The first time you open a bag of dried reishi, it isn't what you expect. If you're picturing mushrooms, the soft grey ones in a punnet at the supermarket, forget all that.
These look like bits of a tree.
Long, thin, hard slices. Glossy and reddish brown on one side, and they knock together in the bag like offcuts from a woodwork lesson. That's normal! That's just what reishi is.
Ling zhi is the Chinese name. Ganoderma lucidum if you want the Latin, which most people don't. It's a regular in Chinese herbal teas and long slow soups, and you'll find it in plenty of Chinese supermarkets in the UK if you go looking, usually on a high shelf next to the dried shiitake.
This post is the practical stuff. What a good bag looks like, how to keep it, and how I actually prepare it, start to finish. The video's the short version. This is the long one.
Wait, you don't eat it?
Nope. Not like a normal mushroom, anyway.
Reishi is tough. Properly woody, the sort of texture where you'd chip a tooth having a go, so you won't be frying it up with garlic for your toast. You simmer it instead. The water does the work, then the slices come out and get binned (or composted, if you're the allotment type).
Ours is grown in Fujian province, down on the south east coast of China. Once it's harvested it gets dried, then cut into those long thin pieces. No sulphur treatment anywhere along the way.
What good slices look like
Colour first. The top surface should be a glossy red-brown, almost like somebody's varnished it. That shine is one of the easiest things to check through the bag. The cut face is paler, more like cork, and a bit rougher to the touch.
Pick one up. It should be hard and dry and fairly light for its size. Try bending it. It shouldn't bend. A slice that flexes, or feels soft or a bit clammy, has had moisture at some point, and I'd be wary of that bag.
Give it a sniff too. Earthy's fine, woody's fine. Musty, like a shed that's been shut up all winter? No thanks. Same if the whole lot looks dull and greyish rather than shiny. I'd keep looking.
Some broken bits and crumbs at the bottom are normal, by the way. These things get knocked about on the way to you. Little pieces brew just the same as big ones, so don't pick round them.
We do a 50g bag and a 500g one. Never had reishi before? Start small. It's a strong taste and not everyone takes to it first time.
Keeping it right
What the pack wants: airtight, cool, dry, no sun on it. Fair enough.
So in my kitchen that's a Kilner jar. Before I had one it was a freezer bag with the air squished out. Either way, into a cupboard. Not the one above the kettle. Not the windowsill either, however nice it looks in a jar with the sun coming through it.
Damp is what ruins dried stuff. Steam drifting over from the hob, a cupboard on an outside wall that gets a bit of condensation in January, a lid left half on. Keep it dry and it'll sit there quite happily.
Little habit worth getting into. Dry hands, or dry tongs, when you're getting slices out. Wet fingers in the jar is how it starts going wrong.
How I prepare it
This is the bit in the video. Rinse, simmer, strain, reuse, store. Here's each one with a bit more to it.
Rinse
Slices in a sieve, under the cold tap for a few seconds, a shake. It's been dried and packed, so a bit of dust is normal, and this sorts it. No need to soak them.
Do it right before they go in the pan, though, not the night before. Rinse ahead and you end up putting damp slices back in the jar, which is the exact thing I've just spent a whole section telling you not to do.
Simmer
How much? The pack suggests around 5g per portion. Weigh it the first time on the kitchen scales so you know what 5g looks like, because it's a few slices, fewer than you'd guess. After that you can go by eye.
Into a pan with plenty of water. Enough to cover the slices well with lots to spare, since it'll boil down. Get it to the boil, knock the heat right down, lid on. You want the odd lazy bubble. Not a pan doing laps.
Now, timing. In the video I do twenty minutes, mostly because nobody wants to watch a pan for an hour. That gives you a lighter, paler brew. The pack says at least an hour though, topping the water up as it goes down, and if you've got the time, that's what I'd do. Put it on, go and do something else, come back and check the level now and then.
The longer it goes, the darker and more bitter it gets. That's the trade off.
Strain
Sieve over a jug. Done. I squash the slices against the mesh with the back of a spoon, because I'm tight and want every drop. Hot's best. Cold out of the fridge is fine too if you've made loads.
Reuse
Don't bin the slices yet, they've got more in them. Same slices back in the pan, fresh water, second pot. It comes out lighter than the first and a bit easier on the bitterness. Some days I actually prefer it.
I do the second pot the same day, pretty much straight after. I wouldn't leave wet slices sat around for days. Two goes and I'm done with them.
Store
Whatever you've strained, covered jug, fridge. And the dry slices you didn't use go straight back in the airtight jar before the kettle steam gets to them.
So what does it taste like?
Bitter. Earthy. I'm not going to dress it up.
A bit like very strong black tea that's been left to stew, with something woody underneath, and the hour long version is properly bitter. Some people drink it straight. Most want something with it. The pack mentions honey, or brewing it with dried ginger root or liquorice root, and you can also drop a few slices into a broth right at the start of a long cook.
There's a whole separate post on reishi tea on the blog already, so I'll leave it there.
Before you start
Please don't skip this bit. If you're pregnant or breastfeeding, if you take anticoagulant medication (blood thinners), or if you've got surgery coming up, have a chat with your doctor or pharmacist before you use reishi.
Questions people ask me
How do you prepare dried reishi mushroom?
Quick rinse under the tap. Then a big pan of water, lid on, low heat, an hour minimum. Strain it off and drink. I get two pots out of the same slices before they go on the compost heap.
How do you store dried mushrooms?
Mine live in an old jam jar in the cupboard furthest from the kettle. A freezer bag with the air squeezed out works too. Just keep wet fingers out of it, because damp is what kills them.
What do dried reishi slices look like?
Like someone's sawn up a shelf bracket. Shiny reddish brown on one side, pale and corky on the other, and hard as anything. Nothing wrong with your bag, they're meant to look like that.
How much dried reishi per cup?
Around 5g, according to the pack. That's only a few slices. Pop them on the kitchen scales once and you won't need to again.
Is reishi mushroom good for immunity?
Can't help you there, sorry. I sell dried mushrooms for brewing, not medicine. Your GP or a pharmacist is who to ask. Same if you're pregnant, breastfeeding, on blood thinners or have an operation coming up, check with them first.
Worth a go?
Got a bag sitting at the back of the cupboard because you weren't sure what to do with it? Get it out this weekend. Rinse a few slices, get the pan on, then go and do something else for an hour. And the second pot's on the house.
We sell dried reishi slices at Vita Herbal Nutrition, in 50g and 500g bags.
