How to Make a Medicinal Mushroom Triple Extract at Home: A Step-by-Step Guide

DIY & Extraction Guides

Already made a homestyle dual extract? The triple extract adds one more phase to capture the volatile compounds a dual extract leaves behind. Here's the full process, step by step.

If you've already made a homestyle dual extract and want to take it a literal step further, the triple extract process is for you. It's not dramatically more complicated than a dual extract. The main difference is the order of operations and the addition of a third solvent phase that captures a class of volatile aromatic compounds that neither hot water nor alcohol alone can access.

Three labeled mason jars of mushroom extract side by side — dark red alcohol extract, orange hot water extract, and pale yellow cold water extract.

The methodology described here was developed by Dr. Anna Sitkoff, a licensed naturopathic doctor, medicinal mushroom educator, and author of the medicinal mushroom chapter in The Textbook of Natural Medicine. You can read her original writeup on Reishi & Roses.

Before You Start

✦ This is not how we make our products. At Mindfull Mycology we use a Hielscher ultrasonic processor rather than any homestyle triple extract methodology. Our process produces a far more potent end product due to the magical science of cavitation. Read about it in Ultrasonic Extraction: Why We Do What We Do.

✦ The triple extract sequence matters. The triple extract protocol runs the alcohol phase first, then the hot water phase, then combines them with a long secondary alcohol soak. Each step builds on the last.

✦ Start with fruit bodies. Same rule as always. Mycelium on grain is not an appropriate starting material for any extract methodology.

What You'll Need

✦ Dried medicinal mushroom fruit bodies

✦ A food dehydrator or oven

✦ A blender, coffee grinder, or knife

✦ A stockpot or crockpot

✦ Mason jars or other large glass containers with lids

✦ Cheesecloth or fine mesh strainer

✦ 190-proof ethanol (Everclear or food-grade organic cane alcohol)

✦ Labels and a marker

✦ A kitchen scale (recommended)

What Makes a Triple Extract Different from a Dual Extract?

In a standard dual extract, hot water and alcohol each perform a single extraction pass. Water pulls the water-soluble beta-glucans, ethanol pulls the alcohol-soluble triterpenes. In a triple extract, the spent mushroom material from the initial alcohol extraction is then combined with more alcohol and subjected to a long secondary soak in the combined water-alcohol mixture. This extended secondary extraction phase, performed on material that has already been alcohol-extracted once, pulls out a third class of compounds: volatile aromatic molecules, additional phenolic compounds, and other bioactives that require the extended contact time and combined solvent environment to release fully.

The result is an extract with a more complete bioactive profile than a standard dual extract — capturing volatile compounds, polysaccharides, triterpenes, phenolic compounds, and fatty acids in a single finished product.

Step-by-Step

The Triple Extract Process

1

Source or Grow Your Mushrooms

Start with USA-grown medicinal mushroom fruit bodies from your own grow, a local farm, or a trusted domestic source. The same quality considerations apply here as with any extraction, i.e. the quality of your starting material determines the ceiling of your finished product.
2

Dehydrate Until Cracker Dry

Fully dehydrate your fresh mushrooms before beginning. Residual moisture will dilute your alcohol phase and compromise the extraction. Dehydrate at 95–115°F until cracker dry so your mushrooms snap rather than bend once done. Approximate drying times:

✦ Lion's Mane: ~48 hours

✦ Reishi and Turkey Tail: ~24 hours

✦ Cordyceps: ~18–24 hours

✦ Maitake: ~24–36 hours
3

Powder or Chop Your Dried Mushrooms

Grind or chop your dried mushrooms into a coarse powder or pieces no larger than ¼ inch. More surface area means more efficient extraction at every phase.
4

First Alcohol Extraction

Place your mushroom powder in a glass mason jar. Cover completely with 190-proof ethanol so that the alcohol submerges the mushroom material with at least an inch of coverage above it. For this first "cold" alcohol extraction, a shorter steep time is used: 24 to 48 hours, shaking periodically.

What you're extracting here: The most readily available alcohol-soluble compounds, i.e. triterpenes, fatty acids, and initial phenolic compounds. The shorter steep compared to the dual extract method is intentional; the material will have a second extended exposure to alcohol later in the process.
5

Strain and Collect the First Alcohol Extract

Strain the mushroom material from the alcohol using cheesecloth or a fine mesh strainer, pressing firmly to recover as much liquid as possible.

Collect the liquid in a labeled glass jar: "ETOH Extract #1" or "Cold Extract." Do not discard the spent mushroom material as it goes directly into the hot water phase next.
6

Hot Water Extraction

Transfer the spent mushroom material from Step 5 into a stockpot or crockpot. Cover with water and simmer for 2 to 12 hours.

What you're extracting here: Beta-glucans and other water-soluble polysaccharides, which are the immune-supporting compounds that alcohol cannot reach. Because this material has already been alcohol-extracted, the water has cleaner access to the polysaccharide structures in the cell walls.
7

Combine the Hot Water Extract with ETOH Extract #1

Rather than straining and freezing the aqueous extract separately (as in the dual extract method), here you combine the two. While the mushroom material is still in the hot water mixture — don't strain yet — pour the water-mushroom mixture into a large glass container, leaving the container approximately one-third empty.

Fill the remaining one-third of the container with "ETOH Extract #1/Cold Extract" from Step 5. You now have mushroom material suspended in a combined water-alcohol mixture. Seal the container tightly.
8

Extended Secondary Soak

Let this combined mixture sit for 4 to 8 weeks, shaking daily or as often as possible. This is the third extraction phase.

The extended contact time of the mushroom material in a combined water-alcohol solvent environment pulls out the volatile aromatic compounds and residual phenolics that neither the initial alcohol phase nor the aqueous phase fully captured. Store in a cool, dark location during this period.
9

Strain and Press the Final Extract

After 4 to 8 weeks, strain the mushroom material from the combined liquid using cheesecloth or a fine mesh strainer. Press the spent material firmly to recover as much liquid as possible. Collect everything in a glass jar or bottle. This combined liquid is your finished triple extract.
10

Bottle and Label

Your finished triple extract should be approximately 30% ABV, the standard for shelf-stable tinctures. Bottle your finished product in amber glass dropper bottles and label them clearly with the mushroom species, extraction date, and alcohol percentage.
11

Your Finished Triple Extract

When done correctly, your triple extract will contain:

✦ Beta-glucans: immune-supporting polysaccharides from the aqueous phase

✦ Triterpenes: adaptogenic and anti-inflammatory compounds from the alcohol phase

✦ Volatile aromatic compounds: captured in the extended secondary soak

✦ Phenolic compounds and fatty acids: additional bioactives from the combined extraction environment

Store in a cool, dark location. Properly made at 30% ABV, your triple extract is shelf stable for 1 to 2 years.

Triple Extract vs. Dual Extract: Is It Worth It?

For most home extractors, a well-made dual extract is excellent and the volatile compounds captured in the triple extract process represent a relatively small fraction of total bioactive content. The triple extract is worth pursuing if you're processing species with particularly rich aromatic compound profiles like Reishi, given its extensive triterpene and Ganoderic acid content, or if you want the most complete extraction possible from a harvest you've invested significant time growing or foraging.

The additional 4 to 8 weeks of time is the main cost. The materials and equipment requirements are identical to the dual extract.

The Honest Limitation of Both Homestyle Methods

Both homestyle dual and triple extraction are single-pass methods. Even with pressing, a meaningful percentage of available compounds remains in the spent mushroom material. The Ultrasonic extraction process we use at Mindfull Mycology recovers significantly more of the available compounds from the same amount of mushroom.

If you're making your own extracts from your own harvest, homestyle methods are a legitimate and rewarding process. If you want the highest possible potency per dose from commercially produced mushrooms, the extraction method matters. Read Ultrasonic Extraction: Why We Do What We Do for the full explanation.

Alt text: "A dropper releasing a drop of Mindfull Mycology Reishi Extract into an amber glass bottle resting on a wood slice, with a coral-colored illustrated figure of the Mindfull Mycology logo on the label.

Want to skip the kitchen and go straight to the finished product? Our Ultrasonic-extracted, third-party tested dual extracts are made from 100% fruit bodies and ready to use.

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This article is for informational and educational purposes only. Mindfull Mycology assumes no liability for any actions or ingestion of products related to the information in this article. Attribution for the triple extract methodology: Dr. Anna Sitkoff, as published on Reishi & Roses.