More than most, I’m prone to infections, colds, and the flu. When the seasons really begin to shift, I start supplementing my diet with herbal teas and syrups to boost my immune system. My go-to medicines include elderberry syrup and fire cider as a preventative, and a tea of mullein, linden leaf, chamomile and peppermint for strengthening the throat and lungs against the cold mornings and nights. I also add warming spices to my food, like ginger, cinnamon and turmeric, and eat a lot of antiviral and antimicrobial foods, like garlic and medicinal mushrooms.
Many mushrooms could be categorized as “medicinal” (and substantial information on them can be found across the internet), but some of the most common and well-known include reishi, maitake and shiitake. Shiitake in particular is known for helping fight the flu, bacterial infection, and even treating cancer, and is relatively easy to find in local markets. With their large, flat tops and thin stems, they’re not hard to spot and pack a flavor punch in cooking.
Shiitake originates from Japan, China and Korea and pairs naturally with flavors from these regions, like soy, sesame, ginger and miso. On Sunday afternoon, I filled a big stockpot with filtered water and threw in tough shiitake stems, dried shiitake (to add extra flavor), and a thumb-sized nob of fresh ginger root. Simmered low and slow for a couple hours produces an earthy, slightly spicy broth that is delicious on its own as a warm tea, or of course can be used in a soup. Separately, cooking thinly sliced mushroom tops for thirty minutes or more in a bit of oil, such as sesame, makes its nutrients bioavailable for uptake in the body. Stir in a little miso into the broth, add some noodles and mushrooms, and you have a delicious autumn tonic for the body and heart.
noodles in a shiitake ginger miso broth
30 fresh shiitake mushrooms
1.75 oz. bag of dried shiitake mushrooms
2 carrots, peeled if not organic, diced
2-inch piece of ginger root, peeled and sliced into thin coins
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 packages of soba noodles
1 teaspoon of white miso paste per serving
sriracha sauce, for serving
Begin by making the shiitake ginger broth. To a large stock pot, add the whole shiitake stems, dried shiitake, carrot, ginger and garlic and 12-14 cups of filtered water. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer on the lowest setting for 1-2 hours until flavorful. You can also strain out the vegetables and continue to cook down longer if you prefer a richer broth. This recipe makes a lot of broth – store extra in the refrigerator or freeze for later use.
In a large pan, heat the sesame oil over medium-low heat. Slice the shiitake caps thin and add them to the pan, in separate batches, so the pan is never overcrowded. This allows for the mushrooms to brown evenly and not steam. Add a pinch of sea salt here and there to taste, but not too much because the soy sauce will add additional salt. If they begin to brown, lower the heat. Once all mushrooms are in the pan and cooking down, add the soy sauce and stir to combine. Cook for 30-45 minutes.
Cook the soba noodles according to package instructions. Meanwhile, in each bowl, whisk together a small amount of miso paste with 2 cups of broth until combined. Add the noodles to the broth and top with the cooked mushrooms and a drizzle of sriracha sauce, if desired.
Serves 6
this is just what i need today! how much water do you suggest using in the broth? (sorry if i’m totally missing this but in the instructions!)
For this broth, I filled up the pot (with ingredients added) to just a few inches below the brim. But just added cup measurements to the recipe – say, 12-14 cups of water. Enjoy! xx
hi, i just wanted to say that i love your site, the recipes and photography. your cats, too 🙂
tonight i wanted to make muffins per your recipe written in the post “an all natural muffin like what does that even mean”, but i can’t find that post. can you help me find it?
Hey there! Thanks so much. Unfortunately, I removed that recipe when redesigning the blog, reserving the space for only my best recipes. Guess I’ll have to finesse my muffin skills and get a new recipe up soon!
oh, all right 🙂 i’ll follow to see what delicious and interesting things you cook up next.
Last fall I had to make quite a few soups for my husband when he got a nasty case of the flu, and one of them always had lots of ginger. I didn’t realize that shiitake mushrooms had those healing properties–definitely saving this for when one of us inevitably gets sick this winter.
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