Morel season has arrived a bit later this year but that does not mean there are no edible mushrooms available for collecting. On a recent club walk in Hartwood acres we found quite a lot of Wood Ear mushroom Auricularia auricula, which is a jelly fungus in the family Auriculariaceae. In Asia a different species of Wood Ear mushroom, Auricularia polytricha, is used in cooking. You can find fresh or dried Auricularia polytricha in the Asian stores on the strip in Pittsburgh. The wood ear fungi are used in Asian dishes for their crisp, snappy texture and their color rather than their taste. You need quite a lot of them to make a decent sized dish so I supplemented this recipe with Shiitake mushrooms. Like many Chinese recipes there is quite a bit of preparation but the actual cooking is very quick. Serves 6 people as an appetizer.
Whisk 1 tbs of the soy sauce with the sesame oil and 1 tsp cornstarch together in a medium bowl
Slice the pork chop into 1 inch by 1/4 inch match sticks and mix with the soy sauce, sesame oil and cornstarch mixture
Mix 3 tbs of cornstarch with water in a bowl and set aside
Whisk the egg in a small bowl
Slice the tofu into 1/2 cubes
Clean the wood ear mushrooms removing any hard pieces, rehydrate if necessary
Remove and discard the hard stems from the Shiitake mushrooms and slice the caps into 1/4 inch slices
Mix the vinegar, ground pepper and 3 tbs soy sauce together in a bowl
Now that everything has been prepared bring the broth to a boil and reduce the heat to a simmer.
Add the mushrooms and bamboo shoots and cook for 5 minutes
Add the tofu and marinated pork, stir to separate the pork pieces and simmer for 2 minutes
Stir the cornstarch and water one more time and add to the soup and increase heat. Stir a couple of times as the soup thickens and turns translucent, 1 minute
Add vinegar, pepper and soy sauce mixture, stir once and turn off heat
Using a spoon drizzle the egg into the soup in thin streams
Let the soup sit for a minute and turn the heat back on. Once the soup has reached a gentle boil turn the heat off and serve
Top the bowls of soup with sliced scallions
Ingredients
Directions
Whisk 1 tbs of the soy sauce with the sesame oil and 1 tsp cornstarch together in a medium bowl
Slice the pork chop into 1 inch by 1/4 inch match sticks and mix with the soy sauce, sesame oil and cornstarch mixture
Mix 3 tbs of cornstarch with water in a bowl and set aside
Whisk the egg in a small bowl
Slice the tofu into 1/2 cubes
Clean the wood ear mushrooms removing any hard pieces, rehydrate if necessary
Remove and discard the hard stems from the Shiitake mushrooms and slice the caps into 1/4 inch slices
Mix the vinegar, ground pepper and 3 tbs soy sauce together in a bowl
Now that everything has been prepared bring the broth to a boil and reduce the heat to a simmer.
Add the mushrooms and bamboo shoots and cook for 5 minutes
Add the tofu and marinated pork, stir to separate the pork pieces and simmer for 2 minutes
Stir the cornstarch and water one more time and add to the soup and increase heat. Stir a couple of times as the soup thickens and turns translucent, 1 minute
Add vinegar, pepper and soy sauce mixture, stir once and turn off heat
Using a spoon drizzle the egg into the soup in thin streams
Let the soup sit for a minute and turn the heat back on. Once the soup has reached a gentle boil turn the heat off and serve
Top the bowls of soup with sliced scallions
Recent Comments