Braised Chinese Mushrooms Shiitake - Oh My Food Recipes (2024)

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Braised Chinese mushroom is a traditional Chinese cuisine especially for Chinese New Year. Also, this is my family's authentic Chinese braised mushrooms recipe. Hope you enjoy this soft, tender and juicy instant pot braised Chinese shiitake mushrooms recipe with oyster sauce.

Like vegetable dishes? Check out these gai lan, baby bok choy stir fry, Chinese spinach amaranth, garlic yu choy sum, water spinach stir fry, crispy teriyaki tofu and kimchi tofu soup recipes.

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What is braised Chinese Mushroom?

Slowly cook dried and soaked Chinese shiitake mushrooms with oyster sauce and serve with vegetables. A classic Cantonese style braised Chinese mushrooms dish often served with lettuce. However, some like to serve with bok choy or broccoli.

What is Chinese shiitake mushroom?

Chinese mushrooms originated from China over 1000 years ago. There are different types of Chinese mushrooms such as patterned, thick and thin mushrooms. If it snows during harvesting, the surface of mushrooms will crack and create different patterns.

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On the other hand, dried Chinese shiitake mushrooms have a pleasant fragrance that fresh mushrooms do not have. This is because when drying mushrooms, chemical reactions with mushroom yeasts release scent. Besides, dried shiitake mushrooms have rich protein, some health and medicine benefits such as preventing colds, cancer and lower cholesterol.

How to cook Chinese shiitake mushrooms?

Shiitake mushrooms are great for any cooking method. However, the best way to cook dried Chinese mushrooms is to braise them because it absorbs the sauce and the texture is very tender. For example, braised Chinese mushroom chicken is one of the common Chinese dishes.

When do you eat braised Chinese mushrooms?

Braised Chinese mushroom is a traditional Chinese cuisine, especially during Chinese New Year or special banquets like traditional weddings or other events. I remembered my grandmother made this dish during Chinese New Year dinner when we visited them.

What are the ingredients for braised Chinese mushrooms?

The ingredients are dried Chinese shiitake mushrooms, lettuce, ginger, garlic, salt, brown sugar, oil, oyster sauce and water. But, some people like to add dried mandarin peel to braise with the mushrooms.

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Cooking tips for how to braise Chinese mushrooms:

Choosing good quality (thicker and have fragrance) dried Chinese mushrooms is important for a tasty braised mushroom dish.
Before cooking the mushrooms, they need to be washed and soaked in water. Normally, it takes about 2-5 hours until the mushrooms are soft.
Do not soak the mushrooms too long, neither use too hot nor too cold water to soak them because it will lose its fragrance.
The best is to soak mushrooms in room temperature water.
I don’t suggest using the soaked mushroom water to cook because it may have sand or bugs.
Remember to squeeze the mushrooms to remove excess water.
Classic Cantonese style braised Chinese mushrooms dish often served with lettuce. Thus, remember don't over boil lettuce, just put them in boiling water and quickly put them on a plate.

FAQS:

How do you soak Chinese shiitake mushrooms?

First wash and rinse the mushrooms. Then, soak them in tap water for 2-5 hours before cooking. It depends on the size and thickness of the mushrooms. Also, do not use too hot or too cold water to soak them because it will lose its fragrance.

Can I use soaked mushroom water to braise mushrooms?

Some people like to use the soaked mushroom water to cook. However, I don’t suggest using the soaked mushroom water to cook because it may have sand or bugs.

Instructions for how to make instant pot braised Chinese mushrooms:

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Preparation:

1. Put 12 medium-large sized dried Chinese shiitake mushrooms into the bowl.

Cooking:

4. Plug in and turn on the instant pot. Then, press the sauté button, pour 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil, 4 slices of ginger and 4 cloves of garlic. After that, stir fry a little bit.

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5. After that, add the soaked mushrooms. (Remember to squeeze the mushrooms to remove excess water.) Next, add 4 tablespoons of oyster sauce, ⅛ teaspoon of salt, 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, 1 cup of water and mix it well. Close the lid and vent, push the manual button to adjust time 20 minutes at high pressure and naturally release the pressure.

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6. While waiting for the mushrooms, boil 6 cups of water in a pot. Then, add ⅛ teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil into the water.

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7. Wash and cut the lettuce into half.

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8. Until the water is boiling, put the lettuce into the boiling water. Make sure the lettuce is completely immersed into the water, then remove it quickly. (Remember don't over cook lettuce.)

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9. The following step, put the cooked lettuce on a plate.

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10. When the braised mushrooms are ready, put the mushrooms over the lettuce and ready to serve.

Enjoy this instant pot braised Chinese mushroom recipe! Also, check out these orange chicken,beef stew, dim sum siu mai, hairy gourd vermicelli, and recipes.