Hunger Family's Weekend Reunion Banquet

Author: Chen Xi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2007-01-01
Features: Savoring Mushrooms and Recalling the Past
Wang suddenly developed an interest in the lunar calendar.
"March 3 has passed," Wang said thoughtfully. "Back when I was sent to Yunnan, every time this time of year came around, the local elders would say, 'The season for eating mushrooms has arrived!' Back then, the mountains were filled with mushrooms: chicken of the woods, boletes, morels, leopard mushrooms, Matsutake—everything!
"My wife and I would first compete to gather mushrooms, and then we’d compete to identify them. The freshly unearthed chicken of the woods had slender stems at the base, thickening towards the top, with a small mushroom cap that was tender. The bamboo fungus was the most beautiful—its dark green cap, snow-white cylindrical stem, and pink egg-shaped base, with a net-like white skirt-like mushroom cap! Whenever my wife would gather bamboo fungus, she’d be overjoyed, always calling it 'Snow White'!
"There were no condiments in the mountains, so we’d boil a big pot of soup, throwing in all sorts of mushrooms, and add a bit of salt—it was incredibly flavorful! On the rare occasions when we were lucky enough to trade some freshly hunted wild chicken from the locals, and ask our colleagues for some garlic, we’d tear the freshly gathered mushrooms into thin strips, slice some meat, add a few slices of garlic, and stir-fry it. Everyone’s mouths would water so much, they almost wanted to swallow their tongues!"
Wang got excited as he recalled the past: "How about I make a mushroom feast for you this weekend!"
Mushroom Stew
Ingredients:
1 chicken leg, 30g each of leopard mushroom, chicken of the woods, bolete, white, abalone mushroom, and chicken mushroom.
Seasonings: 5g each of oyster sauce, salt, sugar, and cooking wine; an appropriate amount of scallions, ginger slices, MSG, and sesame oil.
Instructions:
1. Soak all the mushroom ingredients in water for about 3 minutes, rinse them, and then soak them in warm water until they become soft.
2. Clean the chicken leg, cut the meat into small pieces, and place it in a clay pot. Add scallions, ginger slices, and cooking wine, and simmer over low heat for about 1 hour. Then add oyster sauce, salt, sugar, and MSG, along with all the mushroom ingredients. Simmer until the ingredients are fully cooked, the broth is thick, and a little sesame oil is added before serving.
TIPS:
When washing mushrooms, add a little salt to the water, stir it to dissolve, and then soak the mushrooms in the water for a while before washing. This makes it much easier to remove the dirt.