These soy-and-sherry-marinated dried mushrooms are the perfect accompaniment for grilled steaks. The recipe originates in a New York Japanese restaurant, Momofuku Noodle Bar, and was forwarded to me by ace Irish mushroom hunter Bill O’Dea.
30g dried wild mushrooms
30g dried cultivated mushrooms (you can buy dried shitake, I dry normal chestnuts)
125ml light or dark soy sauce
125ml sherry vinegar
75g sugar
75g fresh ginger, peeled
Put mushrooms into a medium bowl, cover with 5 cups boiling water, and press mushrooms down with a plate to keep them submerged. Let steep for 15 minutes. Strain mushrooms through a sieve set over a medium bowl, reserving 2 cups liquid.
Combine mushrooms, reserved liquid, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and ginger in a 4-qt. saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Remove pan from heat; let cool. Transfer ingredients to a 1 1⁄2-qt. container, cover, and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.
