Wood Ear Mushroom Salad
In Mandarin Chinese, this cooling, crunchy salad is called 涼拌黑木耳 (Liáng Bàn Hēi Mù Ěr). This recipe has been slightly adapted from Clarissa Wei and Ivy Chen’s sensational cookbook, Made in Taiwan (Simon Element, 2023).
Servings: 3
Ingredients
- ½ cup | 20g small dried black wood ear mushrooms
- ¼ cup | 60ml unseasoned rice vinegar, plus more to taste
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce, plus more to taste
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 1-inch | 10g piece fresh young ginger, peeled and cut into matchsticks (see swap tip in main post)
- 2 tablespoon scallion green parts only, thinly sliced on a diagonal
Instructions
- Rehydrate the mushroom: In a medium bowl, cover the dried black wood ear mushrooms with hot tap water. Soak until they’re soft, about 15 minutes. Drain in a colander, then wash them thoroughly under running water, making sure to get rid of any sand or grit stuck in the crevices. With a knife or scissors, trim off and discard any tough, craggy bits.
- Boil and ice down: Fill a medium pot halfway with water and bring it to a vigorous boil over high heat. Prepare an ice bath to the side. Drop the wood ear mushrooms into the boiling water and cook for 3 minutes. Turn the heat off, drain the mushrooms in a colander, and immediately transfer them into the ice bath to cool down, about 20 seconds. This will keep them crunchy and crisp. Drain well in a colander again, squeezing out excess moisture.
- Marinate and serve: In a glass storage container with a lid, combine the rice vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, and sesame oil, and stir until the sugar is mostly dissolved. Taste for a pleasant tang and salty hit. If needed, add soy sauce by the ½ teaspoon or vinegar by the 1 teaspoon. Add the wood ear mushrooms and ginger. Stir a few times to coat, then cover, shake to combine even more. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or to 4 days. Mix in the scallions right before serving. Include some of the liquid, if you like.
