Unohana – Okara Stir-Fry with French Beans, Carrots and Shiitake Mushrooms

Name: Unohana – Okara Stir-Fry with French Beans, Carrots and Shiitake Mushrooms (卯の花)
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: ½ quantity of Shiitake Mushroom Dashi, or for a quicker alternative use 4 dried shiitake mushrooms soaked in 350 ml (12 fl oz/1½ cups) hot water with 1 tbsp granulated sugar plus ½ tbsp instant dashi powder; ½ quantity of Shiitake Mushroom Dashi, or for a quicker alternative use 4 dried shiitake mushrooms soaked in 350 ml (12 fl oz/1½ cups) hot water with 1 tbsp granulated sugar plus ½ tbsp instant dashi powder; ½ quantity of Shiitake Mushroom Dashi, or for a quicker alternative use 4 dried shiitake mushrooms soaked in 350 ml (12 fl oz/1½ cups) hot water with 1 tbsp granulated sugar plus ½ tbsp instant dashi powder; ½ quantity of Shiitake Mushroom Dashi, or for a quicker alternative use 4 dried shiitake mushrooms soaked in 350 ml (12 fl oz/1½ cups) hot water with 1 tbsp granulated sugar plus ½ tbsp instant dashi powder; 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) fresh okara; 150 g (5½ oz) French beans, tailed and cut in half; 1 small onion, sliced lengthways; 1 carrot, peeled and julienned; 4 tbsp soy sauce; 1 tbsp granulated sugar; 1 tbsp mirin; 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil; 4 spring onions (scallions), white and green parts separated and finely sliced; 4 spring onions (scallions), white and green parts separated and finely sliced; fine sea salt, to taste; generous sprinkle of sansho pepper; generous sprinkle of white sesame seeds

卯の花

Preparation info

Serves
4

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

The Japanese Larder

By Luiz Hara

Published 2018

About

Okara is the soybean lees leftover from making soy milk and in Japan it is used in a number of dishes including unohana. An okara stir-fry served as a side dish, unohana is rich in protein and fibre, and is full of flavour with the texture of fine couscous.

Ingredients

½ quantity of Shiitake Mushroom Dashi, or for a quicker alternative use 4 dried shiitake mushrooms soaked in 350 ml

Asia
Japan
Starter
Vegan
Gluten-free

Method

Make the Shiitake Mushroom Dashi. Alternatively, add the dried shiitake mushrooms, hot water and instant dashi powder to a bowl, mix well and leave the mushrooms to soak for 30-60 minutes until softened. Drain the mushroom water into a clean container, avoiding the grit that settled at the bottom of the bowl. Measure out