KR: But red pine mushrooms are the most important part of all this – and they have their place in the title of the entire project. Is it because in the description of mushroom gathering in Mister Thaddeus – the red pine mushroom is named ‘The most delicious/ whether fresh or salted, whether in autumn/ or in winter?’ (translated by George Rapall Noyes, 1917)
BD: Yes, we also know that Mickiewicz loved red pine mushrooms, and that his friends brought him them from the Fontainebleau Forest as a present.
KR: Is this mushroom popular in France?
BD: No. It grows in France, but is not particularly valued. In France, other mushrooms are popular, which are not very willingly eaten in Poland. They include, for example, trompettes de la mort, known as the ‘horn of plenty’ in English. In Poland people are afraid to gather them because they are black, while French eat them both raw in salads, and in various omelettes and scrambled eggs, as well as dried and powdered, as an addition to sauces. The French cuisine willingly reaches for mushrooms and uses plenty of them. They include boletuses and truffles, that obscure object of desire, but also common morels, which are not protected in France, quite common, and can be easily bought. Red pine mushrooms are usually not eaten.
KR: Do they have a tradition of gathering of mushrooms, as we do in Poland?
BD: Actually, no. Of course, mushrooms are gathered, but it is rather left to specialists. As you have truffle hunters, anglers, so you also have mushroom gatherers. An average Frenchman is not very keen on gathering mushrooms. It is not very common, there is no such custom. Maybe this is caused by a fear of making a mistake, gathering something poisonous. I have extensive knowledge about mushrooms, am interested in them and have been gathering them for years, but I must admit that whenever I have any doubts about any mushroom, I just leave it, I do not trust myself completely.
MN: Yes, in Western Europe, the awareness which mushrooms are edible and when they can be eaten is much lower than in Poland. Also, gathering mushrooms is not treated as a way to celebrate time together, especially for families, as we do, where the majority of us recalls mushroom gathering expeditions as a treat from their childhood. There, mushrooms are really gathered by specialists, and good, noble mushroom species belong to luxurious goods.