A simple plant-based stir fry with Japanese eggplant and oyster mushrooms sautéed in a garlic ginger soy sauce. This eggplant and mushroom stir fry is a quick and easy 30 minute weeknight vegan meal.
This Japanese eggplant and oyster mushroom stir fry is a farmer’s market inspired recipe. I came home with some oyster mushrooms and long, skinny Japanese eggplants and came up with this recipe to celebrate these ingredients in a really delicious way.
During the season, my favorite weekend activity is to peruse the farmer’s market in search of new vegetables to try. There’s so much variety! Is it just me or is it easy to get caught up at the mushroom stand? I find immense joy in trying a new type of mushroom!
If you’re unable to visit a farmer’s market definitely check out your local Asian market. It’s possible, but unlikely you will find Japanese eggplant and oyster mushrooms at your local grocery store.
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Ingredients and Substitutions
This stir fry is an excellent vegan main course option and it’s easy to make with simple ingredients. Grab some fresh veggies and a few pantry staples and let’s make stir fry!
- Japanese Eggplant – this variety of eggplant is long and slender with dark purple, tender skin. It’s smaller, firmer and less bitter than large globe eggplant and cooks much faster, making it perfect for stir fry. You can use Chinese or Japanese eggplant for this recipe.
- Oyster Mushrooms – there are several common types of oyster mushrooms. The kind we’re using are also known as pearl oyster mushrooms or tree oyster mushrooms, they have a delicate texture and savory, mild flavor.
- Fresh garlic cloves – lots of it! I use six whole cloves of garlic because I love it. Follow your heart here.
- Fresh ginger – Just clean the outside and grate. No need to peel.
- Scallions – white and green parts.
- Soy sauce – I always have low sodium soy sauce on hand. You can substitute tamari or coconut aminos.
- Sesame oil
- Rice vinegar
- Honey – you can substitute with coconut sugar or brown sugar.
- Cornstarch – helps to thicken the stir fry sauce.
- Chili garlic sauce or sriracha for heat is optional
- Rice or noodles and sesame seeds for serving
Method
The key to this dish is prepping all of the ingredients before you start cooking. It’s a simple recipe but once the skillet is going, it moves quickly!
Prep the veggies
Start by prepping the eggplant. I like to cut it into one inch wedges on a diagonal by rotating it 180 degrees every cut. Add the cut eggplant to a bowl of cold water with a bit of salt while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
The best way to clean the oyster mushrooms by wiping off any dirt with a damp cloth or damp paper towel. Do not rinse or immerse in water. If they come in big clumps you can tear them apart a little bit or cut off the bottom stem to separate the individual mushrooms.
Peel and thinly slice the fresh garlic cloves with a sharp knife. You can definitely mince or press it if you prefer, but there’s something I like about the thinly sliced garlic in this dish.
Wash and grate the fresh ginger. No need to peel the skin on the outside.
Separate the white/light green parts of the green onions from the dark green. Thinly slice the light part and set aside the dark green parts for garnish. If you want to make curly scallions, thinly slice the dark green parts lengthwise then place in a bowl of ice water for a few minutes. Drain and let dry.
Drain the eggplant and pat dry with a clean kitchen towel. In a large bowl, toss the eggplant chunks with half of the cornstarch until evenly coated in a thin layer.
Make the stir fry
In a small bowl, add hot water to the remaining cornstarch and set aside.
Heat about a tablespoon of avocado oil or vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium high heat and fry the eggplant on both sides until lightly charred. You may have to do this in two batches and add another tablespoon of oil as needed.
Remove from skillet and set aside. Add the mushrooms to the same skillet and sauté until they pick up a little golden brown color. Remove from the pan and set aside with eggplant.
Add sesame oil to the same skillet and add in the white parts of the scallions, garlic and ginger. Sauté until the garlic and scallions are softened and fragrant. Add soy sauce, cornstarch slurry and honey to the skillet and stir until a thick sauce comes together. Stir in rice vinegar and sambal oelek or sriracha if using then add vegetables back to the pan to coat in sauce and warm through. If the sauce become too thick, add a bit more water to loosen.
Serve over rice or noodles and garnish with sesame seeds and scallions.
What to serve with Japanese eggplant and oyster mushroom stir fry?
- Brown or white rice
- Stir fry rice noodles
- Steamed baby broccoli or green beans
- Add more protein with tofu or shrimp
More Asian-inspired recipes you’ll love
- Sheet Pan Teriyaki Salmon with Baby Bok Choy
- Asian Style Chicken Wings
- Tuna Poke Bowls
- Mushroom and Bok Choy Miso Ramen Noodle Soup
Japanese Eggplant and Oyster Mushroom Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 3 Japanese eggplants or substitute with Chinese eggplants
- ½ lb oyster mushrooms
- 4-6 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- 2 scallions white and green parts
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- ¼ – ½ cup hot water
- ¼ cup low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey substitute coconut sugar or brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- Neutral oil for frying eggplant
- Chili garlic sauce or sriracha to taste optional
- Rice, noodles, sesame seeds for serving
Instructions
- Start by prepping the eggplant. Slice into 1 inch chunks on a diagonal. Place eggplant chunks in a large bowl of cold, lightly salted water and let stand while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
- Clean the oyster mushrooms by wiping off any dirt with a damp cloth or paper towel. Do not rinse or immerse in water. If the mushrooms are clumped together in large groups, separate them a bit by tearing them apart or cutting off the big bottom end of the stem that joins them together. Set aside.
- Separate the white/light green part of the scallions from the dark green parts and thinly slice the white/light green parts. Set aside the dark green parts for garnishing the finished dish.
- Peel and thinly slice fresh garlic cloves. Grate fresh ginger.
- Drain eggplant and pat dry with a clean kitchen towel. Toss with half of the cornstarch until all pieces are evenly coated in a thin layer.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add a tablespoon of neutral oil to the pan. Fry the eggplant for 3-4 minutes on each side until browned a slightly charred. You may have to do this in two batches and add more oil as necessary. Remove eggplant from pan and set aside.
- Add a ¼ cup of hot tap water to the remaining cornstarch in a small bowl to make a slurry.
- Add a bit more neutral oil to the same skillet and fry the mushrooms until light golden brown. Remove from pan and set aside with eggplant.
- Lower the heat a little bit and add sesame oil to the same skillet. Fry the thinly sliced white/light green parts of the scallions, garlic and ginger for 1-2 minutes until softened and fragrant. Careful not to burn the garlic.
- Add in soy sauce, cornstarch slurry and honey and stir until the sauce thickens and comes together. Stir in rice vinegar and chili garlic sauce or sriracha to taste (if using for heat).
- Add eggplant and mushrooms to the sauce and toss to coat the vegetables. If the sauce gets too thick or siezes up, thin it out by adding more water 1-2 tablespoons at a time.
- Cook until vegetables are thoroughly coated and warmed through. Serve immediately over rice or noodles, garnished with dark green parts of scallions and sesame seeds.
Alison
Loved this recipe! The prep time is longer than indicated but was worth the end result. Yum!
Britney Brown-Chamberlain
I loved how this was nice and savory but had a subtle sweet flavor. It was so good!
Jazz
I love mushrooms and am usually iffy on eggplant but this recipe converted me to the eggplant camp! Will be making it again!
Robin
I really enjoy eggplant but never felt confident preparing it. Thanks to you I now have a go to recipe that is simply fantastic.
Marta
This Japanese eggplant and oyster mushroom stir fry caught my eye when I was looking for dinner recipes. I’m so glad I tried it. That honey soy sauce was divine!