Wild mushroom hotpot

The broth is usually chicken, sometimes pork or a mix, simmered with ginger, scallion, and a few aromatics. It is deliberately light so the mushrooms can taste of themselves. The platter might include porcini, chanterelles, termite mushrooms, jelly fungi, and the prized matsutake in late summer. The mix depends on the week and the market.

You cook the mushrooms at the table, then add vegetables, tofu, and noodles. The broth becomes richer as you go. Some restaurants finish with rice cooked in the remaining soup, which is the best part.

Wild mushrooms can be dangerous if undercooked, and Yunnan's public health authorities warn about it every summer. Restaurants that serve mushroom hotpot usually give explicit timings — often ten to twenty minutes for the pot to boil before you eat. Follow them. Do not eat a mushroom raw, and do not drink the broth before it has boiled properly.

If you are pregnant, immunocompromised, or travelling with young children, choose a well-known restaurant and stick to cultivated mushrooms. Avoid buying unidentified wild mushrooms from a market to cook yourself. The wild mushrooms guide covers the market side.

The season runs roughly June to October, with the peak in July and August. Restaurants in Lijiang's new town and around the old town serve it, with prices from about ¥80 to ¥200 per person depending on the mushrooms. Matsutake pushes the price up sharply.

Book ahead in peak season, and choose a busy place where the stock turns over. The old town's tourist restaurants can be indifferent; the new town's local places are often better value. For the meal in the context of a day, see what to eat and the local life guide.