Three Cup Lion's Mane Mushrooms 三杯猴頭菇

Sānbēi (three cups) refers to the three essential condiments used in this dish: toasted sesame oil, soy sauce, and rice cooking wine. I’ve always taken the name quite literally, using equal parts of the three. This is a sauce that can go with just about anything, so don’t feel restricted to lion’s mane mushrooms. To name a few, tofu, dòujī (Soy Chicken, page 61), miàncháng (Gluten Intestine, page 58), king oyster mushrooms, zicàigāo (Purple Laver Cake, page 115), and huángdìdòu (lima beans) are all good options. Use neutral oil to panfry whichever one you choose until golden-brown before tossing it with the sesame oil and ginger.

Excerpted from A-Gong’s Table: Vegan Recipes from a Taiwanese Home by George Lee, pages 194-195, by permission of Penguin Random House. Available from us or wherever books are sold.

Serves: 4 as a part of a spread

Ingredients

2 Tbsp toasted sesame oil 麻油, preferably toasted black sesame oil 黑麻油
2 (11/2-inch) pieces unpeeled ginger (20g), thinly sliced
101/2 oz (300g) Lion’s Mane Mushroom’s 猴頭菇
1 Tbsp golden granulated sugar
2 Tbsp light soy sauce
2 Tbsp Taiwanese rice cooking wine
1 cup water
1 fresh red chili (about 10g), sliced on a bias
1 bunch Taiwanese basil 九層塔 (20g) or Thai basil

Instructions

Heat a wok over medium-high heat until just smoking. Turn off the heat, ladle in the toasted sesame oil and swirl it around to create a nonstick surface.
Turn down the heat to medium. (Be conservative with the heat. Toasted sesame oil tends to taste bitter when overheated). Add the ginger and slowly sizzle for 7-10 minutes, until they are blistered, dry looking, and curled.
Add the lion’s mane mushrooms and toss a few times to coat them in the sesame oil and ginger. Add the sugar, swirl in the light soy sauce and rice cooking wine, and stir-fry for a few seconds to glaze all the pieces.
Add water and bring to a boil.
Lower the heat so the sauce is still bubbling but not as rapidly and cook for about 15 minutes to allow the mushrooms to soak up all the flavors and the sauce to reduce by about three-quarters.
Remove from the heat and add the sliced chilies and basil leaves, tossing to combine.
Transfer to a serving dish and serve immediately. Cool any leftovers and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Recipe by: George Lee of Chez Jorge.
Image Credit: Laurent Hsia