Former royal chef Darren McGrady has said that when he worked for the late Queen Elizabeth II, Charles favored organic options and even brought his personal chefs to collect wild mushrooms at Balmoral Castle.
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According to McGrady’s book, Charles greatly enjoyed the wild mushrooms that grow at Scotland’s Balmoral Castle.
“I quickly understood what Prince Charles had known for a long time: Balmoral is an absolute treasure trove of wild mushrooms,” McGrady wrote, adding that a rivalry sparked between the Queen’s chefs and Charles’ chefs because of them. (At the time McGrady’s book was published, Charles was still a prince.)
“Unfortunately, for Prince Charles, the Queen’s head chef, Peter Page, also knew that cèpes grew abundantly on the property, and he was adamant that the prince’s chefs were not going to take them,” McGrady continued. “He organized a mushroom raid across the estate before Prince Charles’ entourage arrived at Balmoral.”
McGrady added: “The prince’s chefs were more than a little irritated. ‘Oh well, chalk one up for the Queen’s men,’ I thought.”
