ADVERSE EFFECT FROM RAW SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS?

POST #811
Have you heard of this?

I’ve used raw shiitake mushrooms in my food preparations for a number of years now (I do marinate my shiitakes in soy sauce and oil before I use them).  I have never had an issue with them.

A while back, however, it was reported that uncooked shiitake could have a toxic effect.

Uncooked shiitake have a starch-like substance, lentinan, which is used as an anti-cancer agent.  Sloan Kettering research showed the protein in lentinan, lentin, has anti-fungal properties, reduces the growth of leukemia cess, and suppresses HIV viral enzyme activity.

The lentinan, which is only broken down by cooking, and can apparently cause some people to have a toxic reaction to it.

This is not going to stop me from using shiitake, because I have never had an issue with them, and I like the health producing qualities they have.  Perhaps the marination in soy sauce prevents the problem – I don’t know.  I just know that I eat up to a quarter-pound of shiitake mushrooms a month because I like them quite a bit, and I can get them at a reasonable price.

Advertisement

DINNER TONIGHT: FULL MENU FOOD COMBINING

Lately, I have been reviewing my Natural Hygiene/Food-Combining information, and I am working at keeping the food-combining rules when I make my meals.  It is actually not that difficult – I just must make simple recipes (and make sure that all the ingredients in the recipes work together well), and then make sure that all the ingredients in all the recipes for the food I am going to put on the plate work together.)  It gets easier if we consider that I am working from the CSA box, and keeping to what is that box mostly (I do add in nuts, seeds, tomatoes, onions, and sprouts!)

TONIGHT’S REPAST:

KOHRABI RAVIOLI WITH “JALAPENO CASHEW CHEEZ” & SHIITAKE FILLING

This is a very simple recipe.

INGREDIENTS
2 C Shiitake mushrooms, sliced
1/4 C nama shoyu
1/4 C extra virgin olive oil

1 C cashews, soaked for 2 hrs., drained, and rinsed
1/2- 1 jalapeno pepper, sliced (for milder flavor, discard seeds)
1/2 t sea salt, or to taste (I used about 1/4 less)
1/8 – 1/4 C water (as needed to make a fine paste)

1 med. kolrabi, peeled, sliced paper thin with a mandoline

• Place sliced shiitake mushrooms in a bowl with nama shoyu and olive oil.  Toss to thoroughly coat mushrooms.  Marinate for 20 minutes.
• In a food processor, combine the cashews, jalapeno, sea salt, and water as needed and process to a smooth thick paste, to make the jalapeno cheez.
• Squeeze the oil/nama shoyu mixture from the shiitake mushrooms as well as possible.
• Chop the mushrooms fine.
• On one paper-thing slice of kohrabi, place a small dab of the jalapeno cheez on one half.
• Lay a thin line of mushroom pieces at the top of the cheez.
• Fold the kohlrabi slice over the mushrooms and cheez and press down to “seal” with the cheez.
• Continue until you have made all the raviolis you want.

If you have more mushrooms left over, you can sprinkle them over the raviolis as a garnish, or add them to a salad.

MASSAGED MARINATED GREENS
I used the greens from the kohlrabi, as well as some chard and spinach that I had left over.

3 C dark leafy greens (kale, collards, cabbage, spinach, etc.)
1/4 C scallions (or onion), chopped fine
1/4 C garlic scapes, finely grated in food processor
1 T extra virgin olive oil
1 T apple cider vinegar
1 T chili powder, or to taste
5 – 10 kalamata olives, chopped fine

• Strip the greens leaves from the thick center stems.
• Lay 4 – 5 leaf pieces one on top of another, roll them up horizontally into cigar shapes, then slice each roll horizontally, to ribbons.  Place in a large mixing bowl.
• Add all other ingredients to bowl, and mash, or massage, until bulk is reduced by at least 1/3.
• Allow to marinate for 1/2  – 1 hr.

SALAD
Few leaves Boston lettuce, chopped
1/4 C scallions, finely chopped
1/2 campari tomato, finely chopped, with juice
1 T kohlrabi, finely julienned
1 t extra virgin olive oil, or more, to taste
1 t apple cider vinegar, or more, to taste

• Place lettuce on plate
• Sprinkle on scallions
• Spinkle on julienned kohlrabi
• Distribute chopped tomato and juice over all.
• Drizzle olive oil over the salad.
• Drizzle apple cider vinegar over the salad.

The concentrated protein in this meal (aside from any protein available from the vegetables) is from the cashews.
The fat in the recipe is from the cashews and the extra virgin olive oil.
The green vegetable carbohydrates are all low glycemic.
The tomatoes are your only wild card, but they do not disturb the food combining rules.