Skip to main content

Saucy Mushroom Stir-Fry

5.0

(1)

Stirfried trumpet mushrooms in a castiron skillet topped with toasted sesame seeds and sliced scallions and served with...
Photo by Travis Rainey, Food Styling by Stevie Stewart, Prop Styling by Gerri Williams

Nothing should ever get in the way of you making this weeknight-friendly mushroom stir-fry. It’s a real “stone soup” arrangement—meaning if you’re missing an ingredient, there’s probably something in your house you can swap in and it will still be good. (Yes, even the mushrooms.) I like using a mix of shiitake, trumpet, and oyster mushrooms, but if you don’t have access to those varieties, standard grocery store crimini (baby bella) or white button mushrooms will be just fine. If you don’t have a large skillet, be sure to cook the mushrooms in batches to avoid sogginess.

You can also go in a different direction by precooking some potatoes in the microwave before getting them crispy on the stove. Or sauté tofu or any kind of veggies like bok choy, red bell peppers, or snow peas in a skillet or wok over high heat before incorporating the sauce ingredients.

The tangy, spicy, umami sauce is the real hero. Japanese BBQ sauce (like Bachan’s) does the heavy lifting. I prefer this style to American BBQ sauce here, as Japanese versions tend to be thinner and not as smoky. If you don’t have BBQ sauce of any kind, ketchup works in a pinch. A pat of butter gives the sauce a glossy finish, but if you’d prefer to keep the sauce vegan, plant-based butter works equally well.

I like to enjoy this mushroom stir-fry recipe over steamed rice or rice noodles topped with sesame seeds, furikake, and green onions, but it works with a variety of herbs, including basil, parsley, or chives. It also looks wonderfully sludgy when it’s unadorned. That doesn’t sound good, but it is. Sludge can sometimes be wonderful, and in this case it is.

Read More: The Mushroom Stir-Fry That Pleases Both My Co-Parents

Read More
This is the type of soup that, at first glance, might seem a little…unexciting. But you’re underestimating the power of mushrooms, which do the heavy lifting.
Oyster mushrooms are a strong all-rounder in the kitchen, seeming to straddle both plant and meat worlds in what they look and taste like when cooked. Here they’re coated in a marinade my mother used to use when cooking Chinese food at home—honey, soy, garlic and ginger—and roasted until golden, crisp, and juicy.
For the full effect, enjoy over a bed of rice with a pint of cold beer.
The pan-fried tofu is crispy yet pillowy, served with a punchy dressing that is made with the same bold flavors as mapo seasoning.
Crispy tots topped with savory-sweet sauce, mayonnaise, furikake, scallion, and katsuobushi.
Gochujang creates a sauce that delivers the perfect balance of spice, tang, and sweetness.
This sauce is slightly magical. The texture cloaks pasta much like a traditional meat sauce does, and the flavors are deep and rich, but it’s actually vegan!
Among the top tier of sauces is Indonesian satay sauce, because it is the embodiment of joy and life. In fact, this sauce is also trustworthy and highly respectful of whatever it comes into contact with—perhaps it is, in fact, the perfect friend?