Shiitake mushroom

Also called Chinese dried black mushroom, black forest mushroom, fragrant mushroom or oak mushroom, a variety of edible mushroom from the Far East, where it is grown on tree trunks, now grown in Europe on wheat straw. It has a white stem, brown flattish cap and white ruffled gills. It is high in protein, keeps its shape when cooked and on drying it becomes darker in colour and its flavour intensifies. It is a culinary delicacy as well as having medicinal properties.