Where To Find Maitake, And How To Prepare It

Hoping To Find Grifola Frondosa In The Wild?

Maitake grows in Asia, Europe and America, in clusters around the base of trees. Oak trees are Grifola Frondosa's main host. Maple, elder, chestnut and elm trees can also host the fungus, though not as often.

It is a perennial that you can find it throughout the year in some places, dependent on the climate. The fungus does require particular temperature conditions — it should be between 5 and 37 degrees Celsius. You may still find maitake in hotter or colder conditions, but you won't want to take it home and cook it. 

When fully grown, Grifola Frondosa can reach a respectable size of half a meter or more. Some maitake have been found to weight more than 20 kilos! Smaller ones can also be found. These are younger and tasty, but if you're sure nobody else will harvest "your" fungus, you could also decide to let maitake grow a little bigger. The fungus should be fresh and firm, not mushy and horrible. It should have a mild nutty smell to it, rather than an unpleasant rodent urine odor. It is best not to wash the fungus you choose under a tap. Clean it with a tissue or brush it with a mushroom brush (yes, they exist!), visually inspecting its body for bugs and other unwanted "spices". Since maitake has so many curvy bits, you'll want to make sure you inspect it thoroughly.

Are you less adventurous? Go look for maitake at farmers' markets, health food stores, or Asian markets. Though these mushrooms are commercially available in some places, locating a store that sells them might be just as hard as finding maitake in the wild. 

Maitake Meal Ideas

I'm vegetarian, but meat eaters compare the structure to chicken, but say the taste is more flavorful.

See Also: Protein Rich Foods For Vegetarians

I've fried maitake in extra virgin olive oil with onions and garlic and topped with freshly cut spring onions and ginger. You could drizzle it with soy sauce and serve it with noodles or rice. You could also make your hen-of-the-woods part of a stir fry with many vegetables. An Indian-style curry also does perfectly well with some maitake in it. We've used curry sauces that do nicely with chicken (such tikka massala or madras) in this way with delectable results. You can also go Italian, and serve maitake over pasta with a creamy cheese sauce, or serve maitake on bruschetti. Or you could make a creamy soup with hen-of-the-woods, along with leek and potatoes, and perhaps carrots.