Lion's Mane Mushroom - Hericium erinaceus - Hou Tou Gu - Organic Grade

From China

The monkey head mushroom. Hou tou gu is the Chinese name and it means monkey head - which is close to what a whole one looks like hanging off a log, shaggy and white. In Japan it is yamabushitake, named for the yamabushi, the mountain ascetics whose robes carried the same shaggy tassels.

For most of its history it was something foragers found rather than something anyone farmed, growing on dead hardwood in the cold forests of northern China, Japan and North America. These are cultivated in Fujian. Cooks prize the texture more than the flavor - torn and cooked, it pulls apart in strands and gets compared to crab.

How it is used: the dried pieces are soaked until soft, then torn and pan-fried, or simmered into broth. Mild, faintly sweet, and it takes on whatever it is cooked in.