Hoisin Stir Fry Bowls with Spicy Peanut Sauce

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup natural-style peanut butter
• 1 Tbsp sriracha
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• 3 Tbsp hot water
• 1/2 Tbsp neutral cooking oil
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 lb ground pork, chicken or turkey
• 8 oz button mushrooms
• 1 large carrot
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1/3 cup hoisin sauce
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 4 cups cooked rice
• 1/4 cup peanuts, chopped
• 2-3 green onions, sliced

Directions

1. Start with the spicy peanut sauce so it has a little time to settle into itself. In a small bowl, stir together the peanut butter, sriracha, soy sauce, brown sugar, and fresh ginger, grated on a fine-holed cheese grater to make about 1 tsp. Add the hot water 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing after each addition, until the sauce is loose enough to spoon over the bowls. Put it aside.
2. Finely mince the garlic, then grate another 1 tsp of fresh ginger. Warm the cooking oil in a large skillet over medium flame. Add the garlic and ginger, and cook for about 1 minute, just until the garlic softens. Add the pork and keep cooking, breaking it up as it browns, until it is fully cooked and crumbly, about 5 minutes.
3. As the pork cooks, rinse the mushrooms and cut them into small pieces. When the pork is cooked through, add the mushrooms to the skillet. Continue cooking for about 5 minutes, until they shrink down and their liquid has cooked off.
4. While the mushrooms are on the stove, peel the carrot and shred it on a large-holed cheese grater. Cut the red bell pepper into a fine dice. After the mushrooms have reduced, add the carrot, bell pepper, hoisin sauce, toasted sesame oil, and soy sauce to the pan. Stir everything together and cook just until the mixture is hot and evenly sauced. The soy sauce can shift depending on how salty your hoisin sauce is, so begin with 1/2 Tbsp and adjust to taste.
5. For each bowl, spoon in one cup cooked rice, then top it with 3/4-1 cup of the meat and vegetable mixture. Scatter sliced green onions over the top, spoon on 1-2 Tbsp of the spicy peanut sauce, and add about 1 Tbsp of chopped peanuts to finish.