Botanical atlas

Wood Ear

Auricularia polytricha

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, wood ear has long been treated as a food and a medicine at once, valued for nourishing the blood and helping keep circulation moving smoothly. Cooks and healers across China and Southeast Asia have folded it into soups and tonics for generations, drawn to it as much for its gentle, restorative reputation as for its remarkable, almost gelatinous bite. It was often given to those recovering from illness or fatigue, tucked into warming broths meant to rebuild strength. Because it grows abundantly on fallen wood and dries beautifully for long storage, it became a pantry staple long before it reached kitchens outside Asia.

Safety.

Wood ear is a safe, widely eaten food when thoroughly cooked, but should not be eaten raw or undercooked, since rare cases of skin sun-sensitivity have followed eating large raw amounts. It has mild blood-thinning properties, so use caution with anticoagulant medication or before surgery.