Mushroom Talk (Part 1): Understanding the Basics of Edible Fungi

When it comes to edible fungi, the mere mention of the term may make you think they are simply the shiitake mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, shaggy mane mushrooms, and so on that we eat. If we are not being too strict, that is correct, but strictly speaking, there is still some difference between edible fungi and mushrooms.

Common Edible Fungi

Shiitake Mushroom

Enoki Mushroom

Shaggy Mane Mushroom

What Are Some Less Common Edible Fungi?

Morel

Maitake (Hen of the Woods)

Reishi

Bamboo Fungus

After seeing the pictures above, do you know a bit more about edible fungi? Let us now walk into their world step by step!

I

. What Are Edible Fungi?

Edible fungi are a type of large, fleshy or gelatinous fruiting body or sclerotium tissue; they are a kind of fungus that can be used by people. More than 2,000 species of edible fungi have been discovered in the world, over 900 in China, and more than 200 can be used by people. At present, more than 20 species have been domesticated and can be artificially cultivated.

In our daily lives, edible fungi are usually named after "gu" (mushroom), such as oyster mushroom, king oyster mushroom, enoki mushroom, shiitake mushroom, button mushroom, and so on. Besides those named after "gu", there are also those named after "er", "sun", "ling", "zhi", and so on. Those with "er" include golden ear, white wood ear, silver ear; those with "sun" include bamboo fungus; those with "ling" include Polyporus umbellatus and Poria cocos; those with "zhi" include fan-shaped reishi and antler reishi.

To sum up the current state of development of edible fungi in our country in one word: flourishing, with more and more progress. The state is also vigorously developing it. The most developed countries for edible fungi in the world are South Korea and Japan. Because they are limited by land area, they develop this kind of food that occupies little land and has high benefits. Their edible fungus equipment and technology lead those of other countries. But as you all know, the largest consumer market in the world is in China, so China is also slowly developing the edible fungus industry. Our country's production of edible fungi is increasing year by year, and factory production of edible fungi has also become widespread. However, our country still has relatively few technical personnel; only a few universities have this major, but that does not affect things. We are learning from Japan's experience.

Why should we develop the edible fungus industry? The benefits of edible fungus production are equivalent to several times those of cultivating other crops on the same area. In addition, edible fungi are rich in vitamins, minerals, protein, essential amino acids for the human body, and so on, and their content is similar to that of other meats, eggs, and milk. This is the reason to develop them.

I believe that in the next few years, the state will release policies to encourage and promote the development of the edible fungus industry. Let us wait and see!

If everyone is interested, I will also write more introductions about edible fungi!