DIY Technique to Make Reishi Tincture

The Reishi mushroom, also known as Ganoderma or Lingzhi, is used to make a powerful tincture that imbues it with the name “mushroom of immortality.” Eastern medicine is famous for using plants, herbs, and fungi. Reishi mushroom, for one, is very popular in this medicinal category. It grows in hot and humid conditions, primarily in Asia.

Reishi contains several essential molecules, such as peptidoglycans, polysaccharides, and triterpenoids, that contribute to its enormous health benefits. You can eat these mushrooms raw, but ideally, you should powder them and make a tincture. Follow along in this article for more details on why and how to make reishi tincture.

Health Benefits of Making Reishi Tincture

Reishi mushrooms contain various elements that have lots of health benefits, such as cancer prevention and boosting your immune system. Let’s take a look at some more reasons why the eastern region highly esteems reishi mushrooms.

• Fights depression and fatigue

Reishi can help you calm your nerves. This is very useful for fighting depression. Most people consider reishi as an essential immunity booster, but it can also tackle depression and fatigue efficiently. Apart from these two conditions, this mushroom can reduce complexities associated with headaches, irritability, dizziness, and chronic pain.

• Combats cancer

Reishi has cancer-fighting properties. A recent study revealed that more than 4000 breast cancer survivors consumed reishi mushrooms and saw statistically significant improvement. Studies also indicate that reishi can kill cancer cells. It is highly effective to boost the body’s ability to fight breast cancer, prostate cancer, and colorectal cancer patients. Although it is not the typical medicine you might turn to, you may want to try it because it as long as you’re not on immunosuppressant drugs.

• Boosts immune system

When it comes to boosting your immune system, there is hardly any medicine that can achieve similar results as reishi.  Reishi directly affects the function of your white blood cells. This helps to boost your immune system quickly. It can help you stay healthy during season changes and prevents unnatural inflammation.

• Lowers blood pressure

Reishi mushrooms also control your blood pressure levels. High blood pressure can lead to stroke and heart attack. Thus, it not only keeps your blood pressure in control but also prevents significant cardiovascular diseases.

Apart from these major health issues, reishi mushroom can help reduce altitude sickness, liver diseases, fatigue, viral infection, bronchitis and asthma, chronic fatigue syndrome, kidney disorders, stomach ulcers, and many more. It is not every day that you will see such a useful fungus become popular because of so many health benefits.

Supplies for Making Reishi Tincture

Choosing the source mushrooms for your tincture is an important step of the process.  You may be able to buy them locally or online.  You can search for Lingzhi, Ganoderma, or Reishi mushroom- they are all the same thing.  The more red coloring to the mushroom, the more powerful and beneficial it will be.

Don’t go by the taste of reishi. It doesn’t taste delicious. Second, don’t chew reishi mushroom. It may be soft, but it’s rubbery. You will not be able to chew and swallow it. Ideally, you shouldn’t buy whole reishi mushrooms. They are available in pieces or slices. You can snap these pieces into small parts.

Traditionally, people used reishi in tincture or their tea. It is better to use it as a tincture because the properties stay intact. However, you can use it in tea also. It tastes bitter. Wondering how to make reishi tincture? Here are a few things you will need.

• Thinly diced reishi mushrooms
• 80-proof alcohol. You can use either vodka or whiskey
• Chlorine-free filtered water
• Cooking pot
• 2 large glass jars
• Filter equipment, such as cheesecloth, mesh strainer, or funnel
• Tincture bottles

Steps to Make Reishi Tincture

There are two ways to extract reishi: hot water extraction and alcohol extraction. Let’s follow the steps to make the best reishi tincture.

1. Prepare your mason jar

Make sure you take a clean and washed mason jar. The size of the jar depends on the quantity of tincture you want to make. You can use a quart or pint mason jar. Fill the entire jar with ground or broken reishi mushrooms.

2. Introduce the alcohol

Alcohol plays a crucial role in prepare a pure tincture. Take at least three cups of 80-proof alcohol. Vodka is ideal if you want to see the real color of the tincture. Otherwise, you can use whiskey also. Pour three cups of alcohol in the jar filled with reishi. Allow the reishi to soak the alcohol for at least two weeks, shaking it each day to get the good stuff moving into the alcohol.

3. Strain Mushroom Tincture

After about two weeks, it’s time to strain the tincture. Keep the alcohol in a mason jar or other glass container. Retain the leftover reishi pieces for the next step. The alcohol part is your tincture. That’s the purest reishi tincture you will ever come across.

4. Dilute with Concentrated Reishi Tea

Next we’re going to use the remaining mushroom pieces to create tea in a pot of filtered water. Put the leftover reishi slices into the pot and bring the water to boil. Allow the water to evaporate over a period of time. For example, if you take a quart of water, it should boil down to about two cups.

Use a mesh strainer or funnel to strain the water. Add it to the empty jar where you plan to store your final tincture. Let the reishi water cool down. You can set aside the mushroom remains and save the leftover reishi for composting.

Slowly pour the alcohol tincture you prepared earlier into the concentrated reishi tea water.

Tip: Always pour the alcohol tincture into the water and not vice-versa. Polysaccharides don’t prefer alcohol. They may come out of the solution if you pour water into alcohol. Also, don’t use a spoon or other element to mix alcohol and water. Let them mingle for some time.

Take Mushroom Tincture Daily for Optimal Health

There you have it! You now have your final reishi tincture ready. It can last a lifetime or more. Consume a few drops of this tincture every day to stay healthy and boost your immune system. You can mix it in your tea if you don’t enjoy it straight out of the jar. And, if you don’t want to go to all the trouble, you can also buy it prepared by professionals right here on amazon.