Wood Ear Mushroom

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What wood ear is · a fungus, not a plant

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The most important thing about wood ear happens during soaking. Dried wood ear is not necessarily toxic, but if it soaks too long at room temperature, bacteria in the soaking water can make bongkrekic acid, a toxin that cooking does not destroy and that can kill. So soak it briefly in cold water and cook it right away, and do not eat wood ear that soaked overnight at room temperature. If you vomit, have belly pain, or feel dizzy or weak after eating wood ear, go to the emergency department now and tell the doctor you ate wood ear. The chapter on why over-soaking can poison you explains how this toxin does its damage.

Wood ear is a fungus, in the same kingdom as mushrooms, not a plant. Once soaked it is mostly water: a low-calorie dish with a pleasant bite. The popular claim that wood ear builds iron and blood does not hold up.

Educational content, not medical advice — consult a clinician.

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Wood Ear Mushroom

Read full story

Stop 1/8

What wood ear is · a fungus, not a plant

EVIDENCEGUIDE 1

READ THE ORIGINAL

The most important thing about wood ear happens during soaking. Dried wood ear is not necessarily toxic, but if it soaks too long at room temperature, bacteria in the soaking water can make bongkrekic acid, a toxin that cooking does not destroy and that can kill. So soak it briefly in cold water and cook it right away, and do not eat wood ear that soaked overnight at room temperature. If you vomit, have belly pain, or feel dizzy or weak after eating wood ear, go to the emergency department now and tell the doctor you ate wood ear. The chapter on why over-soaking can poison you explains how this toxin does its damage.

Wood ear is a fungus, in the same kingdom as mushrooms, not a plant. Once soaked it is mostly water: a low-calorie dish with a pleasant bite. The popular claim that wood ear builds iron and blood does not hold up.

Educational content, not medical advice — consult a clinician.