Fried rice … for your brain!
To make this recipe you will need to find some lion’s mane mushroom (Hericium erinaceus), either fresh or dried.
You will also need: garlic, onion, ginger (raw root or powdered ginger is fine), turmeric powder, black pepper, eggs, rice (or quinoa if you prefer) and your choice of vegetables (I used broccoli and zucchini).
1. If using fresh lion’s mane, slice and set aside.
If using dried, soak in some water for 30 minutes to rehydrate. After soaking, drain the water and set aside, pat the mushrooms dry and cut into slices.
2. Cook your rice using the liquid from soaking your mushrooms (if dried), a mild tasting herbal tea/decoction, or plain water.
3. Meanwhile, crack 2-3 eggs into a bowl, whisk and set aside.
4. Heat some olive oil in a frypan and cook onion and garlic until starting to get soft. Add broccoli and zucchini.
5. When vegetables are almost cooked, pour in the eggs and as they harden use your spatula to break them into smaller pieces.
6. Remove vegetables and egg from pan and add your lion’s mane slices. Cook until they start to brown (for me this took quite a while).
7. When rice is cooked, stir through turmeric powder, black pepper and grated ginger (or ginger powder). Add the rice to the pan with the mushroom to fry lightly.
8. After a minute or so, turn the heat off and add the vegetables back in. Stir through, garnish with cilantro and serve.
Here is why this is a great meal for the brain!
Lion’s mane is a mushroom that is neuroprotective, meaning that it protects our brain from oxidative damage (to which it is exposed on a daily basis, including from stress). It also increases a compound called BDNF which improves the growth and connectivity of our brain cells, and assists in recovery from a brain injury.
Olive oil is a source of healthy fat and antioxidants, and helps to regulate inflammation.
Onion, garlic and broccoli contain sulfur, which is needed to produce glutathione which is a valuable antioxidant in our body. Sulfur is also needed for detoxification, which benefits our brain as well as the rest of our body. In addition, garlic has many beneficial effects on our blood vessels – cardiovascular health is critical to brain health.
Eggs are a great source of choline, which is important for healthy brain function and mood.
Turmeric significantly reduces inflammation in the digestive tract and helps to improve the microbiome, and because of the intrinsic link between the gut and brain, has been shown to have impressive effects on reducing inflammation in the brain.
Black pepper and ginger are tasty, improve absorption of the nutrients in the meal and assist circulation (which is important for our brain).