WW: Spicy Long Beans with Sausage and Mushrooms

Wok Wednesdays wokking through Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge

by Grace Young

This was quite tasty, even with the few changes I made; and I'm sure this would be even tastier if made as the recipe was written. You just can't lose with Grace's recipes. 

Grace mentions in the book that there are two varieties of long beans - dark green and pale green. She prefers the dark green for stir-frying for they have a crunchier texture. I was only able to find the light green at the farmer's market. They worked just fine - however, I wonder if the dark green beans squeak against the teeth when you chew them, like the light green beans do.

I purchased fresh shiitake mushrooms in error. How does one do that? By skimming the recipe, rather than thoroughly reading it. This has gotten me into trouble more than once. The recipe calls for dried mushrooms, which you soak in cold water for about 30 minutes or until they are softened (which they never seem to do for me - maybe it was a good thing that I purchased fresh), and reserve some of the soaking liquid to be added later - I subbed plain water. 

The other change I made was I used Spanish chorizo in place of Chinese sausage. I thought for sure it was sausage I had in the freezer. That is what I get for not checking before going to the store - like not reading the recipe thoroughly.. and I omitted the 1/2 teaspoon salt, for the preserved vegetable was extremely salty, even after rinsing.

I'm not sure what gives this dish the "spicy" in the title. My stir-fry was not spicy at all and I did not even realize it was supposed to be, until I sat down to write this post. Maybe it comes from the Chinese sausage that I did not use, or the preserved vegetable - there are different varieties to choose from.

We enjoyed this dish even with the changes that were made. My husband said it was good the next day for lunch, and a co-worker said it was great - and he is Chinese.

 Mise en place.

Bowl 1:  Pork, sausage

Bowl 2:  Mushrooms

Bowl 3:  Chinese long beans

Bowl 4:  Water 

Bowl 5:  Preserved vegetable, scallions, cilantro

Bowl 6:  Soy sauce, sherry, sesame oil

Bowl 7:  Sugar, pepper

One rule of the Wok Wednesdays group is we are asked not to post the recipes here on our blog. If you would like the recipe, you will find it on page 212 of Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge, which you can purchase at your local bookstore or find it at your local library. You can also get the recipe here. However, I highly recommend purchasing the book - you won't be disappointed. 

 

Wok Wednesdays is an online cooking group. If you would like information about joining us, click here, or visit us on Facebook. Would love for you to wok along with us!

 

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