Japanese Enoki Mushrooms

My mom always likes to bring me random new foods from the Asian grocery stores - the latest being Enoki Mushrooms.

My cousin would always prepare these in a very simple way - baked with butter & garlic in the oven until softened. (I will use Earth Balance instead of butter!)

Turns out these mushroom are supposed to have some really wonderful properties that contribute to the low cancer rates in Nagano, Japan - and they have been regarded as a healing food for thousands of years :

Medicinal Properties: As with most other edible wood-decaying mushrooms, Enoki mushrooms have been found to have medicinal properties. Enoki mushrooms contain a powerful polysaccharide called flammulin. Japanese and Chinese researchers have reported anti-cancer and anti-tumor activity from extracts containing this water-soluble polysaccharide. It is believed that the abnormally low cancer rates in Nagano, Japan (the center of enoki cultivation) is related to the high consumption of enoki in that region. Enoki is also thought to stimulate the immune system and be anti-viral and anti-bacterial. Blood pressure lowering and cholesterol lowering compounds have been found in Enoki. Research indicates that Enoki may be useful in treaing lymphoma and prostate cancer. To date, the bulk of scientific medical research on the medicinal effects of Enoki and other mushrooms has been conducted in Japan and China where mushrooms have been regarded for thousands of years as powerful, natural healing agents. Only recently has Western medicine initiated clinical trials to "prove" this ancient knowledge.


Nutritional Information:
Per 3.5 oz. (100 gram) of fresh, edible portion;
Calories 45,
Protein 2.0 g,
Total Fat 0.0 g,
Total Carbohydrate 8 g (3%)
Dietary fiber 3 g (11%),
Thiamin (6%),
Riboflavin (8%),

Niacin (35%),
Vitamin C (20%),
Sodium 0.0 mg,
Phosphorus (10%),
Potassium 410 mg(12%),
Iron (6%)
Cholesterol none.