We had leftovers for lunch. Leftover garlic fried rice, and leftover pork adobo that we simmered with leftover Bicol Express. No, the latter is not gross at all. In fact, it was surprisingly good. The sourness of the vinegar and saltiness of soy sauce in the adobo blended beautifully with the sweetness of the coconut cream and chilies in Bicol Express.
But even after combining the two dishes, there wasn’t enough for a meal. Hence, a side dish. This mushroom and vegetable stir fry can go with a seafood, poultry or meat main dish. The sauce is quite similar to teriyaki. Similar, but not the same.
Let’s start with asparagus. The spears need to be trimmed so that the fibrous woody portions are can be separated and discarded (well, unless you have baby asparagus).
If you’re not sure where the good part ends and the tough part begins, just bend the asparagus. It will naturally break in the exact spot where the tender and tough parts meet. Discard the tough woody ends. Use a vegetable peeler to remove the outer skin of the edible portion of the asparagus.
Cut the asparagus spears on the bias. Quarter-inch thick slices. Then, take your shiitake caps and cut into quarter-inch slices as well. Deseed the bell pepper and cut into sticks about a quarter inch in width. These are the three main ingredients of the dish. Other than these three, the only things you have to prep are garlic and the sauce. Peel and mince the garlic; stir together soy sauce and mirin, and set aside.
Boil about two cups of water with a little salt and a drizzle of sesame seed oil. Dump in the asparagus and cook for about two minutes. Scoop out and set side.
Pour off the water and wipe the pan clean. Heat cooking oil and saute the garlic for a minute. Add the sliced shiitake and bell pepper. Sprinkle in a pinch of salt. Saute until aromatic and the shiitake slices have lost their raw appearance.
Now, the stir frying. Turn up the heat and pour in the prepared sauce. Cook, tossing, for about a minute. The mushrooms and bell pepper will get cooked through at this stage while soaking up the sweet-salty sauce.
Then, add the asparagus and continue stir frying until heated through and the sauce has reduced to about a tablespoon. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and it’s ready to go on the dining table.
Ingredients
- 12 to 15 asparagus spears trimmed, peeled and cut into quarter-inch slices
- salt
- sesame seed oil
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 red bell pepper deseeded and cut into sticks
- 6 to 8 shiitake fresh or rehydrated (see notes), sliced
Sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons mirin
- ¼ teaspoon sesame seed oil
Instructions
- In a wok or shallow pan, boil about two cups of water with two generous pinches of salt and a drizzle of sesame seed oil.
- Drop the asparagus slices into the boiling water and cook for two minutes. Scoop out and spread on a plate.
- Discard the water, wipe the pan clean and heat the cooking oil.
- Saute the garlic for a minute.
- Add the shiitake caps, bell pepper sticks and a pinch of salt. Cook, tossing, for a minute to a minute and a half.
- Turn up the heat to HIGH and pour in the mixed sauce. Stir fry for a minute until the shiitake and bell peppers have soaked up most of the sauce.
- Add the asparagus and continue stir frying until there is only about a tablespoon of sauce left.
- Taste. Adjust the seasonings, if needed.
- Optionally, garnish with toasted sesame seeds before serving.
