SUSTAINABILITY
Just like our hand dived and creel caught seafood, mushrooms meet the needs of the present without compromising resources for future generations.
Cultivated speciality mushrooms
Are a fully sustainable product grown on woodchips from regenerated hardwood forestry offcuts. No pesticides, no chemicals and the semi-digested wood is used as mulch afterwards
As high protein foods grown without using precious agricultural land, mushrooms are set to become a very important source of non-meat protein, suitable for all diets.
CULTIVATED MUSHROOMS HAVE COME OF AGE
Mushrooms predate the evolution of man by millennia. In Asia, they have been cultivated for over 1000 years. In Europe, we have been learning the craft of growing speciality mushrooms for only a few decades, but now a wide range of these are available.
COOKING IS CHEMISTRY LOVE THE SCIENCE
A set of 8 amino acids are essential for human health and mushrooms have all these as well as many others. The best truffle species have all 23 types, which explains their very intense flavour.
The most flavoursome and best loved mushrooms have an abundance of the types of amino acids which are responsible for development of umami, the fifth taste element describing savoury flavours.
Mushrooms are not vegetables. To develop the savoury umami, cook like meat with high heat to trigger the Maillard reaction and turn the amino acids into protein, just like the seared surface of steak.
PRESENTATION IS ARTISTRY LOVE THE VERSATILITY
Umami
The balancing of sweet, sour, salt & bitter is the fundamental craft of chefs. Talented cooks often do this by instinct, experience and good taste buds, but often overlooked is the extra savoury dimension available from umami rich mushrooms.
Texture
Mushrooms have immensely tough cell walls made of a substance unique to fungi. This gives them a chewy texture missing in vegetables and much loved by vegetarians.
Sugars
Mushrooms contain long chain polysaccharides. This gives them their sweetish flavour and is why they caramelise to a lovely golden colour.
It’s also why when mushroom stock is reduced a gel forms.
Aromatic
Really fresh mushrooms smell like mushrooms, but they have to be fresh. Smell the difference…
Go to the information section to see all of the wild and cultivated varieties of mushrooms from Keltic
new range of wild picked mushrooms.
Many of our lovely chefs will be familiar with our seasonal offering of Scottish Girolles, picked from highland woodlands
Now you can also have the biggest and best
quality range of wild picked mushrooms.
What is the difference between cultivated and wild picked mushrooms?
Cultivated speciality mushrooms are wild varieties which have been able to be grown on prepared substrates (usually wood chips). The number of cultivated types is increasing year on year as mushroom researchers develop new varieties.
Wild picked mushrooms on the other hand cannot be cultivated as they fall into a category of mycorrhizal mushrooms. This group need to grow in association with trees. This is a mutually beneficial arrangement for both fungus and tree.
Keltic Seafare now have access to the very best of wild picked mushrooms from Europe and around the world, via our specialist supplier
who has local contacts in the countries of origin, well understood specifications and
highly knowledgeable sorters and packers. They are refrigerated at source and remain in the cold supply chain throughout their journey. They do not go via Rungis or any other market before reaching our customers.
Wild mushrooms grow in temperate climate
zones in both the northern and southern hemispheres so as the autumn draws to a close in the north, so spring mushrooms emerge in the south of our planet. This means that wild picked mushrooms are available all year round. Some have long seasons, others short and sweet. From the pine clad mountains of British Columbia to the fresh green flush of spring in South Africa, mushrooms continue to fascinate and delight.
France and Italy have well regulated systems for picking and sales of wild mushrooms, but most are consumed within those countries. Mushroom picking is regulated and systems of permits exist to prevent overpicking.
Wild mushrooms sold in Europe are mostly exported from the eastern European countries. Those countries still have large areas of native woodlands and skilled, knowledgeable pickers. Other varieties not native to Europe, come from the USA, Canada or Japan.
Why can’t we get UK mushrooms?
Apart from Scottish girolles from pine forests, and a few sources of truffles from the south of England, there is almost no trade in wild mushrooms in the UK.
Woodland cover in the UK is only 12% vs more than 25% in countries
supplying mushrooms. Of that, only a fraction is ancient woodland of the type that harbours mushrooms. Those woodlands are rightly highly protected and picking forbidden.
And due to that lack of forest habitats, few people have the knowledge and skills to find and correctly identify mushrooms safe to eat.
TRUFFLES
wild and not so wild. Wild picked truffles are a highly sought after delicacy. Highly seasonal and priced according to demand.
In the last 20 or so years. Cultivated truffles have become available. These are produced by inoculating deciduous tree roots of saplings (hazel or oak) with the truffle fungus. When planted the fungus grows with the tree, creating an underground microscopic network, which gathers nutrients from the soil, swapping those for food from the tree.
