Dried Shiitake

Dried shiitake mushrooms! A fantastic – and underrated? – ingredient that’s absurdly versatile. Use them for flavor, use them for soups, use them straight up.

CHICKEN AND SHIITAKE SOUP

* Dried shiitake mushrooms, 3
* Water, 1.5L
* Reserved mushroom soaking liquid, ~1 cup
* Half a chicken cleaved into ~2 inch pieces
* Ginger, ~ 1 inch, smashed
* White peppercorns 1/4 tsp, barely cracked
* Dried red dates ~3
* Season to taste: salt, ~1/2 tsp; chicken bouillon powder ~1/4 tsp
Find the process at 5:14 in the video!

STUFFED SHIITAKES

Ingredients for the stuffed mushrooms:

* Dried shiitake mushrooms 8
* Marinade: salt, 1/4 tsp; sugar, 1/4 tsp; white pepper powder 1/8 tsp, soy sauce 1/2 tsp
* Pork - 150g lean, 60g fat
* Binders: salt, 1/2 tsp; egg white, 1; ice water, 40g
* Slurry for the pork: cornstarch, 1/2 tbsp mixed with an equal amount water
* Seasoning: sugar, 1/4 tsp; white pepper powder , 1/4 tsp; liaojiu a.k.a. Shaoxing wine 1/2 tsp; soy sauce 1/2 tsp; dark soy sauce, 1/4 tsp
* Toasted sesame oil , 1 tsp
* Cornstarch ~1/8 tsp per shiitake (~2 tsp total) - to coat the shiitakes

Find the process at 6:33 in the video!

Ingredients for the sauce:

* Lard -or- peanut oil, 1 tbsp
* Ginger , ~1/2 inch, smashed
* Scallion, ~1 large, white and green parts separated
* Soy sauce 1 tsp
* Reserved mushroom soaking liquid, 1/2 cup
* Seasoning: salt, 1/4 tsp; sugar, 1/4 tsp; MSG , 1/8 tsp; white pepper powder 1/8 tsp
* Slurry: cornstarch 1 tsp mixed with an equal amount of water (plus more if needed)

Find the process at 8:58 in the video!