This Tiny Food Can Kill You — but People Still Can’t Stop Foraging for It

One of the most dangerous foods to forage is mushrooms. Poisonous fungi are often misidentified and fatal, even among experienced foragers. The tiny food, with potent strength, is currently on display in the high-profile case of Erin Patterson in Australia, who is accused of serving death cap mushrooms in a meal she prepared, killing three. That however doesn’t stop mushroom hunters and farm-to-table DIY diners from venturing out into the woods, in search of elusive morels, chanterelles, and reishi mushrooms. 

It’s perhaps what Alan Muskat, professional forager, philosopher and educator, finds the most annoying about his work. He is the founder of No Taste Like Home, a foraging tour company in Asheville, North Carolina. The area is one of the most biodiverse ecosystems in the United States, according to the Center for Biological Diversity, a national nonprofit conservation organization dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.

“Wildness is about non-attachment, about going with the flow, about being one with life, not against life,” says Muskat. “That’s foraging.” 

Stepping into the forest with a specific notion or expectation of what to find, goes against Muskat’s beliefs. Foraging is the act of abundance and receiving what the local ecosystem is willing to provide — not a rigid funnel where the search of one item leads to the neglect of dozens of others. 

“Do we always find mushrooms? No, but there are also edible wild fruits, nuts, greens, and more,” reads his frequently asked questions page, hinting at an approach that embraces nature’s abundance and chaos. 

For more than 30 years, Muskat has worked as a forager — having given up commercial foraging after 15 years. It was a decision resulting from an internal struggle in which he felt conflicted by his role. “These were living beings, and I was prostituting them so people could bring their consumerism into the woods and have a shopping spree.” 

He redirected his attention to educating people about foraging rather than participating in the consumerism of the practice. Reconciling his practice and moral misgivings with the idea that “the land gives freely, and things should be free and freely shared.”

Muscat is in the right place for it. Asheville has a lovely foraging scene that’s less about trends and more a reflection of the city’s vibrant ecosystem. At Luminosa, chef Graham House works with local forager Craig Hastings to identify what’s in peak condition for the week. Their findings shape the dining and cocktail menu that might include daylily shoots, wild roses, chocolate mint, or elderflower. Local ingredients shine in the weeds salad, made of local spiced sunflower, radish and a wisteria vinaigrette. The Napoleon hat-shaped cappellacci pasta includes foraged ramps, daylily shoot and pickled spring onion, alongside ricotta and lemon zest. 

These foraged items might show up fresh one week, and as a vinegar, salt, or pickle the next.

Luminosa is just one food entrepreneur using produce found in the Appalachian forest. At Found Ice Cream, desserts are made from the wild local flavors. There’s a paw paw sherbet, made using its namesake and North America’s largest tropical fruit. A hickory nut option offers a profile similar to a creamy butter pecan. And there’s even a chanterelle mushroom flavored option. 

Double Trouble has made a name for itself. The pop-up cocktail spot bills itself as “Cocktails from the Earth,” and specializes in “garden grown cocktails.” Local shiitake, stinging nettle and eastern white pine are among its bar offerings. 

And while Muskat is no longer a commercial forager, his tour guests are encouraged to take their findings and have them prepared at a local restaurant. James Beard Foundation Award Finalist The Market Place, The Bull & Beggar, Red Stag Grill, and Vue 1913 are among his dining partners. 

Muskat takes his work seriously, but not himself. His tours operate by one single rule — never eat anything without his review and approval first. “Staying alive is a priority but what I’m about is the opposite,” says Muskat. “When you risk nothing, you risk even more.” 

Perhaps that’s why he ends each tour with a rap on mushrooms he wrote himself. The performance is complete with an outfit change into an ’80s Run DMC tracksuit, a bucket hat, and an oversized blinged-out mushroom on a gold chain. 

“I was asked by America’s Got Talent to do that rap,” says Muskat. “I said no, I don’t want to be the clown, because all it’s going to be to them is a joke. I grew up being the class clown. People were like, ‘We love you because you’re so funny.’ And I always wanted to be loved because I was smart. I guess I’ve come to realize that those two tend to go together.”