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| Shiitake Mushrooms |
The Shiitake mushroom, the third most widely
distributed mushroom in the world, has enjoyed a prominent spot in Asian
cuisine for centuries. They have been used medicinally by the Chinese for more
than 6,000 years. Mushrooms are a fungus, a special type of living organism
that has no roots, leaves, flowers or seeds. People eat shiitake mushrooms raw,
cooked or dried. Raw shiitakes offer the largest number of health benefits, but
dried shiitakes are also rich in vitamins and minerals.
What's New and Beneficial about Shiitake
Mushrooms?
Shiitake mushrooms have long been recognized as a very good, non-animal
food source of iron. Recent studies have shown the ability of shiitake
mushrooms to help protect us against cardiovascular diseases. There are very
few studies on shiitake mushrooms in the human diet. However, there is a clear
message about shiitake mushrooms: they can provide us with some fantastic
health benefits.
- Shiitake mushrooms can enhance immune function in two ways; giving it a boost when needed, and cutting back on its activity when needed.
- Shiitake mushrooms are rich in B vitamins. Additionally, they are concentrated in minerals.
- Linoleic acid helps with weight loss and building muscle. It also has bone-building benefits, improves digestion, and reduces food allergies and sensitivities.
- Shiitake mushrooms contain many chemical compounds that protect your DNA from oxidative damage.
- They provide us with protection from a variety of problems involving oxidative stress and immune function including rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
- Based on research to date, adding shiitake mushrooms to diet is likely to offer anti-cancer benefits, especially with respect to prevention of prostate cancer, breast cancer, and colon cancer.
How to grow Shiitake?
Shiitake mushrooms can be one of
the most sustainable foods in your diet! While the majority of shiitake
mushrooms produced worldwide have been grown on sawdust block in a non-natural
setting, it is fully possible for shiitake mushrooms to be produced on natural
hardwood logs in a forest setting. This approach to shiitake mushroom
production is called "forest farming".
Till some time there was no
proper technology to grow this variety on a successful commercial scale but
recently the Directorate of Mushroom Research (DMR), situated at Chmabaghat in
Solan district and Indian Institute of Horticulture Research (IIHR), at
Hassargatta near Bangalore have developed new techniques for growing this crop.
They have experimented with the growing technology by using willow wood as a
substrate.
The commercial cultivation can be carried out on sawdust of broad leave trees mainly tuni, mango, safeda, oak, maple and poplar using saw dust (80 kg), wheat bran (19 kg) and calcium carbonate (1 kg). Water should be adjusted to 60-65% and pH to be adjusted to 5.5-6.0 using gypsum. Saw dust is soaked for 16-18 hours and wheat bran for three hours. All the ingredients are thoroughly mixed.
Production and Market:
Presently, China and Japan are
the bulk producers of this prized mushroom variety. China produces over 80% of
all commercially sold shiitake mushrooms. Japan, Korea and Taiwan also produce
shiitake mushrooms. One quickly growing market for shiitake mushrooms is
Brazil, which currently produces more shiitake mushrooms than any other South
American country.
Since the mushroom is grown in
very small quantities in India, the demand for it is mostly met through imports
from Thailand, Korea and China. As a result, the cost of 1 kg of dried shiitake
mushroom is almost Rs. 1,600 per kg. If farmers in India do start cultivating
shiitake mushroom it is likely to benefit them economically because of the high
price it demands in the market.
Storage:
Here is some background on why
we recommend refrigerating shiitake mushrooms. Whenever food is stored, four
basic factors affect its nutrient composition: exposure to air, exposure to
light, exposure to heat, and length of time in storage. Vitamin C, vitamin B6,
and carotenoids are good examples of nutrients highly susceptible to heat, and
for this reason, their loss from food is very likely to be slowed down through
refrigeration.
Sources:
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?dbid=122&tname=foodspice 
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