Vegetarian Gua Bao

Gua bao is a dish I grew up with! Basically, it’s often eaten as a split bun stuffed with pork belly and cucumber and sometimes other toppings like cilantro. Although as a child, my strongest memory is taking those split buns and making them into odd fusion PB&J sandwiches! After I went pescetarian, I missed having gua bao, so I came up with a vegetarian substitute that swaps mushrooms for pork belly. It tastes just as good!

Ingredients

This recipe is a bit of a make-your-own sandwich. :) The only really time-consuming thing is the mushrooms.

• Shiitake mushrooms, can also use king oyster or white button
• Cucumbers
• Hoisin sauce
• Steamed white bao buns – you can find these at a local Asian market!

Making Vegetarian Gua Bao

Making the mushrooms is quite simple! All you have to do is sweat them out in a pan, then make a quick sauce to coat them. Then they’re all ready to be put in sandwiches with a generous dollop of hoisin sauce and some crunchy cucumbers!

Tips

• Be sure to cook the mushrooms on high heat. Try to get all the water evaporated out of them so that they won’t be too runny. Takes some patience, but it’s worth it!
• Peanuts, cilantro, and even sometimes jalapenos are some creative toppings to add!
• If you don’t have hoisin sauce, you can use oyster sauce or black bean sauce as well.

Vegetarian Gua Bao

An easy vegetarian version!

Prep Time: 0 min	Cook Time: 20 min
Total Time: 20 min	Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 1 lb shiitake, king oyster, or white button mushrooms, sliced
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 12 steamed white gua bao buns
• 2 cucumbers, sliced into fine spears
• Hoisin sauce, for serving

Instructions

1. In a large skillet over high heat, sear the mushrooms and saute until the water has evaporated.
2. Add the soy sauce and oyster sauce to the mushrooms and toss to coat.
3. To assemble a gua bao, add the mushrooms, sliced cucumbers, and hoisin sauce into a bun.
4. Enjoy!

Notes

This recipe is vegetarian and dairy-free. To make it vegan, you can use vegan buns!