Margarita's International Recipes

Huaiyang

Vegetarian Kidney Stir Fry

Vegetarian Kidney Stir Fry


I was quite happy to find a vegan Huaiyang dish to make for my daughter. Alas, I had to make a few modifications from the original because my daughter doesn't like peppers - I substituted them carrots and zucchini, but lost some of the color in the process. I was also unable to find vegetarian oyster sauce, so followed a recommended substitution. Unfortunately, my daughter found the dish to be very plain - next time I'd increase the seasoning.

My daughter really enjoyed the wood ear mushrooms - they have a very cool jelly quality. We were able to find fresh ones at a Chinese market, and I would recommend them. On the other hand, she hated the bamboo (which I found peeled and canned).

Vegetarian Kidney Stir Fry

Ingredients

  • 2 oz dried or 12 fresh wood ear mushrooms
  • 10 large oyster mushrooms
  • 2 Tbsp cooking oil
  • 5 green onions, sliced
  • 1 1/2" ginger root, peeled & sliced.
  • 2 tsp vegan oyster sauce or 1 tsp soy sauce + 1 tsp hoisin sauce
  • salt & sugar to taste
  • 1 zucchini, cut into half moons
  • 1 carrot, julienned
  • 1 stalk bamboo shoots, sliced.

Directions

If you're using dried wood ear mushrooms, put them in a bowl of water and let them soak while you prepare the other ingredients.

Meanwhile bring water to boil in a small saucepan.

Cut the stems off the oyster mushrooms and discard. Place oyster mushrooms in the boiling water and simmer for 20 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Pat dry.

Place oyster mushrooms on a cutting board and score the caps in a crisscross pattern. If you want to make them look like kidneys, roll the caps and secure them with a toothpick, otherwise skip this step.

Heat oil over medium-high heat in a wok or frying/saute pan and add the oyster mushrooms. Stir fry for 2 minutes, then remove.

Add the green onions, ginger, oyster sauce and salt and sugar to taste. Stir fry for a minute or two. Add the zucchini, carrot, bamboo and wood ear mushrooms. Stir fry until the vegetables are cooked. Add the oyster mushrooms and stir fry until they're warm.


Adapted from Karlie Leung's recipe at the Smithonian


Huaiyang Recipes | Marga's International Recipes | Marga's Best Recipes | Marga's Food Blog | E-mail