Shiitake
Lentinula edodes · Fungus
Top 10 pairings
A brown-capped, wood-growing mushroom native to East Asia. Meaty and gently savoury when fresh, it turns intensely umami once dried, with an almost garlicky smell. It anchors dashi, braises and vegetarian stocks.
Picking a good onedrag
Thick cap, gills whiteSlimy cap, gills wet and dark
Open flatEveryday bestThe standard market cap. Stir-fry, braise, soup - stem off and into the stock pot.
Cap surfaceEven brown, matte, rim flattened
GillsOff-white, dry, still separate
Stem and fleshCut end darker, flesh still firm
SmellMushroomy, a hint of garlic-sulfur
What you get from one
100%
Edible part
19 g a mushroom · nothing binned, though the woody stem is pulled off for the stock pot rather than the pan
19 g
Weight each
each one
Keeping ittap a temperature
A domestic fridge holds it about 2× longer than the counter.
90-95%
Humidity
Paper bag, never sealed
Airflow