Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen had a close call with psychedelic mushrooms in China

Washington DC - Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's recent visit to China could have become a bad trip had the magic mushrooms she consumed not been properly cooked.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that during her recent China trip, she ate mushrooms that are hallucinogenic if not prepared properly.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that during her recent China trip, she ate mushrooms that are hallucinogenic if not prepared properly.  © Collage: IMAGO / Wirestock & REUTERS

Yellen told CNN a meal she enjoyed in Beijing last month included mushrooms that can lead to high times.

"There was a delicious mushroom dish," she recalled in a Monday night interview. "I was not aware that these mushrooms had hallucinogenic properties. I learned that later."

Yellen read that when jian shou qing mushrooms are properly prepared – as they were in her experience – their psychoactive properties are melted away.

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The shrooms are a Yunnan delicacy found in southwestern China, near the nation's border with Vietnam, which Yellen also visited during her July travels.

"See hand blue" mushrooms can cause a seriously long trip

The 77-year-old Brooklyn native's dining experience in China reportedly drew attention to the Yi Zuo Yi Wang restaurant where she enjoyed a portion of jian shou qing, which reportedly translates to "see hand blue."

Yellen said she wasn't in charge of ordering her group's meal and no one in her party reported hallucinations.

Kunming Institute of Botany professor Peter Mortimer told CNN he knew someone who tripped for three days after consuming mushrooms similar to what the treasury secretary tried. According to Mortimer, it's not clear why jian shou qing might cause delusions.

"It remains a bit of a mystery, and most evidence is anecdotal," he said.

Cover photo: Collage: IMAGO / Wirestock & REUTERS

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