Of the more than 5,000 species of mushrooms growing in Japan, only about ten are cultivated seriously, yet these form the backbone of a multi-billion dollar food industry. The shiitake (pronounced "shee-tah-kay") is the most widely available and popular mushroom of this select group, and Japan, with an annual crop of over 200,000 tons, produces around three quarters of the world supply, although other countries are growing increasing quantities to satisfy the rapidly expanding market.

Shiitake are saprophytic, growing on rotting hardwood such as konara, kunugi, or other types of oak. Unlike some species, such as the fabulously expensive matsutake which must be picked in the wild, shiitake are easy to cultivate commercially and can be grown at home if one has space for twenty or so logs of the right wood. In Japan, many rural families raise shiitake year-round, either for supplementary income, or just for personal consumption. The logs used are about one meter long and fifteen centimeters in diameter. About fifty holes around one centimeter in diameter and two and a half centimeters deep are drilled in rows. Plugs of spore-impregnated wood chips, called tanegoma shukin, are then inserted. These plugs are sold in seed stores and come in three different types, each for a different season, with the varieties harvestable in spring and winter being most suitable for home use.
Preparation of shiitake logs takes place between November and March, with the first harves...