the world's largest edible mushroom, with the cap capable of measuring a little more than three feet across. The Termitomyces name refers to how it grows inside a termite hill.

Known as the Queen of Mushrooms, Mushroom of Immortality, Lingzhi mushroom, Ganoderma Lucidum, or straightforward Reishi, this mushroom has been used to support well-being for over 2,000 years in China and Japan[*]. While it isn't a pantry staple in the USA, it's time we started using it to stop stressing out.

What are the safest edible mushrooms to eat? ›

Hen-of-the-woods, oyster, and sulphur shelf mushrooms are safe, delicious, and nutritious wild varieties prized by mushroom hunters. While these and many other mushrooms are safe to consume, eating varieties like the death cap, false morels, and Conocybe filaris can cause serious adverse health effects and even death.

Enoki mushrooms are a long, thin, white mushroom with a mild flavor and crunchy texture, which are popular in Japanese, Chinese, and Korean cuisines. They're typically sold in clusters and are used in soups, stir-frys, hot pots, salads, and other dishes.

For instance, mushrooms can be quite overpowering when combined with some fruits and sweet foods such as ice cream or fruit salad. As a result, it's generally considered poor food pairing etiquette to put mushrooms into these dishes.

The first step towards safely enjoying raw mushrooms begins with choosing the right varieties. Stick to those known for their edibility and palatability such as the common white button, cremini, and portobello mushrooms.

Button mushrooms are the most common type of mushroom you'll find at the grocery store—in fact, an estimated 90% of the mushrooms we eat in the US are of the button variety. Less intensely flavored than many of their kin, button mushrooms (scientific name, Agaricus bisporus) are the mildest-tasting mushroom around.

Death Cap. Because of its high toxicity and common presence in our forests, Amanita phalloides is the most dangerous mushroom and the cause of the majority of fatal poisonings. It has the typical shape of the amanitas, with a ring around the stem and a volva surrounding the base.

Agaricus bisporous is the most common edible mushroom eaten practically all over the world.