Pseudohydnum Gelatinosum

Day 91: Whenever I write about fungi in my weekly column on the Park's Facebook account, I can pretty much bet that one of the first ten comments will be a question about edibility. As many times as I have explained that there is a vast difference between "edible" and "desirable as food," and talked about how certain mushroom species can confused with others which are potentially harmful, that same question always crops up: "Can I eat them?" Okay, here's one you can try.

Pseudohydnum gelatinosum is sometimes referred to as a "toothed fungus." This is not accurate. Although it has toothlike structures on the lower surface, it is in fact a jelly fungus. It is sometimes called "Cat's-tongue," a logical common name. Any cat owner can vouch for the visual similarity, but its resemblance to that organ stops there. The spines are soft and the fungus has the texture of a slightly soggy gumdrop. These features plus its pleasing translucence make it easy to identify and, if you're feeling adventurous, you can find recipes for candied Cat's-tongue on line. Raw, its taste is said to be somewhat less interesting than that of a wad of cold unflavoured gelatin. Somehow, I don't quite believe that candying would be much of an improvement.