Yunnan Province has been called the Kingdom of Wild Mushrooms, home to more than 800 species of edible mushrooms. Yunnan, with its complex topography, great variety of climatic conditions and different forest types, grows more than half of all the species of edible fungi in the world, and three quarters of all the species in China.
Yunnan people treasure their mushrooms and see them as an indispensable element in their cuisine. Known to have the sixth taste after sweet, sour, bitter, spicy and salty, mushrooms add distinct flavor to any dish.
The rich crop of fungi in Yunnan produces mushrooms for export as well, to places like Japan, where the rare mushrooms are seen as great delicacies.
Yunnans prize their mushrooms mostly for their taste, but mushrooms are also highly nutritious. They have been shown to boost the immune system. They provide a variety of rare and important nutrients, such as vitamins, minerals and proteins. With their high cellulose content they aid digestion. They also detoxify the body.
Mushrooms are also rich in Vitamin D, which is necessary for bone health and immunity, but is not easily found in most fruits and vegetables.
Because mushrooms grow in the wilds, in the mountains and forests and are not cultivated on farms, they escape the insecticides and artificial chemicals that are used in the cultivation of many agricultural products. So they are free from that kind of pollution.
When the rainy season arrives in May, the wild mushrooms in the fields are absorbing the essential elements of earth and sky, sun and moon, and packaging all that nutrition for the mushroom hunters who come out in the mountains and forests during the rainy summer season to pick them. Humans and mushrooms have maintained a friendly symbiotic relationship for thousands of years.
Out of 800 species of wild mushrooms, it takes an expert to know which are the best, and to avoid the few that are poisonous. Because of those dedicated mushroom hunters, we are all able to enjoy the great flavor and nutritional benefits of the many varieties of mushrooms and edible fungi from Yunnan.
Yunnan Province
There are many places in Yunnan Province where you can enjoy the best fruits of Yunnan’s rich mushroom culture. One particularly good recommendation for a place to have the full mushroom experience is Jing Chuan Ye Jun Wang restaurant (京川野菌王) at No. 180 Guanxing Road, Guandu District in Kunming City (昆明市官渡区关兴璐180号) near the Wild Mushroom Street（近野生菌一条街）. Wild fungi is the main theme of this restaurant, and mushrooms are served in a great variety of delicious dishes, combined with local mountain potherbs, insects, flowers and vegetables, combined in a variety of ways with the distinctive and delicious Yunnan style of spices and flavorings.
