Colorful Julienned King Oyster Mushroom Cold Dish in Asian Sauce

Making food for others is quite different from cooking for myself, is that the case for you too? For instance, I might source even better ingredients and use heavier seasonings for others. However, if me or mister are the only ones eating the food, usually I'll go for the more economical options with lighter perhaps healthier flavors.

That's the same case for this julienned veggies cold dish. Chopping vegetables can be quite a hassle sometimes, one time I was making this same recipe for my mother-in-law, so I paid extra attention and made sure all things were sliced to perfection. I got lazy afterwards, so the leftover ingredients were chopped like double the thickness instead. Not as pretty looking, but saved a lot of prep work for sure.

However, I do sincerely suggest you to nicely julienne the veggies because once mixed with the seasonings, that's how you get the most sauce clinging onto the ingredients. The sauce to solid goods ratio is higher that way, which will result in fuller flavor impact.

Colorful julienned king oyster mushroom cold dish in Asian sauce -  

Ingredients?

• 100 grams king oyster mushroom
• 1 small red bell pepper
• 1/2 small yellow bell pepper
• 1 to 2 skinny cucumber
• 1 tablespoon toasted white sesame seeds

Sauce:

• 3 tablespoons triple condensed Japanese tsuyu
• 2 tablespoons black vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1/4 teaspoon Chinese chili sauce with oil
• 1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar

How?

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add in whole king oyster mushroom and cook for about 10 minutes. Once ready, drain and wait till able to handle by hand, then peel into long thin strips. 

Prepping king oyster mushroom is the most demanding step, you have to do it by hand, not cutting the mushroom with a knife. The texture of hand-peeled king oyster mushroom is very different from the hard-edged cutting version, and that's what make or break this recipe too.

Once done, transfer hand-processed mushroom strips to a big mixing container.

No need to peel the cucumbers. Simply remove the tips of the skinny cucumbers and julienne them. Remove the stems from the colorful bell peppers then discard the seeds. Julienne the bell peppers. Transfer these ingredients to the mixing container.

Take a bowl or a jar, add in all the ingredients under the "sauce" section and give it a good mix. Taste and adjust accordingly. 

Pour the sauce to the big mixing container and blend till evenly distributed. Taste and adjust again just to be safe, especially some might like it with more vinegar and some prefer a sweeter taste.

Lastly, add in some toasted white sesame seeds and mix till blended again. 

Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes then serve cold.

You can also grate some garlic or add a bit of Sichuan peppercorn oil for a stronger taste. However, I'd like to keep it simple and on a refreshing side, simple chili oil will do. On top of that, it's a vegetarian recipe to begin with, but if meat is ok, adding some cooked shredded chicken works really well here.

  

Other cold dish recipes:

• Shiso tomato okra and chicken cold dish
• Japanese cold dish using satsuma age and konjac
• Bean sprouts cold dish with spicy fermented bean paste 涼拌豆芽