Why has the West become fascinated with fungi? Why has it taken us so long to do so? What even is a mushroom…?

In part one of our Why Mushrooms? series, we explored the Western world’s relationship to mushrooms and compared it to that of the East.

We also posed the question: what exactly is a mushroom?

Mushrooms are one of the most sustainable, regenerative and least labour intensive foods to grow. They enrich our soils, stabilise our ecosystems and fuel human health.

Mushrooms start life as cells called hyphae. Individual hyphae cells connect to one another, bit by bit, until they create a web. This web is called mycelium. Mycelium is the ‘soil’ mushrooms grow out of.

The word ‘mushroom’, then, only refers to the bit of the organism we see above ground, the bit we pick and eat, the fruiting body. The word ‘fungi’ refers to the whole shabang: hyphae, mycelium and mushroom as a complete picture. Mushrooms are the tip of the fungi iceberg.

And why do they taste so good? To delve into the science of flavour, mushrooms are full of umami. Umami forms one of the five basic taste profiles alongside sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. Umami is rich, meaty, brothy and earthy. Umami directly translates to ‘deliciousness’ in Japanese. Think: miso!

Ok, so we know what mushrooms are and how they taste good. But why? What’s the point of them? Why do they exist? Why mushrooms?

There’s a popular argument among mushroom lovers that fungi is, in fact, conscious. That, far from being a passive organism ticking along in the world, fungi is an active creator in its own destiny. Now, hang with me here.

Organisms of any kind are in a constant quest for survival, for life. Plants, flowers, animals, insects, humans - we have always collectively striven for life. Even the most endangered of species fight for survival til the bitter end. It’s not in our collective nature to do otherwise.

In order to reproduce and continue their life cycle - in order to strive for life - mushrooms release spores from their gills. Spores, the equivalent of seeds, take root in something solid (a log, some straw, leaves) and use this solid thing to create more hyphae, more mycelium, more mushrooms, and ultimately more spores.

The strive for life is a fact of life. We see it everywhere, from plants to humans to mushrooms and back again.

 Another fact of life is that nothing exists in a vacuum.

The human immune system, for example, is in a constant state of flux as it responds to the minerals, nutrients and bacteria that enter it. In turn, the minerals, nutrients and bacteria available to the human immune system alter, depending on the practices we employ as a species. See: pesticides.

Generally, we eat more of what makes us well, and less of what makes us sick. We eat more of what tastes good to us, and less of what doesn’t.

There exists a theory that the umami taste profile of mushrooms has been developed evolutionarily, purely because humans (and other animals) like it.

Animals are drawn to the scent of mushrooms in the wild. They dig them up to eat them, which allows the mushroom spores to spread. Spores stick to animals’ faces, hands and bodies, travelling with them as they move on, spreading their spores even further afield. The further the spores spread, the greater the chance of life for the mushroom.

Mushrooms have figured this out, evolutionarily, or so the theory runs. They’ve figured out that it’s beneficial for them to sync up with what animals find appealing, as this will offer them more opportunities for life.

It’s safe to say that the human animal has been equally drawn to the scent. The global majority of humans across the world find mushrooms appealing, just like that animal digging in the wild. Broadly speaking, they’ve won us over. They’re in our soups, on our pizzas, mixed in with the Sunday roast.

Some of us have even made it our actual job to cultivate them commercially, spreading mushroom spores at higher, higher and ever higher rates. A fact the humble mushroom must be pretty pleased about.

Mushrooms exist partly because we animals exist, we like them and we eat them. We animals exist partly because mushrooms exist, they feed us, and strengthen us to strive on to more life.

Makes your slice of Pizza Funghi slightly more philosophical, right?

It’s time to empty, completely, the memory of briney slimed slices of button mushroom goo onto the compost heap of tinned food past. Let’s usher in a new relationship, ancient as the Eastern hills, with exciting, nutritious, sustainable, gourmet mushroom deliciousness.

Your immune system, brain health, gut health and taste buds will thank you.

The strive for life continues on!

 

Ciao for now,

The Cheshire Mushroom Co.