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"Maitake Mushrooms"  Some other common names for Maitake are Sheep's Head and Hen-of-the-Woods. Maitake mushrooms form a brown to gray cluster of petals or fronds on a fused, central stalk.

The name maitake means "dancing mushroom" in Japanese. It is also known as the "hen of the woods", "sheep's head", "king of mushrooms" (due to its large size), and "cloud mushroom". The latin name is Grifola frondosa, referring to the mythical griffin.

Maitake, which can weigh over one hundred pounds in the wild, was indigenous to the northeastern part of Japan. It is only since the mid 1980s that this precious mushroom has been cultivated.

Maitake is one of the most promising medicinal mushrooms. Like other polypores, maitake contains polysaccharides that stimulate the immune system. A polysaccharide is a complex carbohydrate made up of smaller sugar molecules. These sugars stabilize blood pressure, blood sugar, and have an effect on free radicals.