How to grind dried Reishi mushrooms
October 15, 2013 2:26 PM Subscribe
I have a huge bag of dried sliced reishi mushrooms. I'm hoping to grind them into a powder so I can make capsules out of them.
I don't want to make a decoction since it seems complicated, time consuming, and I don't want to have to drink it everyday.
Does anyone know how to do this? The texture is actually a lot like bark but maybe less tough. They are sliced, not whole, so I think that makes things a little easier.
I don't have a coffee grinder and would prefer not to but one if I can avoid it, since they're expensive.
Does anyone know if something like this will work?
Thanks!
I don't want to make a decoction since it seems complicated, time consuming, and I don't want to have to drink it everyday.
Does anyone know how to do this? The texture is actually a lot like bark but maybe less tough. They are sliced, not whole, so I think that makes things a little easier.
I don't have a coffee grinder and would prefer not to but one if I can avoid it, since they're expensive.
Does anyone know if something like this will work?
Thanks!
I don't have a coffee grinder and would prefer not to but one if I can avoid it, since they're expensive.
The item you linked to is $9; the third-best-reviewed coffee grinder on Amazon is only $12. Just get a coffee grinder, it will pulverize anything to an even powder with no effort on your part.
posted by bcwinters at 2:38 PM on October 15, 2013 [1 favorite]
The item you linked to is $9; the third-best-reviewed coffee grinder on Amazon is only $12. Just get a coffee grinder, it will pulverize anything to an even powder with no effort on your part.
posted by bcwinters at 2:38 PM on October 15, 2013 [1 favorite]
Regular ol' food processor will do it.
Just blitz them (heh) until they're powder.
The harder/drier they are the better. You can dry them out further by placing them in a gas oven overnight with nothing but the pilot light if you live in warm/dry climes, an oven hovering about 150 degrees F if in colder or wet climes.
posted by jbenben at 2:39 PM on October 15, 2013
Just blitz them (heh) until they're powder.
The harder/drier they are the better. You can dry them out further by placing them in a gas oven overnight with nothing but the pilot light if you live in warm/dry climes, an oven hovering about 150 degrees F if in colder or wet climes.
posted by jbenben at 2:39 PM on October 15, 2013
That grinder is small. It's only 2" in diameter and will hold maybe a tablespoon of ground material at most. If it's like the others I've seen, the teeth are pretty strong and will grind through most anything.
I use a Krups blade mill for all such grinding tasks, it's only $20 for the basic one at amazon. I'd go for that.
posted by cabingirl at 2:40 PM on October 15, 2013
I use a Krups blade mill for all such grinding tasks, it's only $20 for the basic one at amazon. I'd go for that.
posted by cabingirl at 2:40 PM on October 15, 2013
I would not process a huge bag of mushrooms in a small grinder, but I have both a food processor and a grinder to choose from...
I imagine it will take a good few minutes in the food processor to turn each batch into powder, fwiw.
I wouldn't bother making capsules, it's such a pain, even with a machine!
I would mix the powder with hot water to make tea or sludge, and just slurp it down real quick.
posted by jbenben at 2:44 PM on October 15, 2013
I imagine it will take a good few minutes in the food processor to turn each batch into powder, fwiw.
I wouldn't bother making capsules, it's such a pain, even with a machine!
I would mix the powder with hot water to make tea or sludge, and just slurp it down real quick.
posted by jbenben at 2:44 PM on October 15, 2013
Response by poster: Thanks everybody for your answers!
I think I will try my mini food processor and see if it works, though I feel like it won't make a powder out of them. If that doesn't work I guess I'll go with a cheap coffee grinder after all. And also dry them out further. jbenben, I agree that making capsules is a pain, but I'm used to it. I do it with a lot of stuff and since it's cheaper I can take more supplements than I could if I bought ready made capsules. And I can buy organic too. Organic capsules are still not very common.
posted by Blitz at 2:56 PM on October 15, 2013
I think I will try my mini food processor and see if it works, though I feel like it won't make a powder out of them. If that doesn't work I guess I'll go with a cheap coffee grinder after all. And also dry them out further. jbenben, I agree that making capsules is a pain, but I'm used to it. I do it with a lot of stuff and since it's cheaper I can take more supplements than I could if I bought ready made capsules. And I can buy organic too. Organic capsules are still not very common.
posted by Blitz at 2:56 PM on October 15, 2013
If your food processor can't handle this job, find a replacement food processor.
posted by oceanjesse at 5:43 PM on October 15, 2013
posted by oceanjesse at 5:43 PM on October 15, 2013
+1 drier-the-better -- if you can take it from 'bark' to 'brittle' you should have a much easier time.
If you have an enormous dept-store-style thrift store near you you can get a basic coffee grinder for very cheap. (If it's already been used for coffee, try processing rice until it looks clean and then swabbing it out with alcohol.)
Ikea has a cheapish mortar and pestle if you want another pain to get used to.
If they are really rubbery and a pain to grind, they might blend well in a blender with some sort of liquid thrown in, like gently warmed coconut oil. You could take the resulting mushroom-oil sludge and form it into swallowable shapes. One way to do this is with a disposable plastic pipette (cheap on eBay) and drinking straws; tape one end of the straws shut, pipe the slurry into the straws, let it harden, dip the straw under hot water for a moment and extrude the contents, and slice that and store it in the fridge.
posted by kmennie at 6:03 PM on October 15, 2013
If you have an enormous dept-store-style thrift store near you you can get a basic coffee grinder for very cheap. (If it's already been used for coffee, try processing rice until it looks clean and then swabbing it out with alcohol.)
Ikea has a cheapish mortar and pestle if you want another pain to get used to.
If they are really rubbery and a pain to grind, they might blend well in a blender with some sort of liquid thrown in, like gently warmed coconut oil. You could take the resulting mushroom-oil sludge and form it into swallowable shapes. One way to do this is with a disposable plastic pipette (cheap on eBay) and drinking straws; tape one end of the straws shut, pipe the slurry into the straws, let it harden, dip the straw under hot water for a moment and extrude the contents, and slice that and store it in the fridge.
posted by kmennie at 6:03 PM on October 15, 2013
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posted by mollymayhem at 2:38 PM on October 15, 2013 [1 favorite]