Ingredients

• Mushrooms and noodles:

• 2-3 big brown Oyster mushroom clusters, about 101/2 oz/300g total
• Sea salt to taste
• 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
• 1/2 cup (118ml) soy sauce
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 tbsp (15ml) agave syrup
• 1 tsp (5ml) toasted sesame oil
• 2 tsp minced fresh ginger
• 2 cloves smoked garlic or regular garlic
• 1 green onion
• 1 Thai red chilli
• 101/2 oz/300g egg-free fresh Asian wheat noodles, such as lo mein

• Toppings:

• 6 oz/227g baby spinach
• 1 tsp sesame oil (5ml)
• 1 tsp togarashi spice blend, such as Wicked Kitchen
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• Handful of fresh mint and/or coriander
• Thai red chillies, optional
• Lime wedges, for squeezing

Method

For the shrooms, use the Sarno Sear to press and sear the clusters with the salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, grab a shallow dish and mix the soy sauce, lime juice, agave syrup, and sesame oil in it. Chop the green onion and mince the ginger, garlic, and chilli, adding them to the dish. That’s your marinade.

Add the seared mushrooms to the marinade and let soak for a few hours at room temperature, turning a few times, or overnight in the fridge for more flavour.

When you’re ready to eat, heat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Pour most of the mushroom marinade into a mixing bowl, then stick the mushroom dish in the oven and roast until hot, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, pour boiling water over the noodles and let them sit for a minute to rehydrate (or cook the noodles according to the package directions). Then drain the noodles and transfer them back to the reserved marinade. Toss to coat.

For the topping, sear the spinach in the sesame oil over a medium heat in a large sauté pan. The spinach will cook way down in just a minute or two. As it does, season with the togarashi and salt. You just want to wilt it but not make it mushy.

Remove the hot mushroom steaks to a cutting board and slice them. Divide the noodles among shallow bowls and fan the sliced mushroom steaks over top. Add some spinach, herbs, and more chillies if you like. Squeeze fresh lime juice over the steaks and you’re good to go.

Notes: For this dish, we like to use cold-smoked raw garlic, which tastes amazing and is available in some stores. If you can’t find it, use regular raw garlic and add 1/2 tsp (21/2 ml) liquid smoke to the marinade. In place of togarashi spice blend, you can use a mix of black and white sesame seeds, dried orange peel, cayenne pepper, black pepper, ginger powder, and nori seaweed flakes.