The mince almost caramelises by rendering out the fat while cooking in the lip-smacking sauce. The golden rule is to never overcrowd your pan. 

Asian mushroom & mince stir-fry

Serves 3-4 

Ingredients

3 Tbsp canola oil
300g mixed mushrooms
150g pork mince or pork sausage meat
400g beef mince
Salt and milled pepper
2 tsp grated ginger
4 cloves garlic, grated
2 Thai red chillies, deseeded and sliced (optional)
3 Tbsp soy sauce
3 Tbsp oyster sauce
1 Tbsp fish sauce
Lemon juice to taste (lime works well, too)
1 cup sliced Swiss chard (or pak choi)
Rice noodles (or rice), for serving
Spring onions and coriander, to garnish

Method

1.  Heat a small drizzle of oil in a hot pan over high heat until almost smoking.
2.  Add mushrooms in 2-3 batches and fry, occasionally pressing down with a spatula (you should hear a squeaking sound) to brown well. Remove, season and set aside. 
3.  Add another drizzle of oil in the same pan and stir-fry mince in 2-3 batches. (This is important, as overcrowding will steam mince instead of sear and brown.) Season lightly and continuously move the mince with a spatula, breaking up lumps of meat, until well browned.
4.  Add grated ginger, garlic, red chillies, soy-, oyster- and fish sauces. Stir-fry until sticky. Add lemon juice and adjust seasoning to taste.
5.  Toss through the Swiss chard, stirring to wilt, then return mushrooms to reheat.
6.  Serve stir-fried mince over noodles, topped with spring onion and coriander.

Listen up

• Mushrooms are little sponges, so it’s best to cook them over high heat with a little oil. To know if your pan is hot enough, add a mushroom and press down onto it using a spatula. If the mushroom makes a squeaking sound, it’s hot enough. 
• For mince to crisp up and caramelise, your pan should not be overcrowded. You should hear a searing sound throughout cooking the mince, although it will soften while cooking, which indicates the fat is rendering out and meat is browning. 

Recipes & styling: Liezl Vermeulen 
Photography: Zhann Solomons 

Also read: Braai grid mushroom pizza

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