How Much Is One Jin of Cordyceps? What Factors Affect the Price

Cordyceps, also known as caterpillar fungus, is a precious tonic herb traditionally used in Chinese folk medicine. Its nutritional value is higher than that of ginseng. It can be used as medicine and also eaten, and it is a superb delicacy. Many price listings for Cordyceps are not very genuine; most are outdated, and some come from sellers of fake goods quoting prices that are too low, which ordinary people find hard to tell apart. How much is Cordyceps per jin? What factors affect the price of Cordyceps?

How much is Cordyceps per jin?

Is the bigger the Cordyceps, the better?

Cordyceps comes in large and small sizes. A large one weighs more than 0.4 g, a small one weighs less than 0.2 g, and 0.2-0.4 g per piece counts as medium size. The advantage of large Cordyceps is that the caterpillar body is thick and plump, with few shriveled or underfilled specimens, the grass head accounts for less of the weight, and the caterpillar body accounts for more, so at the same weight it contains more active ingredients than small Cordyceps (note: this is on the premise that the place of origin is the same and all other quality-affecting factors except size are the same). After taking it, the therapeutic and health-promoting effects will be better. However, the bigger the Cordyceps, the higher the price, and bigger Cordyceps does not mean better value for money. If it is for yourself or your family to take, especially when suffering from a relatively serious illness, it is recommended to buy medium-sized Cordyceps if your financial circumstances allow. The price is not too high, the effects are well guaranteed, and the value for money is very high. Of course, Cordyceps that is too small is also not very suitable. The smaller the Cordyceps, the relatively lower the content of active ingredients, and the weaker the effects after taking it. It is generally not recommended for treating illness, but it can be used for long-term health care.

Factors affecting the price of Cordyceps

1. The price of Cordyceps depends on its size, and the size of Cordyceps mainly depends on the growth time and growth environment of the larva infected by the Cordyceps fungus. How long each larva grows before being infected by the Cordyceps fungus is not fixed, but the region where Cordyceps grows and the environment that region should have are fixed. Among all Cordyceps production areas, the most suitable environments are mainly distributed in northeastern Tibet and southeastern Qinghai.

2. When Cordyceps is first dug up, Tibetan people habitually call the newly harvested fungus “head grass”, while the mid- and late-season fungus dug up afterward is collectively called “second grass”. Generally, first-stage grass refers to Cordyceps dug up in the early growth stage. At this time, the stroma of the Cordyceps is generally relatively short, having just emerged from the ground, and the length of the stroma mostly does not exceed the length of the caterpillar body, so its commercial appearance is the best and ranks as top grade. Mid- and late-season grass refers to Cordyceps dug up in the middle growth stage. At this time, the stroma of the Cordyceps (commonly called the grass head, grass bundle, or tail) is moderate in length, mostly slightly longer than the caterpillar body, generally not more than twice the length of the caterpillar body or longer, and its commercial appearance is medium or above average, with no difference in nutritional value.

Methods for identifying Cordyceps

1. Specifications: the caterpillar body of Cordyceps is 3-5 m long and 0.3-0.8 m in diameter, shaped like a three-times-molted old silkworm. Of course, within this range, the longer and thicker the Cordyceps, the better the quality.

2. Number of feet: genuine Cordyceps has 8 pairs of feet on its ventral surface, and the 4 pairs located at the middle of the caterpillar body are very obvious. The stroma grows from the head of the caterpillar body, is slightly swollen at the upper part, can reach 4-7 cm in length, and is about 0.3 cm in diameter.

3. Appearance: genuine Cordyceps, when broken open, has obvious lines, and there is a black core resembling a “V” shape in the middle of the Cordyceps. Some may also have a black dot. This black core is actually the insect's digestive tract.

Can Cordyceps treat impotence?

Cordyceps has an auxiliary therapeutic effect on impotence. Cordyceps enters the lung and kidney meridians and can tonify lung yin and kidney yang. It mainly treats symptoms such as kidney deficiency and impotence with seminal emission, and also has a good effect on soreness and pain of the waist and knees. We all know that male impotence is mainly related to kidney deficiency, and Cordyceps happens to have the effect of tonifying the kidney.

Efficacy and effects of Cordyceps

1. Immune system: Cordyceps acts on the immune system somewhat like adjusting the volume, bringing it to its optimal state. It can increase the number of immune system cells and tissues, promote antibody production, increase the number of phagocytic and killer cells and enhance their function, while also lowering the function of certain immune cells.

2. Resisting tumors: Cordyceps fights tumors by regulating human immunity. Reduced immunity is the fundamental reason why tumors occur, progress, metastasize, recur, and are difficult to control and cure. Cordycepin in Cordyceps is the main component exerting its anti-tumor effect, and it is mainly used for patients with malignant tumors such as nasal cancer, pharyngeal cancer, lung cancer, leukemia, brain cancer, and liver cancer.

3. Resisting fatigue: Cordyceps can increase the energy of mitochondria, the body's energy factories, improve the body's cold tolerance, and reduce fatigue.

4. Heart function: Cordyceps can improve the heart's ability to withstand hypoxia, reduce the heart's oxygen consumption, and fight arrhythmia.

5. Liver function: Cordyceps can reduce damage to the liver from toxic substances and counteract the occurrence of liver fibrosis. In addition, by regulating immune function and enhancing antiviral ability, it exerts a beneficial effect on viral hepatitis.

6. Respiratory system: Cordyceps has the effects of dilating the bronchi, relieving asthma, eliminating phlegm, and preventing emphysema.

7. Kidney function: Cordyceps can reduce kidney lesions in chronic diseases, improve kidney function, and reduce damage to the kidneys from toxic substances. It also has direct antiviral effects, regulates central nervous system function, and regulates sexual function.

8. Blood-forming function: Cordyceps can enhance the bone marrow's ability to produce platelets, red blood cells, and white blood cells.

9. Regulating blood lipids: Cordyceps can lower cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood, increase high-density lipoprotein, which is beneficial to the human body, and reduce atherosclerosis.

How to eat Cordyceps

1. Cordyceps and Cistanche stewed with mutton

[Formula] 10 g Cordyceps, 10 g prepared Tianxiong, 10 g Cistanche, 100 g mutton, 2 slices ginger.

[Efficacy] This soup can treat dark circles under the eyes, dizziness and blurred vision, and floaters.

[Preparation] Put the mutton in a pot of boiling water and cook for 5 minutes, take it out and wash it. Wash Cordyceps, prepared Tianxiong, and Cistanche separately with clean water. Put all ingredients into a stewing cup, add an appropriate amount of water, cover well, stew for 3 hours, then add salt to season and eat.

2. Cordyceps stewed with quail

[Formula] 10 g Cordyceps, 8 quails, 10 g ginger, 10 g scallion white, 2 g pepper powder, 5 g salt, 300 g chicken stock.

[Method] Remove dust and debris from the Cordyceps, soak in wine, and wash clean. After slaughtering the quails, drain the blood, scald them thoroughly with warm water (70°C), remove feathers, internal organs, and claws (cut open from the back and remove the internal organs), then blanch briefly in boiling water for 1 minute, take them out and let them cool. Cut the scallions into sections and slice the ginger. Put 2-3 pieces of Cordyceps into the belly of each quail, using up 8 g of Cordyceps divided into eight portions. Then wrap each one tightly with thread and place into a cup. Season the chicken stock with salt and pepper powder, pour it into the cups, seal the openings with wet tissue paper, and steam in a steamer for 40 minutes until done.

[Efficacy] Tonifies qi and blood, benefits the lungs and kidneys, and stops coughing. Used for women's health care.

3. Cordyceps and fish maw stewed with squab

[Formula] 10 g Cordyceps, 1 squab, 30 g fish maw, fish maw, 1 slice ginger.

[Preparation] Remove feathers from the squab and wash clean. Wash Cordyceps and ginger. Soak the fish maw until expanded, shred and wash. Put all ingredients into a stewing container, add an appropriate amount of boiling water and a little wine, cover, stew over water for 3 hours, and season before serving.

[Efficacy] Tonifies and benefits qi and blood. Used for post-illness weakness, dizziness, and leukorrhea in women.

4. Cordyceps black chicken soup

[Ingredients] 5 g Cordyceps, 1 black-boned chicken, 10 g each of sun-dried ginseng, Epimedium, Astragalus, and Trichosanthes root, 50 g shiitake mushrooms, and appropriate amounts of goji berries, red dates, yellow wine, scallions, ginger, salt, and monosodium glutamate.

[Method] ① Put sun-dried ginseng, Epimedium, Astragalus, and Trichosanthes root into a gauze bag, add water and soak for 60 minutes. Soak and wash the shiitake mushrooms and Cordyceps. ② Slaughter the black chicken, remove feathers and internal organs, and wash clean. Before putting the black chicken into the pot, blanch it in boiling water for a few minutes to remove the gamey smell. ③ Put all the above ingredients together into a clay pot, add yellow wine, scallions, and ginger, simmer over low heat for 2 hours, remove the medicine bag, and add salt and monosodium glutamate to season.

[Efficacy] Tonifies qi and nourishes blood.