Yesterday I was looking at pictures of beef and drooling. Woah, woah, woah! Before anyone freaks out, let me explain. I often find inspiration for my recipe from animal-product filled recipes. It’s not the meat that is making me drool, (that part is a real turn off for me). It’s the idea I have in my head about how I can achieve similar textures and flavours. The chew, the crispiness, the umami, the juiciness. All that deliciousness but made blissfully vegan. That’s what I am drooling over, my imagination.
So when I stumbled upon a few recipes for sesame beef, my brain started mentally sorting through my kitchen and I thought of the bag of dried shiitake mushrooms that I use in my Quick Vegan Pho and my Congee recipe. Even after soaking for a long time and cooking, the dried shiitake remain super juicy and chewy. Light bulb!
So I played around a bit, and BLAM-O! (Is blam-o a thing kids say now? I don’t think so). I tossed the mushrooms in cornstarch fried them up and stirred them into a quick sauce.
~Pats self on back~
Slightly crispy on the outside, super chewy and juicy on the inside, coated in a sticky sweet and spicy sauce. Gah! This hit all of the flavour points and textures I was striving for and hot dang it’s delicious.This just turned into one of my new favourite dishes that I will be whipping up on a regular basis.
For some more veggie-ness, feel free to add in some sautéed broccoli, bok choy, spinach, or other greenage. I served mine over rice, but I think rice noodles would also be fab. Enjoy!
To make Crispy & Chewy Sesame Shiitake: you are going to need dried shiitake mushrooms. Fresh mushrooms won’t work the same way as they don’t have the same chewy texture as the dried ones. I found a big bag of dried shiitake at my local grocery store, but if your store doesn’t carry them, you can order them online. One bag lasts a long time!
Rehydrate the mushrooms by covering them in boiling water. I always put a bowl on top to help push to mushrooms down and keep them submerged. Soak them for around 40 minutes until they are nice and tender.
Drain the mushrooms. If you wish you can save the liquid to use as a mushroom broth. Now squeeze out the excess water from the mushrooms. Don’t mush them to death, but just lightly squeeze them and shake off the water so they are on the drier side. Cut them into nice thick slices, about 1/2 inch.
Toss them in the cornstarch so they are evenly coated and shake off the excess.
Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Make sure the oil is nice and hot before adding in the mushrooms so that they fry, and not just soak up the oil. Fry the mushrooms until they are lightly golden on all sides, and no white cornstarch remains.
In the meantime make the sauce by adding all of the ingredients to a small saucepan. Cook the sauce for about 2 minutes until it begins to thicken. Add in the fried shiitakes and toss to coat. Serve immediately over rice or in any way that you desire.
Slightly crispy on the outside, super chewy and juicy on the inside, coated in a sticky sweet and spicy sauce. A vegan version of sesame beef.
- 2 cups dried shiitakes (12-16 mushrooms)
- Boiling water (to soak the mushrooms)
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons light oil (such as canola or peanut), plus more if needed
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 inch piece of ginger , minced
- 2 teaspoons sriracha or other hot sauce (optional)
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 2 green onion , thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
- Cover the mushrooms in boiling water, and put something on top to keep them submerged. Soak for around 40 minutes until tender. Drain the mushrooms. If you wish you can save the liquid to use as a mushroom broth. Now squeeze out the excess water from the mushrooms. Don’t mush them to death, but just lightly squeeze them and shake off the water so they are on the drier side. Slice them into nice thick slices, about 1/2 inch. Toss them in the cornstarch so they are evenly coated and shake off the excess.
- Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Make sure the oil is nice and hot before adding in the mushrooms so that they fry, and not just soak up the oil. Fry the mushrooms until they are lightly golden on all sides, and no white cornstarch remains.
- In the meantime make the sauce by adding all of the ingredients to a small sauce pan. Cook the sauce for about 2 minutes until it begins to thicken. Add in the fried shiitakes and toss to coat. Serve immediately over rice or in anyway that you desire, and garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.
Nutrition
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Bon Appetegan!
Sam.
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Oh my word…. Sam Sam Sam. This was so ridiculously delicious I thought maybe I’d died and gone to heaven. And I made it! You are some kind of magician! Thank you
Hahaha! So thrilled you loved it so much, Amy 😀
Love this recipe, so quick as well. im trying to eat more plant based for the planet. Just wondering if its possible to use different dried mushrooms? Do oyster mushrooms work ? Can you buy dried sliced mushrooms or do you need whole? Just trying to save some pennies 🙂
Absolutely! Any dried mushroom will work but of course, the taste and texture will vary. Enjoy!
Oh, Sam, I cannot thank you enough for this wonderful recipe. There’s nothing wrong on having inspiration from regular recipes; in fact, I think that’s how we all get inspired to make our vegan food look and taste like regular food. I purchased my Shiitakes from https://www.burmaspice.com/ and I have no complaints about them. The recipe was amazing. Thank you for giving this gift to the world.
Haha! You’re most welcome, Santiago! I’m so thrilled you enjoyed the recipe so much 🙂
Oh man. After trying General Tao bowl at Copper Branch, I was determined to find a recipe I could make that was the same. This was amazing and my kids loved it. My husband and I are searching for more ways to widen our diet vegetarian/vegan diet and introduce our kids to more variety and not just eating meat. This was a definite winner.
So awesome! Thrilled you enjoyed it so much, Lea-Andra 🙂
I made these tonight and I love love love them. Besides soaking the mushrooms, this all came together in about 5 minutes. Will absolutely make this again. Thank you so much!
Amazing! Thrilled you loved it, Noa 🙂
Last week we bought some gorgeous flower-top shiitake mushrooms from Costco. We made these tonight to honor Chinese New Year. Easy, fast, and fabulous! No regrets on having spent so much on them!
Thanks so much for a great recipe.
Oh that sounds so delicious! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
Yes, I know that SHIITAKES are mushrooms, you have, however, spelled it SHITTAKE in your title. lol.
Oh! Whoops! Fixed. Hahaha
You might want to edit your title as it sounds like something decidedly not mushroom-like, lol. Otherwise, this recipe sounds delicious! I need to try it ASAP.
Haha! Shiitakes are a kind of mushroom.
These look so nice Sam. Do you know of any healthier substitutes for cornstarch? I’m not a big fan of using that.
I believe arrowroot powder should work.
Hi Sam,
Horrra for you, for itdoesnottastelikechicken and for dried shittake mushrooms!! You have a new fan! Many thanks for sharing and for the laughs + love your writing style =)
Added some cheeky steamed asparagus broccoli which was cooked with that delicious mushroom broth over some fragrant jasmine rice – absolute delicious and so nutritious!! Keep on working that imagination and also making us drool ; )
Thanks so much, Jose!! And welcome 🙂
Aah came across your website when I searched for recipes using these shiitake mushrooms! I can’t WAIT to try this recipe! subscribed to you on facebook 🙂
Thank you so much! I hope you love them as much as I do 🙂
I made this for my meat-eating in-laws today. It was a HIT. I think next time I’ll reduce the spiciness a tad. We had it over brown rice with edamame on the side.
Wonderful!! Thrilled you enjoyed it so much, Jessica 🙂
Thanks for liking my recipes! I didn’t see your post on your website, but just in case wanted to remind you that all of the text and images are the property of It Doesn’t Taste Like Chicken. Feel free to share photos, and/or quotes with a link back to the original post on my blog. Do NOT copy and paste entire recipes or large bodies of text. This is a breach of copyright. As long as you follow these guidelines, you are good to go. Thanks!
Thanks for the reply, I have backlinked all your content with links only. I was just doing some adding, check out the recipe page.
If you approve a shout out would be helpful! Look around the site as it’s completed dedicated to mushrooms! Thanks again!!
I’m addicted!!
Holy freaking COW this is an amazing recipe. I did use coconut aminos and coconut sugar instead of brown sugar and I used arrowroot starch instead of cornstarch but holy cow was this to die for. I mean making it again tomorrow for lunch. Oh and with some charred broccoli this makes an AMAZING Meal.
Haha! That’s so awesome, thrilled you enjoyed it so much, Samantha 🙂
Wow Sam, I didn’t think I’d love a recipe as much as BBQ Korean Lentils which I make all the time. But holy guacamole girlfriend, this has just reached number 1 with a rocket! Absolutely bang on for flavour, simplicity and vegan translation. I don’t know how you do it, but I’m so frickin glad you do! Thank you so much for sharing your recipes, and I can’t wait to get my cookbook in October! :):)
Aww yay!!! So happy you love the recipe so much! It’s one of my faves too. I’m so excited to share my book with you! 🙂
Just made this and it tasted awesome. Always looking for new vegan recipes.
I especially liked the tip about the mushrooms. Thanks for the knowledge 🙂
Yay! So happy you loved it 🙂
My hubby saw this recipe on your Facebook feed. OMG!!! That’s all I have to say!
Actually, this was super easy and super yummy! Only problem was that I couldn’t have seconds since there were none. I could only find sliced dried shiitake… so actually ended up making this recipe even easier than stated.
Thanks Sam! Yet another successful recipe. You make me a good cook!
Now your husband is looking out for my recipes too! Haha. I will have the whole Srivani family following me soon. So happy you loved another of my recipes, Srivani!
holy cow. this recipe was AMAZING. i’m still in awe with how freaking delicious it was. definitely going to try using shiitake mushrooms with other marinades, cause the texture was on point. thank you thank you thank you!
Woohoo!! So happy you loved it so much, Sheena! 😀
Hi Sam!! I just moved to Auckland, New Zealand from Austin, Texas and moved in with my vegetarian Kiwi boyfriend. He doesn’t like spending time in the kitchen and is more than happy eating the same thing (he likes roasting piles of mixed veg) day after day. I’m the opposite in both things; I love spending time in the kitchen and I crave variety in my cooking and the things I eat. Although I’ve never been a huge carnivore I’m not a vegetarian or vegan, however I only cook us vegetarian stuff at home. It’s been a fun and interesting journey making things that are vegetarian where I don’t miss the meat. It’s also a challenge figuring out what recipes I can cook based upon what they have here at the grocery store. Mexican food (which I love) has been especially challenging as their selection of chilies and spices (Mexican, South American, Spanish etc) is pretty much non-existent. There’s a heavy Asian influence here, but that doesn’t really work for enchiladas or mole! Anyway, I’m babbling here. I made this recipe last night with a package of dried mushrooms I bought at the fruit and veg shop and it was sooooo amazing!! It’s definitely going into my notebook of saved recipes. I can’t wait to try some more of your stuff!!
Welcome, Leah! Sorry for the delay in response, I just got back from holiday. I am so happy you loved the recipe! I hope you find lots more recipes on my blog that can be made from ingredients you have access to. Happy veg cooking 😀
Yum! I made this tonight. So good!
My meat eating boyfriend tasted it and liked it. He said next time he would definitely eat it.
Woohoo! I love winning over the meat eaters! Haha. So happy you both enjoyed it 🙂
He’s pretty good about trying things! This one I didn’t even have to ask him to taste. He looked at it said how good it looked and said next time he would eat it. I gave him a mushroom to taste and sealed the deal!
Haha! Love it 🙂
Oooh aaahhh it’s yummy As it’ll be a favourite in My recipe’s thankyou
So happy you like it Michelle!
I made this yesterday, SO good! I didn’t have time to soak my mushrooms for 40 minutes so I threw them in my instant pot for 0 minutes and they were perfect. Made for a really quick lunch.
Amazing! So happy you enjoyed it Genevieve 🙂
Wow!!! I made this just now—wow! Yummers and the odor I was concerned about is totally not an issue with dried mushrooms.
Perfect! So happy you loved it April 🙂
YAAASSS! This recipe is so darn good! I love how the shiitake mushrooms are crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside and the sauce is complex and tasty. Once you mix the mushrooms into the sauce, the whole dish is gorgeous! I will definitely be including this recipe in my top favorites to be cooked on a regular basis. I wonder what else this sauce can be applied to? It’s so good that I’d love to use it in many other dishes.
Also, on a side note, thank you Sam for posting where you purchased your mushrooms from. I ordered the same ones and love them. I always think it’s useful to have such information in case someone like myself wants to mimic your recipe as close as possible or just has no idea where to purchase an ingredient we may be purchasing for the first time.
Isn’t it insanely good!? Feel free to fry up some veggies or tofu to toss with the sauce as well.
You’re very welcome Rebecca! If there is ever an ingredient you are curious about that I didn’t mention, just let me know, and I will try to help you find it 🙂
Thanks, Sam! I’m looking forward to experimenting and trying the sauce in a veggie stir-fry.
I wanted to ask if cornstarch can be replaced with tapioca starch? Also if apple vinegar can be a substitute for rice vinegar? I would like to make this now but don’t feel like going to the grocery store now:) thank you in advance
Hi Katja,
I have never tried it myself, but my research says that tapioca starch might be ok in this recipe.
For the vinegar, I don’t think that would be a very good substitute as they have a very different flavour, and rice vinegar is a very common flavour in these Asian inspired sauces. Apple cider vinegar would taste wrong and be too strong. Hope that helps!
I used coconut vinegar, tastes good with this recipe! 😉
I made this tonight. My husband was out mowing the grass when we took the first bite. I ran out and begged him to come in and eat. We couldn’t wait until he was finished with the yard. This was incredible. We all LOVED it. After dinner we went online searching websites to order a big bag of Shiitakes.
Thanks for all your work in coming up with these awesome recipes.
Yay!!! That’s so awesome! That comment totally made my day, thank you qn! 🙂
I love the concept of this recipe, but was any one else’s intolerably salty? Like, obviously soy sauce is always going to be salty but my dad and I couldn’t finish it and I couldn’t taste any of the other ingredients. I’m a relative beginner to cooking so I’m not sure but is it possible that my soy sauce was just extra salty? Was I doing something wrong or was it always going to be like that? because I would love to try this recipe again 🙂
Hmmm…. I do like salt, but it shouldn’t be that salty. Hard to know what happened here without being in the kitchen with you. If you make it again, you can replace the soy sauce with water or vegetable broth. Hope that helps!
Somehow I missed this recipe when it first posted but it is PERFECT! I live on a boat and carry dried mushrooms because my fridge is often too small to have fresh mushrooms around…you make hard choices and the space is better used for other fresh veg. Anyway, I am always on the lookout for recipes made specifically for dried mushrooms (they don’t always translate well to fresh mushroom recipes). Thank you!! Can’t wait to try this! And any other recipes you know of that use dried mushrooms would be greatly appreciated. I try searching the internet but I don’t always find dried mishroom recipes!
Yay!! That isn’t even something I considered when writing the recipe, but goes to show, you never know who is going to love your recipes and why! Haha. I also use dried mushrooms in my Congee which is a savoury Chinese rice porridge. I think dried mushrooms have a really cool texture, so I am definitely going to keep them in mind for future recipes too. I hope you enjoy the Sesame Shiitake!
This was delicious. Once the mushrooms were cooked, I tossed them and an equal amount of lightly-steamed broccoli into the sauce and served it all on rice. I did find that it took a lot more oil than 2 tablespoons — maybe 1/3 cup in all — and the cornstarch smoked the kitchen up pretty good, but it was well worth it. I’ll definitely make it again soon. Another great recipe, Sam! I can hardly wait for your cookbook.
Yay! So happy you liked it so much Mary! I use a cast iron skillet which is pretty non-stick, so perhaps thats why I was ok with less oil. So excited for my book too!! Almost done the second draft 🙂
My husband made this the other night and it was so good — like, takeout-level good. Yum!
Yay!!! So happy you and your hubby loved it Hilary 🙂
Just made your shitake dish. Delicious, except I chopped onions before I realized I didn’t need them!! so sauteed them for a bit. Then I didn’t have fresh ginger, so I used candied ginger and skipped the brown sugar. Still really good.
Thanks.
Haha! The hobbit of chopping onions! I do that too. So happy you enjoyed it mom 🙂
Dang, that looks good! And I have an Asian grocery near me that sells dried mushrooms for cheap. Now I’m wondering if you could mimic clam strips with those bad boys! Can’t wait to give your recipe a try!
Thanks Amy! I bet you could mimic clam strips with dried mushrooms for sure 🙂 I hope you like the recipe!
I save more of your stuff! This looks great.
Haha yay!!
Y.U.M. Genius!
Haha, awww shucks. Thanks Kathy!
I was so excited to see this recipe. I’m new to veganism and have fallen into a pattern of making the same things, which I’m bored with. I live in a rural area so no dried shitakes here. Ordering some today. Thank-you!
Congrats on your new veganism ValToo! There are so many scrumptious things to be had, no need to get stuck in the same old. I really hope you enjoy this recipe when you get your hands on some dried shiitakes, and be sure to check out all the recipes on my blog. There are lots that use ingredients you can get your hands on easily. Let me know if you ever have any questions or need any support! 😀
You know, sesame beef is one of those things I didn’t even realize I’d been missing so much until you posted this recipe! I LOVE THIS IDEA. And it looks so simple! Thank you!
I’m so happy I satisfied a craving you didn’t even know you had! Haha. Not gonna lie, I was pre-tay proud of myself with this one. I’m definitely going to be using dried shiitakes for many beef-y recipes to come 🙂
This recipe looks awesome! And I absolutely love the way you write! I’ve never had someone make me laugh so hard, on a cooking blog. You’re adorable, and a very creative cook to boot! Thanks for all the great recipes, and for keeping us entertained, and saving the animals, too! Bless you, kiddo!
Haha yay!! I love the comment. So happy I’m making you laugh. Thank you for the lovely compliments, it’s my absolute pleasure to share recipes with you 🙂