Shiitake mushroom Coloring Pages

Growing on chinquapin trees makes it a "Shiitake mushroom"

Shiitake mushroom is one of the most familiar mushrooms in Japan.
It is said that its name comes from growing on fallen trunks of trees called Shii (chinquapin).
In the mountains, it grows on fallen trunks and stumps of trees like sawtooth oak, konara oak, and chinquapin. It comes up twice a year, in spring and autumn.

The cap and the gills underneath

The cap of a Shiitake mushroom starts out rounded like a sweet bun, and opens flat as it grows.
The top of the cap is brown, and sometimes has white crack-like patterns. Shiitake mushroom with bold white patterns are called Hana-donko and are high-grade treats.
If you peek under the cap, thin white gills are lined up tightly from the center outward.
The thick stem growing from the center is solid all the way through, giving it a nice chewy feel.

Grown on logs? Grown on sawdust?

There are two ways to grow Shiitake mushroom.
One is log cultivation. People drill holes in logs of sawtooth oak or konara oak, drive in wooden plugs with Shiitake mushroom seeds, and grow them in the forest.
The other is fungus bed cultivation. People grow them indoors on blocks made of sawdust mixed with rice bran.
Most fresh Shiitake mushroom sold in supermarkets today are grown on fungus beds.

Tokushima for fresh, Oita for dried

Tokushima Prefecture grows the most fresh Shiitake mushroom. A 2025 survey shows it produces about 10% of the whole country's total.
For dried Shiitake mushroom, Oita Prefecture is number one, producing more than one-third of Japan's total.
Shiitake mushroom is used in many dishes, like simmered foods, stir-fries, and sukiyaki. Try comparing its shape with another autumn mushroom, Matsutake mushroom!

How to choose at the store

When you choose Shiitake mushroom at the store, look at the gills under the cap.
Shiitake mushroom with white, neatly lined gills are fresh and tasty.
It is best if the cap is not opened too wide, with the edge slightly curled inward. Thick, short stems are great, too.
On the other hand, if the gills look brownish, it is a sign that time has passed since it was picked.

Dried Shiitake mushroom and fresh Shiitake mushroom

Shiitake mushroom comes as freshly picked fresh Shiitake mushroom and completely dried dried Shiitake mushroom.
You soak dried Shiitake mushroom in water to soften it before cooking. The soaking water is packed with delicious flavor, so you can use it as soup stock in your cooking.
They say drying it makes the aroma even stronger than when it is fresh.

Layer browns for the cap

The Shiitake mushroom's cap is dark brown. First, color the whole thing with light brown. Next, try layer dark brown around the middle.
If you make it a bit lighter toward the edge of the cap, it will look round and full!
If you leave the white crack marks uncolored, it will look like a real one!

The gills and stem are white to cream

The gills under the cap are a whitish cream color.
If you put just a little bit of light brown between each gill, it will look like the gills are layered.
The stem is also whitish, but it gets a little brown near the bottom. Try using light brown for the cut end!

Have fun with fire colors in the grilled picture

In the grilled picture, try coloring the soy sauce gathered in the Shiitake mushroom's gills with dark brown.
Gray or black looks great for the grill grate, and light orange or brown—like the color of clay—fits the charcoal grill!
If you color the inside of the grill's vent red or orange, it looks like charcoal burning inside. Leave the steam white without coloring it!

Try coloring the 2 Shiitake mushrooms differently

There are 2 Shiitake mushrooms in the first picture! On the left, you see the top of the cap. On the right, you see the underside of the cap and the stem.
If you make the left cap dark brown and the right cap's edge a slightly brighter brown, the difference between the two will be clear!
Have fun seeing how colors look different depending on the way you look at the same Shiitake mushroom!

The Secret of the Yummy Flavor is "Guanylic Acid"

Shiitake mushroom, especially dried Shiitake mushroom, has a lot of a flavor helper called guanylic acid inside.
It is one of the "Three Great Flavor Ingredients," along with glutamic acid in kelp and inosinic acid in dried bonito flakes.
They say if you make broth with Shiitake mushroom and kelp together, the yummy flavor gets much stronger!

Put It in the Sun, and You Get More Vitamin D

Shiitake mushroom has something inside that turns into vitamin D when it touches sunlight.
Vitamin D is a good thing that helps make your bones strong.
So, if you place Shiitake mushroom in the sun for a little while before cooking, it gets even better for you!

The Legend of Genbei the Charcoal Burner

In what is now Oita Prefecture, there is a story about how people first started growing Shiitake mushroom.
About 350 years ago, a man named Genbei who made charcoal found Shiitake mushroom growing on wood used for charcoal.
The story says he noticed that if he cut the wood with a hatchet, Shiitake mushroom would grow there.

You Can Pick Them Twice, in Spring and Autumn

Mountain Shiitake mushroom grows twice a year, in spring and autumn.
The ones picked in spring are sometimes called "Haruko" (spring kids), and the ones picked in autumn are called "Akiko" (autumn kids).