Organic Maitake Mushroom Extract Supplements

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Maitake (Grifola frondosa), hen of the woods, is taken for immune function and metabolic balance. We hot water extract it from 100% fruiting bodies at 10:1 and test every batch to at least 30% beta-glucans. It comes as powder, capsules and bulk. A serving is 1,660 mg of powder or 900 mg in capsules. It is also a prized culinary mushroom, and its beta-glucan fraction is the part researchers study.

At a glance

Species

Grifola frondosa

Part used

100% fruiting body

Extraction

Hot Water 10:1

Beta-D glucans

Tested to 30% minimum

Serving

900mg to 1660mg

Best time

Any time of day

Testing

Tested for Purity

Certification

USDA Organic

Which one is right for me?

I want to cook with it as well as take it Organic Maitake Mushroom Powder 10:1 Extra...Savoury and faintly peppery. Goes into stock, soup or eggs as easily as into a drink. See this one

I know I will not keep up with a powder Organic Maitake Capsules Mushroom 10:1 Ext...Same extract, three capsules, no taste and no scoop. See this one

I am buying for the household Organic Bulk Maitake Powder Mushroom 10:1 ...A kilo of the same powder, around 600 servings, at the lowest cost per serving we offer. See this one

Shop all Maitake extracts

Organic Maitake Mushroom Powder 10:1 Extract

-13%

Subscription

Organic Maitake Mushroom Powder 10:1 Extract. Balance Your Wellness Naturally (3.5oz / 100g)

$34.99

~~$39.99~~

Organic Maitake Capsules Mushroom 10:1 Extract

-14%

Subscription

Organic Maitake Capsules Mushroom 10:1 Extract (120 count) Balance Your Wellness Naturally

$29.99

~~$34.99~~

-27%

Organic Bulk Maitake Powder Mushroom 10:1 Extract (1 KG / 2.2 LB) (10 Bags)

$290.00

~~$399.90~~

Compare the range

Product	Beta-D glucans	Extraction	Per serving	Servings	Cost / serving	Price
Organic Maitake Mushroom Powder 10:1 Extract. Balance Your Wellness Naturally (3.5oz / 100g)	≥30%	Hot Water 10:1	1660 mg	60	$0.58	$34.99
Organic Maitake Capsules Mushroom 10:1 Extract (120 count) Balance Your Wellness Naturally	≥30%	Hot Water 10:1	900 mg	40	$0.75	$29.99
Organic Bulk Maitake Powder Mushroom 10:1 Extract (1 KG / 2.2 LB) (10 Bags)	≥30%	Hot Water 10:1	1660 mg	602	$0.48	$290.00

What is Maitake?

Maitake is a large clustered polypore that grows at the base of old oaks, a rosette of overlapping grey-brown fronds that can reach the size of a football. In English it is hen of the woods. It is one of the best culinary mushrooms in this range, meaty and savoury, and it is sold fresh in good greengrocers.

The Japanese name translates as dancing mushroom. The usual explanation is that foragers danced on finding one, which may or may not be true and is repeated everywhere regardless.

What is Maitake taken for?

Immune function and metabolic balance. The studied fraction is its beta-glucan, usually called the D-fraction in the literature, and Maitake is one of the richer sources of it among culinary species.

What does the research show?

There is a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in healthy older adults, which is more than most mushrooms in this category can say. Forty-seven healthy Japanese adults aged 60 and over ate bread containing 50 g of maitake daily for eighteen weeks. One group improved significantly on the Japanese Montreal Cognitive Assessment against placebo, and natural killer cell activity rose in that same group and tracked the cognitive score (Jogi 2026).

Worth knowing how it was run: the trial used 50 g of whole maitake baked into food rather than a concentrated extract, and it tested two different strains. One of them moved the needle, which tells researchers where to look next and makes this one of the more interesting mushrooms in the field right now.

How much should I take?

One serving daily. That is 1,660 mg of the extract powder or 900 mg in capsule form, which is three capsules. The 100 g pouch holds 60 servings and the 120-capsule bottle holds 40. Time of day does not matter.

Powder or capsules?

Maitake tastes good, which changes the calculation. It is savoury and faintly peppery rather than earthy, and it goes into stock, soup, a sauce or scrambled eggs as easily as into a drink. If you cook, the powder is the more interesting buy.

Capsules travel and need no measuring. Bulk is the same powder at the lowest cost per serving.

What does 30% beta-glucans mean?

Beta-glucans are the polysaccharide fraction most of the research concerns, and the percentage is the honest way to compare two products. Ours is tested at a minimum of 30% per batch.

Watch for a "polysaccharide" figure quoted instead. Starch is a polysaccharide, so a product padded with grain substrate posts a high number while carrying very few beta-glucans.

How is it extracted?

Hot water, at 10:1. Ten kilos of dried fruiting body reduce to one kilo of extract. Hot water frees the beta-glucans from the chitin cell wall, which is the same reason cooking a mushroom makes it more digestible than eating it raw.

How do you spot a weak Maitake extract?

The label says mycelium, myceliated grain or "full spectrum" rather than fruiting body.
No extract ratio is printed anywhere on the pack.
A polysaccharide percentage is quoted instead of a beta-glucan percentage.
D-fraction claimed on the front with no beta-glucan number on the back.
No batch number, and no certificate of analysis you can actually open.

How long until it works

Week 1 Any time of day, with or without food. Most people start by adding it to something savoury.
Weeks 2 to 4 Maitake is an everyday extract rather than one with a noticeable onset.
Weeks 4 to 18 The human trial ran eighteen weeks. If you are taking it with that research in mind, that is the timescale it worked on.
Ongoing Daily. In the trial the effect tracked continuous use rather than a course.

What customers report. Individual experience varies; none of this is a clinical claim.

Frequently asked

Is Maitake the same as hen of the woods?

Yes. Grifola frondosa, maitake in Japanese, hen of the woods in English. It is the same mushroom you can buy fresh in a good greengrocer, and it is one of the better culinary species in this range.

What is D-fraction?

D-fraction is the name the research literature uses for Maitake beta-glucan preparations. It is a description of the polysaccharide fraction rather than a separate ingredient. We publish a measured beta-glucan percentage instead, because that is the number we can verify batch to batch.

Does Maitake really improve cognition?

One randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in 47 healthy Japanese adults over 60 found a significant improvement on a cognitive assessment after eighteen weeks. Two caveats matter: the trial used 50 g of whole mushroom in bread rather than a 10:1 extract, and only one of the two strains tested produced the effect. It is a real result and it is not a claim about this product.

What does it taste like?

Savoury and faintly peppery rather than earthy. It is the most cooking-friendly extract we sell, and it works in stock, soup, a pan sauce or scrambled eggs.

When should I take it?

Whenever suits you. Maitake has no time of day attached to it, unlike Reishi in the evening or Cordyceps in the morning.

Can I take it alongside Turkey Tail?

Yes. They are the two immune-associated mushrooms in our range and a lot of people take both. Turkey Tail carries the higher beta-glucan figure at 50%; Maitake is the one you can also cook with.

References

Maitake Mushroom (Grifola frondosa) Enhances Cognitive Function in Healthy Older Japanese: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled TrialJogi EM, Kato MC, Masuda Y, Konishi M, Kuwabara N, Sato S, Nakagawa S, Yamasaki K, Aoki R, Ohno M, Ohata S, Kato S, Hashimoto M
Forty-seven healthy adults aged 60 and over ate bread containing 50 g of maitake daily for eighteen weeks. One strain produced a significant improvement on the Japanese Montreal Cognitive Assessment against placebo, and natural killer cell activity rose in the same group and tracked the cognitive score. Two strains were tested and one moved the needle, which tells researchers exactly where to look next.
Journal of Nutritional Science and Vitaminology · 2026
Maitake mushroom intake and immune response in healthy adults: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trialMasuda Y, Nakayama Y, Shimizu R, Jogi EM, Kato MC, Yamasaki K, Aoki R, Hashimoto M, Ohno M, Ohata S, Kato S, Konishi M
A second randomised trial from the Maitake research group, this one on immune response in healthy adults across two age groups. The Y10M strain was associated with fewer cumulative days of fever and runny nose, and in older adults with increased dendritic cell activation and type I interferon signalling. Strain mattered again, which is becoming the consistent story with this mushroom.
Food & Function · 2026