Eggplant, king oyster mushrooms, and shiitake mushrooms are common ingredients in Chinese cooking. In this eggplant and mushroom recipe, we combine these ingredients and add Szechuan chili oil for an extra kick. Let’s cook this vegetarian dish and enjoy it with your whole family.

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🛒Ingredients needed for eggplant and mushroom stir-fry

• Asian eggplant. You can use any regular eggplants, but Chinese eggplant and Japanese eggplant are the better choices as they are less bitter. I usually cut them into about two inches in length. Any size larger than this needs a longer cooking time, which potentially will cause the loss of the vibrant color. 
• Mushroom. I use King Oyster and shiitake mushrooms in this recipe, which are widely available where I live. However, feel free to use any type of mushroom. Portobello and button mushrooms are good alternatives.
• Seasoning. The seasoning ingredients I use are simple and commonly used in Cantonese cooking. You can make changes as you like, such as substituting light soy sauce with fish sauce. You can also add wine, mirin, or chili sauce to make it spicy.
• Chili. Traditional Cantonese food is usually not very spicy. In this recipe, I have added a teaspoon of Sichuan chili oil, which adds an extra kick to the dish. I also use one red dry chili to enhance the spicy flavor. These are all optional items, depending on whether you want your dish spicy.

👉 How to cook eggplant and mushroom stir-fry?

Here is the step-by-step method for preparing eggplant and mushroom stir-fry Chinese style.

1. Cut the eggplant into batons about two inches long. Place the eggplant in a large mixing bowl. Add the salt and vinegar, combine thoroughly, and let it sit for about 10 minutes. 

2. After that, rinse off the excess salt and vinegar. Use a dry cloth or kitchen paper towel to remove as much water as possible.

3. Cut the king oyster mushrooms into pieces similar to the eggplant, the shiitake mushrooms into thick slices, and the onions into large chunks.

4. Place the eggplant in a mixing bowl and add about 50 grams of cornstarch to coat each piece of the eggplant. Shake off the excess cornflour and set aside.

5. Heat the oil to about 180 degrees Celsius. Place the eggplant into the hot oil and deep-fry in batches for about one minute. Ensure enough oil is available so that all the eggplant is fully submerged. Once the surface of the eggplant turns crispy, immediately remove it from the oil and place it on a paper towel. Please do not crowd the wok/skillet, as the eggplant may stick together. When you finish the first batch, remove them and continue for the second batch. Continue deep-frying the next batch of eggplant until all are done.

6. Heat the vegetable oil and a teaspoon of Sichuan chili oil in the wok or a large skillet. Sauté the chopped garlic, ginger, white section of the green onions, and the dry red chili until aromatic.

7. Add the king oyster mushrooms, onions, and sauté until they soften. Add some water if they become too dry. Also, add the shiitake mushrooms along the way. Stir-fry over medium-high heat for about two minutes until all the mushrooms have softened.  Season with light soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, and salt.

8. Finally, return the deep-fried eggplant pieces to the wok, mix well with all other ingredients, and remove them immediately.

🍆 How to retain the purplish color of the eggplant

The eggplant in this recipe is bright purple. We use salt and vinegar to help preserve its color.

First, add salt and white vinegar to the eggplant and mix thoroughly. Let it sit for 20 minutes to extract the moisture, preventing it from turning soggy during cooking. The vinegar helps to stabilize the color, preventing it from fading easily.

After 20 minutes, rinse the eggplant with water to remove extra salt and vinegar. Then, you can use either one of the following methods to retain the color:

1. Deep-frying. Drain the washed eggplant and remove the moisture with a paper towel or dry cloth. Then, coat the eggplant with cornstarch, shake off the excess, and deep fry them in hot oil at about 180 degrees Celsius for one to two minutes. The high heat helps to retain the purplish color.
2. Steam. Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil, place the eggplant in a steamer, and steam over high heat for about 4 minutes. Again, using high heat will help retain the color.

💡Tips and notes for the best eggplant stir fry

• I prefer deep-frying the eggplant instead of steaming it for this recipe because it gives the eggplant a better texture that complements the stir-fried mushrooms. However, deep-frying the eggplant can make it oily. To prevent this, I coat the eggplant with cornstarch until it absorbs, then add the second and third batches. To reduce the oiliness further, consider coating the eggplant with beaten egg white, then drain the excess egg white by placing the eggplants in a colander before coating them with cornstarch. This way, the egg whites and cornstarch act as a barrier to prevent the eggplant from absorbing too much oil.
• Toss the eggplant with the mushrooms. Avoid overcooking to maintain the eggplant’s color.
• Contrary to many other recipes, I don’t thicken the sauce using cornstarch slurry. The eggplant I use has already been coated with cornstarch before deep frying, which will naturally thicken the sauce.
• Please note that I use oyster sauce in this recipe. Vegetarian oyster sauce, made with mushroom extract, is available in most Asian grocery stores and can be used to make it entirely vegetarian.
• Consider garnishing the eggplant and mushroom with shredded curly green onions and sesame seeds for a better visual appearance. Alternatively, add some red bell peppers to make them more colorful.
• If you don’t have chili oil, add some red pepper flakes to make it spicy.
• The cooking process is easy and best served with plain rice or fried noodles.

🍽️  Here are some other stir-fry recipes you might be interested in trying.

• Beef asparagus Sichuan-style. A classic Sichuan recipe with a twist by using asparagus.
• Shrimp and broccoli stir-fry. A simple recipe that will delight you if you enjoy shrimp.
• Tofu with black bean sauce. If you are a vegetarian, you will love this traditional Chinese recipe.