Golden Oyster

Latin name: Pleurotus citrinopileatus

These fungi fruits love to stand out against their earth-toned friends with bright lemon-colored caps. You can find golds in nature, if you’re lucky! These mushrooms are natively found in Northern China, Japan, and Russia, though the first siting of a natural (not cultivated) golden oyster in North America was in 2012.

You may know oysters are full of antioxidants, substances that fight free radicals (like stress, tobacco smoke, and even sunlight), which can cause various types of cancers. They have also found this mushroom to lower cholesterol & triglyceride levels with an added benefit of better markers of health in studies done on rats.

Having more of a tangier taste, these are great when sautéed until crunchy and made into “bacon-bits”. Make sure to cook this guy thoroughly, as it tends to taste bitter when raw. As per usual, great with butter and garlic.