Mushrooms have an exquisite history as a delicacy around the world and we are no less tantalized when we find them on our plates today. Vegetarians in particular find immense pleasure in the juicy, meatiness of a well-stewed mushroom, while carnivores enjoy them as a succulent accompaniment to a perfectly seared, sizzling steak. It is common in certain parts of the world to include mushrooms in every meal, as their subtlety and versatility are warmly welcomed by virtually any dish or palette. But how many of us know the origin of these culinary cornerstones? How many truly appreciate the journey they travel to our kitchens? Who can really understand the many facets of the humble ’shroom that endow its various species with such delectable properties? After an extremely illuminating interview with local mushroom hunter Scott Moran, I discovered a whole new depth of flavour to relish whenever any of those earthen gems crossed my lips.

In his hands is a large wad of rubbery-looking phalanges, sprinkled with dirt and a musty perfume. They are morels, collected the previous day in the local forests, and he plans on serving them for dinner. The five-star restaurants fight for a chance to pay top dollar for these? Hard to believe these funky growths will soon become a sumptuous meal worthy of the finest table.

I should know better than to doubt Scott Moran the Mushroom Man. He’s been hunting these dirt dwellers with his father and brother for over a decade across British Columbia and has acquired a fine expertise that can only be earned in the trade. His first forage was in 1999, one year after the Salmon Arm fire, when patches of morels sprouted up from the after-burn. The trip yielded a treasure trove of mushrooms which, in tandem with the family wilderness experience, had him hooked on a new hobby. He and his father may have been poorly equipped, gotten lost and suffered dehydration, but Scott avers without any suggestion of doubt that it was worth it. “Mushrooms are really good,” he beams in explanation.

The year following the 2003 Kelowna fire saw Scott and his family gathering about a thousand pounds of mushrooms in a week. These they sold to the odd restaurant, and used the profit to fuel the truck they drove to all their picking sites. In 2006 and 2007, Scott sold his harvest to his father, who by then had become a commercial mushroom buyer. 2007 also witnessed an appearance on the hit foodie TV series Glutton for Punishment, where Scott’s father and brother took the host picking – an apt insight into the trade!

Since then, Scott has vastly broadened both his knowledge and harvest territories, making quite a name for himself in the mushroom business along the way. From April to October, he’s liable to be in a different part of the province every week – it’s a season of camping, day trips, and crashing on friends’ couches. In the spring, he’s searching the riverbanks and burn sites for morels and the fields at higher elevation for puff balls. He scours the mountains between Vancouver and Kelowna for porcinis in the summer, which he can also harvest at sea level in the fall. By the time August comes to an end, things really pick up. “The [sales] table looks like a rainbow,” Scott laughs, and he’s not exaggerating in the slightest. Red/orange lobster mushrooms, white chanterelles and pine mushrooms, tan gypsies, fluorescent yellow man-on-horsebacks, velvet purple admirable boletes, silver/tan wild oysters, orange chicken-in-the-woods, brown/yellow yellowfoot chanterelles and white honey and cauliflower mushrooms colour his tables in different proportions and combinations, shapes and sizes. Many of these must also be at the market within 24-48 hours of harvest, and kept cool until then to prevent bugs from nibbling; they can also be dried in a makeshift tepee or dehydrator, but this takes 48 hours of valuable travel and harvest time.

Today, Scott proudly sells his wares to some of the highest-ranking restaurants across BC, elevating him to first-name basis with many world-class chefs and entrepreneurs. Old Vine’s Restaurant at Quail’s Gate Winery, Sunset Organic Bistro at Summerhill Winery, Wild Apple at the Manteo Resort, Naramata Heritage Inn and Spa, the Burrowing Owl Estate Winery, Miradoro Restaurant at Tinhorn Creek vineyards, Waterfront Restaurant and Wine Bar, and Bouchons Bistro are a mere handful of his happy patrons. He’s also just sent a load to Paris, where his brother works as a chef. Given the laborious nature of the trade and the high demand for its delicacy, Scott’s found himself a real niche in the market that shows no sign of declining – only growing. His is truly a story of a humble hobby turned into a thriving business, while retaining every bit of attraction that drew him to it in the first place.