Jews Ear

[rabsyboy]

Has anyone ever tried this?

I boiled some for 45 minutes (apparently thats minimum to make them soft enough to eat), and found them to be completely tasteless.
Worst was that they had the texture of latex covered in slime.

Yukk.

 

[Toddy]

Okay, politically correct hat on; I teach children and nowadays these fungi are referred to as Jelly Ear.

Try slicing them thinly and stir frying them, much better and tasty. They also dry well ( again slice them up into fine strips) and then soak briefly in hot water before cooking. They're very good amongst rice or couscous adding texture as well as a mild flavour.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[xylaria]

Has anyone ever tried this?

I boiled some for 45 minutes (apparently thats minimum to make them soft enough to eat), and found them to be completely tasteless.
Worst was that they had the texture of latex covered in slime.

Yukk.

Yes that about right. Try drying and crumbling into soup, or sliced into stir fry. They are the dark brown strips in wonton soup if thats any help. I have a load of dried ones left in my cupboard, no-one in my family will eat them. They class as inedible in france, and a delicacy in china.

 

[rich59]

I nibble them raw and they taste excellent. I tried cooking them and didn't like the result. If I could persuade my family to eat them too then I would be adding them raw to salads, and spinkling them over various dishes.

 

[Singeblister]

I read there best quick fry in butter with a touch of garlic , I haven't got round to trying them as the touch of them puts me right off eating them

 

[mace242]

I saw some of this at the weekend. Not a particularly nice looking bunch but I now know where there is some growing. May give it a try next time I'm there. I'm tempted to try the fry in butter method. The whole slimy latex thing doesn't appeal...

 

[xylaria]

I read there best quick fry in butter with a touch of garlic , I haven't got round to trying them as the touch of them puts me right off eating them

If you fry them whole they bubble up and go bang and splat hot fat at you. IMHO I don't think much of ear fungus though. I think they are pretty inedible on their own even with tonnes of garlic. They are easy to find, but good tasty fungi is coming out now. Had a massive oyster fungi at the weekend, fed quite a few people and there was still some left on the tree when we left the site.

 

[JonnyP]

I would like to try them, but am still a bit funny about wild fungi, I can id them, but is there any other that looks similar..???

 

[xylaria]

There is a simerlar bright yellow rare fungi that grows on gorse, but they are edible(?) as well. They look like nothing toxic if that what you wondering.

 

[Toddy]

There's a smaller, more convoluted fungi that grows in the same places that can be mistaken for Jelly Ear; I don't know what it's proper name is, we know it as 'Brains'. It's edible too just not quite as good and when it's dried it disappears to almost nothing

cheers,
Toddy...who needs to go look at some books

 

[JonnyP]

There is a simerlar bright yellow rare fungi that grows on gorse, but they are edible(?) as well. They look like nothing toxic if that what you wondering.

That was....Thank you, I shall get me a couple next time I see it. We get a lot around here... I like the sound of drying (got me a dehydrator on order) and frying with butter and a bit of garlic...

 

[xylaria]

There is witches butter Exidia glandulosa that looks like black brain, and doesn't look palatable, but then I can't account for other people taste.
There yellow ear fungi is called tremella mesenterica.
There is also Tremella folicacea that kind of looks like ear fungus but it grows in tight clusters.

Ear fungi auricularia auricula-judae has a very characteristic down that makes it feel like it is a babies ear

 

[Toddy]

Cheers Xylaria, it does look like a dark version of this.

http://www.mushroomexpert.com/tremella_foliacea.html

atb,
Toddy

 

[JonnyP]

There is witches butter Exidia glandulosa that looks like black brain, and doesn't look palatable, but then I can't account for other people taste.
There yellow ear fungi is called tremella mesenterica.
There is also Tremella folicacea that kind of looks like ear fungus but it grows in tight clusters.

Ear fungi auricularia auricula-judae has a very characteristic down that makes it feel like it is a babies ear

Is this yellow ear fungi, Xylaria..???

 

[rich59]

Absolutely right to focus on the potential hazards of "look alike" fungi.

This one exercised some of us a few months back and we did not conclude exactly what it was. It looked like a fungus that usually grows in the earth - Peziza cerea. This also is not reported as poisonous.

But it is paler, forms a cup and was growing on other wood than elder. Also, its texture was different.

 

[JonnyP]

crikey Rich, that does look like jews ear doesnt it....

 

[Galemys]

The fungus in Rich's picture is called "pig's ear" in Dutch. I wonder what the local names are for it in England.

Tom

 

[xylaria]

Peziza's are very rubbery and breaks easly, and feel very differant to ear fungi which are like babies ears and are very bendy. Peziza badia and P.vesicola can make you sick if eaten, according to some sources. I have never thought of eating it as it looks nasty.

Jon that looks likes tremella mesenterica to me. The most common, common name is yellow brain fungi.

 

[jon r]

so are Jews Ear fungi edible when dry aswell as whilst still living? or do you have to dry them and rehydrate.

 

[xylaria]

IMHO they are edible fresh or dried but they are not that good either way. I don't rehydrate them but some do. To dry them i place them whole on a piece of glass and place in warm place for a day then crumble them up. They are very easy to dry. They don't taste of much no matter what you do. In chinese food they add an authetic texture in soups.