MUSHROOM THAI LARB

Thai larb is a meat salad variation. It's hot, sour, sharp, everything you'd expect from a rustic Thai dish.
This one is a vegetarian version of a thai larb, using shitake mushrooms as the main ingredient instead. Using mushrooms ensures that the 'meaty' texture is still present, while of course, being a lot lighter. Shitake mushrooms are easy and cheap to find, and for this particular recipe, I'm using the fresh ones instead of dried. 
Shitake mushrooms are high in vit B5 (hello nice skin/hair!), selenium and zinc, and this meal, together with fresh herbs, peanuts, garlic, and ginger, can only mean good things for you.

What You Need:
200 gms shitake mushrooms, cut into dice-sized pieces
1 big clove garlic, peeled and chopped
1/2 inch ginger, grated
1 red chili, sliced thin
1 torch ginger, thinly sliced
Some mint or coriander, roughly torn
1 handful toasted peanuts
1 tbsp fish sauce
Juice from 1/2 lime
Lettuce or cabbage

What You Do:
1. Before starting to cook, it helps to get all the ingredients prepped and ready, because this will be fast cooking over fire.
2. In a large flat bottomed pan on low heat, add 2 tbsp cooking oil. Add diced mushrooms, and cook for 4 mins.
3. Add chopped garlic and grated ginger, and half the chili. Toss and cook for a further 2 minutes.
4. Turn off gas. Add the torch ginger, half the peanuts, fish sauce and lime juice. Taste. Adjust according to your tastes. You're looking for a balance of heat, saltiness and sourness.
5. Transfer to a plate, over some cabbage or lettuce leaves. Sprinkle the rest of the chili, peanuts and coriander/mint if using.
6. How to eat: Great on its own in the cabbage/lettuce leaf 'cups' (great for when you're trying to eat healthier!), or as a dish for your rice.