Looking for mushrooms in Calabria: here's where to find them

Calabria is a seaside region that never ceases to dialogue with the mountains. It could not be otherwise, given the variety of landscapes, flora and fauna offered by the 3 national parks and 19 nature reserves (both national and regional). The products of the wood certainly include the mushrooms of Calabria. They are the main ingredient in mouth-watering recipes: from the classic pappardelle pasta with porcini mushrooms (with a "sea-mountain" variant) to the fragrant risottos, as well as more traditional dishes that use Calabrian mushrooms for typical pickles, baking tins and mouth-watering side dishes. What are the main varieties of mushrooms in Calabria and, above all, what are the edible mushrooms in Calabria?

Let's start with a great classic: porcini mushrooms in Calabria, the true protagonists of the autumn and spring woods, "stars" of some of the most popular mushroom recipes. The Calabrian porcino is undoubtedly the king of edible mushrooms in Calabria. Known scientifically as Boletus Aestivalis (Summer Boletus), it is highly prized and grows in autumn and late spring in sunny beech, chestnut and turkey oak forests. It can be distinguished by its smooth, velvety surface and its intense hazelnut-brown colour, paying attention to its toxic ‘alter ego’ (Porcino maleficus), which must instead be classified as a poisonous mushroom in Calabria. Among the mushrooms of Calabria, Porcino is perfect eaten fresh, i.e. served as carpaccio or as the main ingredient of first courses, main courses and side dishes; but it is also pickled in oil or dried. 

Among the most delicious mushrooms of Calabria, we recommend sampling these varieties:

• cardoncelli of Calabria (Pleurotus eryngii) and "chiodini" are known throughout the Mediterranean and are commonly found. Both of these varieties grow ‘in stumps’, i.e. in groups at the foot of logs, and can be cooked in all kinds of ways;

• the so-called "rosìto" mushroom (Lactarius delicius) gets its name from its unmistakable pink colour. It is usually enjoyed roasted over embers with garlic and bacon;

• the typical "mazza di tamburo" (Macrolepiota procera) is certainly among the tastiest edible mushrooms in Calabria. It crops up in abundance in early autumn, on the edges of broad-leaved and needle-leaved clearings, and is recognisable by its typical umbrella-shaped cap, with scaly, greyish gills;

• the "vavùsi" grow instead in the plains, under conifers; they are less valuable than porcini mushrooms in Calabria but are nevertheless among the most versatile mushrooms in Calabria for cooking and picking;
• the "ovuli" are universally recognised as one of the tastiest varieties of mushrooms in Calabria.

If you are wondering which are the best places to look for mushrooms in Calabria, know that you are spoilt for choice, given the great variety of woods and nature reserves. However, passionate seekers jealously guard their "secret places", which they reveal only to those who truly deserve the title of expert. Before going into the woods, always inform yourself about good practices and rules related to safety and the correct procedure for picking mushrooms in Calabria and the rest of the country (which is done with a special licence): these are a few but precious rules that allow you to pick mushrooms while respecting the wood, ensuring new growth, avoiding getting lost along unknown paths and distinguishing the varieties of edible mushrooms in Calabria from those that are toxic or poisonous.

The richest places for porcini mushrooms in Calabria and the popular cardoncelli of Calabria are to be found in the forests of the Sila National Park, on all three slopes (Cosenza, Catanzaro and Crotone), in the Serre Regional Park (VV), in the Valli Cupe Regional Nature Reserve (CZ), in the Aspromonte National Park and in several "minor" reserves. Mushroom hunting in Calabria is the perfect opportunity to discover new trekking routes, practice wildlife observation and other seasonal activities in contact with nature, such as the fun autumn "foliage".