Stir-Fried Cucumbers With Trumpet Mushrooms, and Torch Hei

[Photographs: Vicky Wasik]

Cucumbers are an underrated and underutilized ingredient in the stir-fry world. The blazing heat of wok cooking renders them tender, fruity, and juicy, without turning them to mush. Here, we give cucumber an extra layer of flavor with the help of a kitchen blowtorch, which imparts smoky wok hei, an integral component to Chinese stir-fry cooking. This recipe is a great introduction to the benefits of our torch hei hack.

The succulent, flame-licked cucumbers are paired with meaty king trumpet mushrooms, and funky, salty, and spicy fermented bean curd for a vegetarian stir-fry that is simple, but far from basic.

Published at Wed, 12 Feb 2020 10:25:26 +0000