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Turkey tail
Trametes versicolor · Fungus
40 pairings
Turkey tail is the thin, leathery, fan-shaped bracket of Trametes versicolor, one of the commonest wood-rotting fungi in the world — instantly known by its concentric bands of brown, rust, grey and blue that fan out like a wild turkey's tail. Far too tough to chew, it is dried and simmered into a mild, woody-earthy tea or milled to powder, and it is the source of the well-studied polysaccharide extracts PSK and PSP.
Shelf steadyStiff, dry, colour a shade duller, smell faint but clean. This is most of what is on sale and it is the everyday state: slice it, simmer it long, strain and drink the liquor - still not eaten, still strained out. One qualification, because it is the one people get wrong in both directions. The dried bracket is not chewed; MILLED POWDER is, in capsules, broths and coffee blends, so it is the leathery body that is inedible, not everything derived from it. And keep the claims the right size. This is a supplement-grade tonic, not a medicine: the clinical work concerns purified PSK and PSP given alongside chemotherapy, chiefly in Japan and China, and the US National Cancer Institute treats evidence beyond that as preliminary. A mild woody tea is not dangerous - the reported effects are dark stools and darkened fingernails - but if you are in cancer treatment, on immunosuppressants or on blood-thinners, or pregnant or breastfeeding, clear it with your care team before you brew it rather than after.Everyday best
What the label saysNamed Trametes versicolor, no batch date
The bandingBands softened, colour dulled but even
The undersideDulled and a little dusty, edges chipped
The snapStiff, only the thinnest edge gives at all
Smell in the bagFaint, dusty and woody, nothing sharp
What to look for, from bone-dry, sharply banded, snaps to damp, musty, mould-flecked.