Chokodake - Edible, warning
| Japanese | Hotei Shimeji | |
| Scientific name Subtribe Tribe |
Clitocybe Clavipes Clitocybe Tricholomataceae |
Hotei Shimeji ホテイシメジ Katayake カタヤケ属 Kishimeji キシメジ科 |
| English | Club-foot | aka club-footed funnel cap, club-foot clitocybe |
| French | Clitocybe a pied de massue | |
| German | Keulenfusstrichterling |
| The shape of the "chokodake"ressembles to a
funnel (entonnoir), hence his English name of club-footed
funnel cap. When rotted, it ressembles to pig's ear, from
the way the cap folds into itself, exposing the gills. The "chokodake" has got his name in Japanese from its ressemblance with a "choko", or the cup used for drinking "sake" (Japanese rice wine). The analogy with alcohol stops here as it is strictly not recommanded to accompany"chokodake" dishes with alcohol. The "chokodake" contains a toxin, the coprine, which slown down the absorbtion of alcohol in the blood and can make you feel badly drunk. |
Beside this incompatibility with alcohol, this mushroom is very popular in Japan for his sweet and perfumed taste and flavour and accompanies many Japanese dishes such as "misoshiru", "tempura", "chawan mushi", and western dishes such as gratin, pasta or as a topping for pizza. Japanese also like to cook it in barbecue with salt or cooked in oil.
| Seasons | Autumn | ||
| Habitats | Coniferous woodland | Nearby trees | Karamatsu (Japanese larch, meleze du Japon). Akamatsu (red pine, pin rouge). |
| Fruiting patterns | Troop. | ||
| Edibility | Edible | Warning | Contains a coprine toxin, which slows down the absorbtion of alcool in the blood. |
CHARACTERISTICS
| Size | Category | Medium | Hymenium | Type | Gill (lamelles) |
| Cap | Colour | Brown to brownish-grey | Gill/Pore | Colour | White to yellow |
| Diameter | 3-7 cm | Shape | Decurrent | ||
| Shape | Concave | Spacing | Crowded | ||
| Stem | Colour | Greyish-brown | Smell | Type | Pleasant |
| Type | Thin stem, connected to the cap. | Flesh | Colour | White to yellow | |
| Height | 3-6 cm | Type | Firm |
Disclaimer: This site aims only to
assist identification, not to guarantee correct identity; refer
also to more detailed references. Never rely on this site to
identify fungi to eat. Eating some fungi can easily kill.
