Stir-Fried Vegetarian Eel Shreds

Name: Stir-Fried Vegetarian Eel Shreds
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 45 min
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 200 g Rehydrated dried shiitake mushrooms (stems removed and washed, cut into ~10 cm long strips with scissors, rinsed in clean water, moisture squeezed out); 25 g Green peas (lightly stir-fried); 50 g All-purpose flour (mixed with the wet-starch slurry for the batter); 750 g Vegetable oil (actual usage ~100 g; first fry at ~125 °C / 50% hot, second fry at ~150 °C / 60% hot); 50 g Wet starch (40 g for the batter, remainder for thickening the sauce); 0.5 g White pepper (sprinkled on the finished dish); 5 g Shaoxing cooking wine; 25 g Light soy sauce; 15 g Vinegar; 1 g Fine salt; 2 g MSG (1 g for the batter, 1 g for seasoning); 10 g Sesame oil (drizzled on the finished dish); 50 g Granulated sugar

A Zhejiang dish made by deep-frying rehydrated dried winter mushrooms and tossing them in a sweet and sour sauce. Cut into thin strips, the mushrooms resemble shredded eel, delivering a crispy texture with a balanced sweet-sour flavor that can convincingly pass for the real thing.

45 min

Easy

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Ingredients

Rehydrated dried shiitake mushrooms (stems removed and washed, cut into ~10 cm long strips with scissors, rinsed in clean water, moisture squeezed out) 200 g

Green peas (lightly stir-fried) 25 g

All-purpose flour (mixed with the wet-starch slurry for the batter) 50 g

Vegetable oil (actual usage ~100 g; first fry at ~125 °C / 50% hot, second fry at ~150 °C / 60% hot) 750 g

Wet starch (40 g for the batter, remainder for thickening the sauce) 50 g

White pepper (sprinkled on the finished dish) 0.5 g

Shaoxing cooking wine 5 g

Light soy sauce 25 g

Vinegar 15 g

Fine salt 1 g

MSG (1 g for the batter, 1 g for seasoning) 2 g

Sesame oil (drizzled on the finished dish) 10 g

Granulated sugar 50 g

Instructions

Prepare the mushrooms

Remove the stems from the shiitake mushrooms and wash. Using scissors, cut them into strips about 10 cm long. Rinse in clean water, squeeze out the moisture, and place in a bowl. Add the fine salt, 1 g MSG, and 40 g wet starch, and mix well. Then add the flour and combine to form a coating batter.

Fry the 'vegetarian eel' shreds

Heat a wok over medium heat and add the vegetable oil. When it reaches about 125 °C (50% hot), drop the batter-coated mushroom strips into the oil one at a time and fry until they form a crust, then lift them out with a slotted spoon. When the oil returns to about 150 °C (60% hot), return the strips to the wok for a second fry. Once they are golden, drain off the oil to make the 'vegetarian eel shreds'.

Make the sauce

In the same wok over medium heat, add the green peas and lightly stir-fry. Add 75 g water along with the Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, sugar, and vinegar. Once the liquid comes to a boil, add 1 g MSG and thicken with wet starch.

Finish the dish

Pour the 'vegetarian eel shreds' back into the wok, toss quickly to coat, transfer to a plate, sprinkle with white pepper, drizzle with sesame oil, and serve.