Shiitake mushrooms taste great and they're healthy too. These mushrooms are a staple ingredient in many types of Asian cuisine.

However, they're less common in North America than button mushrooms or portobello. You may be unsure about how to cook them if you've never tried them before. You might not even be sure where you can purchase them.

In this complete guide, we'll cover everything that you need to know about shiitake mushrooms. Including what they look like, how to store and prepare them, their nutritional benefits and more

Shiitake (pronounced shee-ta-kay) are a variety of edible mushrooms that are popular in stir-fries, risotto, soups and other recipes. Besides being delicious, shiitake mushrooms may also have health benefits including boosting your immune system and lowering cholesterol.

In Japanese, shii is a reference to the type of tree similar to oak that these mushrooms often grow around and také is the word for mushroom.

You can find shiitake mushrooms in stores in both dried and fresh form. Shiitake mushrooms tend to be more expensive than button or oyster mushrooms. However their rich meat-like flavor is unrivaled.