• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Japanese Kitchen

  • Home
  • About
  • Travel Japan
  • Recipes
  • Cooking Classes
  • Contact
You are here: Home / Ingredients / Shiitake Mushrooms

Shiitake Mushrooms

July 23, 2009 by Benjamin and Koshiki Leave a Comment

shiitake1

Shiitake mushrooms are native to Asia, originally China, and are used extensively in Japanese cooking. They have a tough, fibrous stem that allows its cap to become large in diameter and thick.  Most people do not use the stems for cooking but I have known people to use them in stocks or even in vegetarian burgers. Shiitake mushrooms are best when the caps are firm and not too dark. When freshly cooked, they have delicious meaty, earthy taste yet they nearly melt in your mouth.

As a result of modern cultivation practices, they can be purchased fresh in most good produce departments. However, they can get pricey, so shop around. If you are unable to find fresh mushrooms, they dry extremely well and can be purchased in dried form at almost any Asian grocery store.

To prepare fresh mushrooms, remove the stems and lightly wash right before cooking. If the caps are too large, it’s best to cut them into smaller pieces or slice them crosswise.  Dried mushrooms must be softened in warm water prior to cooking and give the best results in simmered dishes.

Besides having great taste, shiitake mushrooms are believed to have medicinal beneifits as well; such as helping prevent cancer, boosting the immune system and fighting viruses.

Filed Under: Ingredients, Vegetables Tagged With: Ingredients

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

More Recipes

Butajiru_Two Bowls and a Pot

Butajiru, Country Style Miso Soup with Pork and Root Vegetables

Nikuman | The Japanese Kitchen

Nikuman Japanese Steamed Pork Buns

How to Make Onigiri

Onigiri Rice Balls

Sweet Potato Creme Brulee Recipe

Sweet Potato Creme Brûlée

Previous Post: « Panna Cotta with Baked Strawberry Sauce
Next Post: Summer Peppers with Sesame Sauce »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

こんにちは!

A food blog brought to by Koshiki Yonemura. After almost two decades of running a restaurant in St. Paul with my husband, I now operate a boutique travel company, teach cooking classes and share recipes on this blog. Please leave a comment or send a message. I'd love to hear from you!

Tanpopo Journeys

Subscribe to the Japanese Kitchen

Get the latest recipes!

koshikismith

Tonkatsu
Can't go wrong with fried pork 😁  うまっ😋  Serving: 2 people  INGREDIENTS:
¾ pound pork loin (cut into two large slices or four smaller slices)
1 cups of panko bread crumbs
¼ cup four
1 egg, well beaten with a tablespoon of cold water
Salt and pepper  2 cups of vegetable oil for deep frying  For the home-made Tonkatsu sauce:
2 tablespoons Worchester sauce
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon soy sauce  DIRECTION:
Make the sauce by mixing the Worchester sauce, ketchup, and soy sauce in a small saucepan.  Heat the sauce until everything is well-combined.  Keep it warm.  Cut pork into either two large slices or four smaller slices.  The meat should be about ¼ inch-thick.  Tenderize the meat if necessary and cut slits into any fat or membrane so the meat will not curl as it deep-fries.  Lightly salt and pepper the pork. 
Dust the pork in flour, dredge them in egg mixture, then press them onto panko bread crumbs.  The pork should be covered completely in bread crumbs.
Heat the oil to 300 F and fry the pork one at a time, turning it as it brown's about 3 minutes total.  Take the pork out of oil and dry it in an oil drying rack or paper towel. 
Cut the pork into strips and serve them hot with home-made Tonkatsu sauce.  #cookjapanesefoodathome
#tonkatsu 
#tomorrowiskatsudon
#friedpork
Join me Feb. 2 for a free virtual Tonkatsu class. Join me Feb. 2 for a free virtual Tonkatsu class. 
Menu: Tonkatsu, Miso Soup, Greens with Plum Dressing, Roasted Beets Salad with Miso Dressing and Walnuts.  Vegetarian option available.  Sign up via Seward Co-op Cooking Class  #japanesecookingclass
#freevirtualclass 
#misosoup 
#tonkatsu
At 1pm, my son was determined to make doughnuts, s At 1pm, my son was determined to make doughnuts, so we made doughnuts all afternoon😋🍩🍩🍩  どうしてもドーナッツが作りたいんだとさ😋  #whynot?
#makingdoughnuts🍩 
#sundayafternoon
Finally starting Sashiki I got on last textile tou Finally starting Sashiki I got on last textile tour to Japan 🗾.  #sashiko
#makeandmend
#textiletourjapan 
#missjapan
Our roast chicken is cooked with a bunch of parsle Our roast chicken is cooked with a bunch of parsley and a whole 🍋, so light and refreshing (heat the lemon ahead of time and insert into the chicken so you can reduce the cooking time!)  時々作るローストチキン。パセリひと束、レモン一個一緒に焼くのでさっぱり。レモンは先にレンジでアツアツにしたものをチキンの中に入れるので約時間も短縮。今日のチキンはアーミッシュ。去年のアーミッシュツアーが懐かしい。  Inspired by @Jamie Oliver's recipe  #missimgamishtour
#roastchickenwithlemon
#eatingvegetariantomorrrow 
#whattocookfordinner
Sushi workshop at Seward Co-op tonight🍤 #sushi Sushi workshop at Seward Co-op tonight🍤  #sushimakingingclass
#vegetariansushi
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Categories

Cooking Supervisor and Taste Tester, Buttercup

Bespoke Japan Trips. Tanpopo Journeys

Tanpopo Journeys

Footer

Follow Us

A food blog by Tanpopo Studio LLC | Privacy Policy | | 2020 © All Rights Reserved.