Moo Shu Vegetables is one of the dishes I’ve missed often after moving to the US. It is a dish my mom would always cook for dinner when we were running out of veggies and meat in the kitchen. It looks so plain and simple, yet it cleverly uses dry goods – lily flowers and wood ear mushrooms – to add great flavor and texture and make a plain stir-fry dish delicious and fulfilling. Although it’s usually served as a side dish, it can be served as a main for a light lunch or dinner over steamed rice. This is a family recipe that might look very different from the American Chinese moo shu vegetables. First of all, we do not serve this dish with pancakes. Second, it does not require hoisin sauce. For my family, this is the type of dish that we’d eat on a daily basis with a bowl of steamed rice. The standard ingredients include lily flower, wood ear mushrooms, cucumber, and egg. I added carrot to the dish for extra color. Some families also prefer to use bell pepper to add texture.
Family style moo shu vegetables require very basic seasoning. You just need some soy sauce, a bit of sugar, and some salt. That’s it. The key ingredient is lily flowers. It has a very special flavor that makes the dish stand out without adding any heavy spices. Of course, if you have homemade chicken stock, definitely use it in this dish to enhance the flavor. My mom sometimes uses the lily flowers’ rehydrating water as a vegetable stock, and adds it into the stir-fry to add a bit of moisture and to enhance the flavor. Try this dish once and you’ll be surprised that you can create such a satisfying dish with such minimalist ingredients.
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