Adaptogenic mushrooms
Lion's mane and reishi — the forest's patient allies.
The ancestral story
Reishi — 'lingzhi' in Chinese — appears in the 'Shennong Bencao Jing' among the superior plants, and adorns imperial art as a symbol of longevity. Lion's mane, which Japan calls 'yamabushitake', is the mushroom of the yamabushi, those hermit mountain monks: a plant of meditation as much as of cooking.
What it is
Under the name adaptogenic mushrooms, we keep two allies. Lion's mane (Hericium erinaceus) is our everyday mushroom: its hericenones, found in the cap, are studied for their role in mental clarity (see its own page). It has a quality rare among functional mushrooms: it is also a gastronomic mushroom, with delicate flesh, that you can cook. Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum), rich in triterpenes and beta-glucans, supports deep calm and immune modulation.
These are allies for the long run: their strength shows not in a single burst but over regular use. Chinese tradition has used them for nearly two thousand years, not to address a symptom, but to support the terrain.
What it unfolds in the body
Lion's mane — clarity and the table
Our everyday mushroom. Its compounds are studied for their role in neuronal plasticity; in practice, many describe sharper thinking. And, rarely for a functional mushroom, it is delicious: as a powder in a hot cacao, in pieces in a sauce or a dish.
Reishi — calm and immunity
A tonic of the shen (the spirit) in Chinese medicine, reishi accompanies evening calm and immune modulation through its beta-glucans.
Subtle signature
Mushrooms are the forest's quiet physicians. Beneath our feet, their mycelium links the trees, exchanges information, feeds what lives. The lacquered reishi, long reserved for emperors, was called the 'mushroom of immortality'. Their vibration is that of underground patience: nothing is forced, everything weaves itself, slowly, in depth.
Bovis scale — indicative, never dogmatic.
How I use it
Lion's mane is our everyday mushroom. As a fruiting-body powder, a spoonful in a hot cacao: cacao and its fat make an excellent carrier for it. In small pieces, it goes into sauces and dishes, because it is also a gastronomic mushroom, delicate in taste and easy to cook. Reishi will come later: we are learning to bring it into our chocolates and augmented honeys.
Where we find them
Our mushrooms come from Vehgro, our supplier of superfoods and functional mushrooms: lion's mane as a fruiting-body powder, and in small pieces for cooking.
See my gem suppliers →Frequently asked
Powder, dual extract or pieces?▾
Dual extraction (water + alcohol) releases both the beta-glucans and the triterpenes: it is the form of concentrated extracts, such as reishi extracts. For everyday lion's mane, we prefer the fruiting-body powder, which slips into a hot cacao, and the small pieces, which cook like a table mushroom.
How do we cook lion's mane?▾
Like a table mushroom: in small pieces, in a sauce or a dish. Its delicate taste sits well in everyday cooking. Vehgro offers it in pieces, handy for cooking.
Sources
Each source is ranked within a three-level ethical framework: documented tradition, recognised independent researcher, verified peer-reviewed study with no declared conflict of interest.
- Level 1
Lingzhi (reishi) dans le Shennong Bencao Jing — plantes supérieures
- Level 3
Wachtel-Galor S et al.. Ganoderma lucidum (Reishi): a medicinal mushroom (Herbal Medicine, 2e éd.), CRC Press / NCBI Bookshelf, 2011
- Level 3
Mori K et al.. Improving effects of Hericium erinaceus on mild cognitive impairment, Phytotherapy Research, 2009