Chicken of the WoodLaetiporus sulphureus

Also known as Sulfer Shelf Mushroom. It is one of the easiest mushrooms to identify, but unless it is harvested at the right time it can be the least to make it to the dinner table. The Chicken of the Wood, when young and tender, can be compared to a succulent chicken breast in texture. But if this mushroom gets to mature it cannot be eaten. If you boil the Chicken of the Wood for 15 minutes and it does not tenderize, toss it.

The Chicken of the Wood can be spotted from across a clearing. Due to the bright yellow-orange color of the cap on this mushroom it is easily spotted. The underside of the cap is a sulfur yellow when fresh. It is shelf like and grows in overlapping masses on dead logs and stumps. Some can be so high up that unless you have a ladder, you have to walk away empty handed.