Nokan joululounas 2.-19.12.2024 / Nokka Christmas Lunch 2.-19.12.2024

From the Forest

In the Finnish forests grow a plethora of wild mushrooms that offer wonderful taste experiences – and the best season is right now.

Early fall brings a wide variety of wild mushrooms to Restaurant Nokka’s dishes. The mushrooms species used change according to how the season progresses.

Mushrooms are very valuable raw ingredients for a sustainable kitchen as they have an almost non-existing carbon footprint. In addition, mushrooms do not suffer from harvesting, and the mycelium keeps on producing new mushrooms. And to top it off, mushrooms are rich in vitamins and minerals and thus really healthy.

Even though morels and false morels have their season in the spring, the main wild mushroom season kicks off with chanterelles which can be found in the right conditions from June till late fall. Late summer is usually the most productive part of the season.

Chanterelle has a mildly forest-like flavor, and it features on the Nokka menu as long as it is available. Chanterelles are also preserved in the Nokka kitchen by pickling during the season, and therefore can be found in dishes like tartare throughout the season.

Boletus, or porcino as the Italians call it, is for many the king of mushrooms – and for a good reason. It is in season in late summer, and has a lovely nutty, even a little sweet flavor, that’s in a league of its own. It’s no wonder also the Italians love it so much.

Found in coniferous forests in late summer and early fall, sheep polypore is quite different from the other Finnish wild mushrooms. It has a fairly mild flavor but it’s texture so firm that it can be cut into slices and fan fried like a steak. Sheep polypore’s is also used in mushroom purees and stocks that are used to strengthen the flavor of many mushroom dishes.

When summer turns to full fall, mushrooms with darker flavors – like black trumpet and funnel chanterelle – take the stage. They are wonderful pairings for game meats, but also create a lovely fall feeling to vegetarian dishes. Funnel chanterelle has a long season from early fall till snow covers the ground and it get upset even if the temperature drops slightly below freezing.

Probably one of the most exotic wild mushrooms in the Finnish forest is matsutake that is highly appreciated especially by the Japanese. It’s known to be moody and to not necessarily produce mushrooms every season. At Nokka, matsutake can sometimes make a surprise appearance on the plate on Chef’s Choices and at Chef Table dinners.