Judas's Ear - A Healing Delicacy

Judas's Ear, also known as Jelly Ear or Wood Ear (Auricularia auricula-judae; syn.: Hirneola auricula-judae), is one of the edible and medicinal mushrooms. It earned its name thanks to its appearance resembling a human ear. The epithet "Judas's" originates from a legend according to which this mushroom was first found on the tree where Judas hanged himself.

Appearance

The fruiting bodies of Jelly Ear are quite distinctive and cannot be confused with other species. It belongs to wood-decay fungi. You will therefore find it on old dead trunks and stumps. It most commonly occurs on elder trees, but you can also find it on other deciduous trees (maple, beech, willow).

The fruiting bodies can be in various shades of brown, from almost cream to reddish-brown. They have a cup-shaped, folded form and are approximately 2-12 cm in size. However, the most distinctive identifying feature is their consistency, which resembles jelly or cartilage, and to the touch almost seems alive.

Medicinal Properties

Judas's Ear contains a wealth of important elements (calcium, potassium, magnesium and others) and antioxidants.

It helps improve the quality of hair and nails and has positive effects on the skin. It increases the body's ability to purify blood and resist infections. It is also a suitable dietary supplement during convalescence.

Jelly Ear can be used in making compresses for inflammation and for treating hemorrhoids. When applied to facial skin, it helps in the fight against wrinkles.

Internally, it is used to improve digestive tract function, for stomach problems and to lower blood pressure. Thanks to its beneficial effect on blood vessels, it helps prevent heart attacks, atherosclerosis and thrombosis.

Growing Judas's Ear

Judas's Ear can be grown relatively easily at home. A humid, warm place is suitable for this purpose, ideally a hotbed or polytunnel. However, it is also possible to grow Jelly Ear indoors, for example in an old aquarium. Mushrooms do not need light to grow. They can be harvested year-round; in the wild, they fruit mainly in autumn or winter if it is mild. Home-grown mushrooms are usually considerably larger.

For successful cultivation, you need healthy spawn and substrate in which to grow. You can either buy this or create it yourself at home. There are actually three options - use old elder branches or trunks (holes are drilled into them, filled with spawn and sealed with wax), substrate from straw, or substrate from sawdust.

After mixing, the substrates are sealed in bags and sterilized by boiling for at least one hour. After cooling, you can add the spawn to the substrate. The substrate must be kept moist and holes must be made in the bags from which the fruiting bodies will grow.

Sawdust substrate: Mix sawdust from deciduous trees with about 10% bran and a little ground limestone.

Straw substrate: Mix crushed straw with a little sawdust or corn cobs.

The mushroom starts fruiting after about a month of cultivation, sometimes even earlier. Fruiting bodies are harvested continuously. They can be processed fresh or dried.

Wood Ear in the Kitchen

This mushroom is very popular especially in Chinese cuisine, but it can also enhance many other dishes. Dried mushrooms need to be boiled for 20 minutes, fresh ones need a shorter time, but both should be left to soak in cold water for at least 1 hour. The broth can be used in preparing sauces or as tea. During drying, the mushroom acquires a black color, which you can use when preparing dishes to create contrast.

Wood ear can be used in preparing meat and vegetables, it is also suitable for soups, sauces and risotto. One full handful of fruiting bodies is recommended for two portions of food.

Soup with Wood Ear

You will need 0.5 l of chicken broth, 100 g of Chinese cabbage, 4 g of dried wood ear, 2 eggs, vegetable seasoning, salt.

Soak the wood ear in advance - pour hot water over it an hour beforehand and let it absorb. Then cut it into fine strips, just like the Chinese cabbage. Boil both in the broth. Towards the end, add eggs, vegetable seasoning and salt.

Chicken in Asian Style

You will need chicken meat, soy sauce, onion, wood ear, bamboo shoots, broth or bouillon.

Fry finely chopped pieces of chicken meat in a pan. Add soy sauce and optionally other spices to taste. Cut the wood ear (again pre-soaked or boiled) and onion, and add them to the meat along with bamboo shoots. Add broth or water with bouillon. Let it boil briefly and it's ready. Serve with rice.

Celery Salad with Wood Ear

You will need 400 g of celery, 50 g of wood ear, 50 g of bell pepper, lemon juice, bay leaf, sugar, vinegar, red oil and salt.

Peel and dice the celery. Place in salted water together with 2 bay leaves and lemon juice. Again, let the wood ear soak in water beforehand and boil briefly. Cut the wood ear into thin strips along with the blanched peppers. Let cool and mix everything together. Add vinegar, salt, sugar and red oil to taste, you can also add a small amount of celery broth.