Let me introduce you to your new favourite mushroom through this Vegan Sweet and Sour Pork! It looks and tastes just like what you’d get at a restaurant.
This dish is called “goo-lou-yok” 咕噜肉 in the Cantonese dialect, and it’s either every Malaysian-Chinese’s nostalgic comfort food or worst nightmare. I mean, I know a friend who hates this, probably because she ate it too often growing up. But in my, ahem, humble opinion, you can never have too much goo lou yok.
I have a tofu version of sweet and sour on the blog from almost a year ago (wow! It’s been that long) and it was really good. However. I’ve been looking for a better plant-based alternative to pork because that’s the version I grew up eating. This one is made with monkey head mushrooms, and it’s by far the closest thing!
What is Monkey Head Mushroom?
I first came across this mushroom while working at a vegetarian cafe. They used this mushroom in pretty much any dish that would usually contain chunks of meat, like sweet and sour, three cup, and even rendang. You can’t tell that you’re eating a mushroom, that’s how good it is!
Monkey head mushrooms (also called lion’s mane mushroom) are actually a delicacy in Chinese cuisine, which is probably why we don’t eat it in restaurants very often. It’s commonly sold in dried form, and looks like…. well, it looks like a monkey head or a lion’s mane.
This mushroom has a fibrous texture, whereas something like tofu is more spongey. They soak up liquid extremely well and, if you prepare them correctly, they don’t have a distinct taste. A blank canvas for all sorts of flavours!
Oh and if you’re wondering, the rehydrated mushroom actually feels like fur. I know, it’s freaky and I was so freaked out the first time I cooked with them!
If you’d like to read more about it, check out this article by the Taipei Times.
How to Prepare Dried Monkey Head Mushroom
Dried monkey head mushrooms take some time to prepare. Not only do they need to be rehydrated, but they also have an unpleasant bitter aftertaste. Unlike dried shiitake mushrooms, you do NOT want to use the soaking water in your cooking. So you need to soak and squeeze them multiple times to get rid of the bitterness.
After many rounds of trial and error, I’ve found that this is the quickest and easiest way to prepare them:
- Tear the dried mushroom into small bite-sized chunks.
- Soak in water for 30 minutes, then gently squeeze the mushroom to remove all the liquid. Discard the water, and repeat this two more times.
- Bring a pot of water to a simmer. Add in the rehydrated mushrooms, cover with a lid and cook for 30 minutes.
- After cooking, I like to rinse the mushrooms in cold water to cool. If there are tough ends, use scissors to cut them off. Very gently, squeeze some of the remaining water, then place the mushrooms in a bowl.
Then they are ready to be marinated or cooked according to the recipe directions.
Notes
- After cooking the mushrooms, squeeze them very gently just to remove some of the water. Otherwise the fried mushrooms will be too watery on the inside. Don’t press out all the liquid though, otherwise they’ll become extremely tough and dry.
- Lightly coat the mushrooms in cornstarch. Don’t press too firmly, as that will cause the water to come out from the mushrooms. The cornstarch coating will become way too thick, and the mushroom will become tough.
- Only mix the fried mushrooms and sauce together if you’re serving it soon. Otherwise the mushroom will lose its crispiness.
If you liked this Vegan Sweet and Sour Pork recipe, here are more you might want to try:
If you made this recipe, do leave a comment and rating below because I love hearing your feedback. Make sure to tag me on Instagram @eatwkriss so that I can see your recreations!
Vegan Sweet and Sour Pork 咕噜肉 (Monkey Head Mushroom 猴头菇)
Ingredients
- 40 g dried monkey head mushroom/lion's mane mushroom (猴头菇)
- ½ tbsp soy sauce
- 120 g cornstarch
Assorted vegetables
- ½ red onion chopped into quarters
- ½ green bell pepper chopped
- 1 small tomato chopped
- 1 stick of pineapple chopped
Sauce
- ⅓ cup ketchup
- ⅓ cup water
- ½ tbsp vinegar
- ½ tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp cornstarch
Instructions
Prepare the mushroom
- Tear the dried monkey head mushroom into small bite-sized chunks (they will absorb the water and expand later). Soak in water for 30 minutes, then gently squeeze the mushroom to remove all the liquid. Discard the water, and repeat this two more times.
- Bring a pot of water to a simmer. Add in the rehydrated mushrooms, cover with a lid and cook for 30 minutes.
- After cooking, I like to rinse the mushrooms in cold water to cool. If there are tough ends, use scissors to cut them off. Very gently, squeeze some of the remaining water, then place the mushrooms in a bowl.
Cook sweet and sour
- Prepare a large pan with at least 1-inch of cooking oil. If bubbles appear when you insert a chopstick into the oil, it's ready to use.
- Add soy sauce to the mushrooms and mix well. Coat each piece in cornstarch.
- Shallow fry the mushrooms for 4-5 minutes, until light golden brown and crispy. Place on a wire rack to drain excess oil. Pour out the oil for later use, leaving just a little bit in the pan.
- Over medium-low heat, cook the red onion, bell pepper and tomatoes for 30 seconds. Add in the pineapple and cook for another 30 seconds. Then remove the vegetables from the pan.
- In a bowl, combine all the sauce ingredients together then pour into the pan. Reduce over low heat until it thickens. Turn off the heat, then stir in the fried mushroom and vegetables. Make sure everything is evenly coated with sauce.
- Serve immediately with rice.
Notes
- After cooking the mushrooms, squeeze them very gently just to remove some of the water. Otherwise the fried mushrooms will be too watery on the inside. Don’t press out all the liquid though, otherwise they’ll become extremely tough and dry.
- Lightly coat the mushrooms in cornstarch. Don’t press too firmly, as that will cause the water to come out from the mushrooms. The cornstarch coating will become way too thick, and the mushroom will become tough.
- Only mix the fried mushrooms and sauce together if you’re serving it soon. Otherwise the mushroom will lose its crispiness.