i made a green and brown stir-fry

1) tossed cubes of firm tofu in nutritional yeast (to absorb some moisture) and then in sesame seeds, then pan-fried them in sesame oil and chili oil. set those aside in a large bowl.


2) chopped asparagus stalks into inch-long bits (the spear-tips had gone soft so i tossed those out). then another round of sauteeing with a little more oil and some kosher salt, just until tender-crisp. put those in the bowl.

3) cut up baby bok-choy into bite-size pieces, separating so that the soft green leaves went into one pile, and the white stalks into another. then into the sautee pan: first the white bok choy stalks, joined by the leafy parts at the end. then i added some minced ginger and ground szechuan pepper, and a small splash of soy sauce and oyster sauce. i was kind of guessing here. scooped all that into the bowl.


4) finally, chopped up an assortment of wild mushrooms from the stall at the farmers' market that always smells earthy and woody and brown: oyster mushrooms, chanterelles, beech (or clamshell) mushrooms, and hen-of-the-woods. i slowly sauteed them in just a little more oil, and the mushrooms gradually got rich-looking and very fragrant. when i was satisfied with their texture i sprinkled some arrowroot over them, stirred that around, and then splashed some chicken stock into the pan; as it simmered the arrowroot thickened it, and i had a very simple, mushroomy brown sauce.

to finish it all up i put the contents of the bowl back into my giant pan and gently tossed it to coat with the warm sauce. it was pretty good.


if i did this again...
i'd toss out the soy sauce and the premade oyster sauce, and just incorporate the minced ginger and szechuan pepper into the mushroom/chicken sauce.
i'd also maybe combine the two rounds of vegetable-sauteeing to reduce the total amount of oil used.
other ideas: instead of frying tofu maybe do just the vegetables, then plate them over some cooked ramen noodles, or over rice.