June 2, 2022
You may have heard about mushroom coffee. I know it sounds a little bit like a really strange combination, but lovers of the somewhat eccentric brew say that the earthy essence of mushrooms is a complementary addition to coffee that actually makes for a smoother overall flavor. Plus, the most straightforward benefit of drinking mushroom coffee is that it reduces the overall amount of caffeine in your morning cup. Since the bulk of the mushroom powders contains no caffeine, so your cup of mushroom coffee may have as much as half the amount of caffeine found in your regular coffee. A cup or two of regular coffee in the morning doesn’t have enough caffeine to be a problem for most of us, but for those who are sensitive to caffeine or who are limiting its intake for some other reasons, this may mean that they can enjoy their morning cup of coffee without any particular problems.
But the primary reason for adding mushroom powders to your coffee is to get the nutritional benefits of these mushrooms! Mushrooms contain vitamins, minerals, polyphenols, carotenoids, and polysaccharides that can be beneficial to your health.
There are all kinds of disease-fighting mushrooms. Some of the most common medicinal mushrooms used in mushroom tea and mushroom coffee include:
- Cordyceps
- Chaga
- Lion’s mane
- Turkey tail
- Reishi
It’s important to note that while these medicinal mushrooms have been used by humans for centuries, often in teas, there’s very little scientific study on their effects in the human body. We don’t always know, for example, whether they’re appropriate for use by pregnant people or whether they interact with certain medications. Always consult your doctor before trying a new health supplement.
Several companies are now making a powdered combination of instant coffee and mushrooms extracts. All you need to do is add hot water to create a cup of mushroom coffee. To create mushroom coffee mixes, mushroom extract powders are often created by isolating and spray-drying different key constituents of medicinal mushrooms. Mushroom powder is touted as having the health benefits of mushrooms but at an even more concentrated level.
Also you can make your own mushroom coffee. One of the simplest reasons to make your own mushroom coffee is because buying it is expensive. Mushroom coffees can cost twice as much as a 12 ounce bag of regular coffee. You can also control the quality of the ingredients.
The first part of making your mushroom coffee is to get your mushrooms! You can buy them as mushroom powder or you can get some of these mushrooms and dehydrate and grind them yourself.
Mushroom coffee blends are typically half mushroom powder and half ground coffee. If you make your own, you can brew it with your favorite kind of coffee. If using whole bean coffee, store your beans and your mushroom powder separately and mix when you grind your coffee for brewing. Therefore you can brew your mushroom coffee just as you brew your morning regular coffee! You can use a percolator or even a French press. You use the same amount of ground coffee (mixed with your mushroom powder) as you would with regular coffee. So everything is same what would you use for your regular a cup of coffee! The only extra step is adding the mushroom powder.
Now take a moment in the morning to enjoy your mushrooms coffee! Besides enjoying the taste of coffee you are still getting the nutritional benefits of all those vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and polysaccharides. And you’re doing it so easily you won’t even notice that it’s a health promoting habit! And, of course, mushroom coffee still contains a significant amount of caffeine so it should still be enjoyed in moderation.