Recipe
YAKITORI SHROOMS
A guaranteed crowd-pleaser, we have never served yakitori to a group of friends and regretted it. Who doesn't love high-heat cooking, the crispy crunchies you get, and the depth of flavor? It's a culinary treat. For this iteration, we are grilling up big shiitake mushrooms with an ever-so-slightly sweet yakitori sauce and green onions for a pop of brightness.
Serves 4
- Prepare the Yakitori Sauce:
- In a small saucepan, combine soy sauce, mirin, sake (or water), sugar, garlic, and ginger.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved.
- Reduce the heat to low and continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens slightly, about 10-15 minutes.
- Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. The sauce will thicken further as it cools.
- Prepare the Skewers:
- Thread the mushrooms and green onions alternately onto the soaked bamboo skewers. Aim for 3-4 pieces of mushroom and 2-3 pieces of green onion per skewer.
- Grill the Skewers:
- Get your grill ripping hot.
- Brush the skewers with algae cooking oil for good fats that carry flavor.
- Grill the skewers, turning occasionally, until the mushrooms are tender and the green onions are slightly charred, about 8-10 minutes.
- During the last few minutes of grilling, brush the skewers generously with the yakitori sauce, turning them a couple of times to caramelize the sauce on the skewers.
Ingredients
- For the Skewers:
- 16-20 large mushrooms (shiitake, button, or cremini work well), stems removed
- 1 bunch of green onions (scallions), cut into 1-inch pieces
- Bamboo skewers, soaked in water for at least 30 minutes
- For the Yakitori Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon algae cooking oil
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup mirin (sweet Japanese rice wine)
- 1/4 cup sake (or water as a non-alcoholic substitute)
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
