The garlicky mushroom stir-fry of my dreams

Plus, must-see bread TV

Welcome to the Wednesday Dispatch, a quick check-in featuring a freshly-published recipe, plus a random rec for a thing I’m loving at the moment. Let’s jump in!

Tofu Mushroom Stir-Fry

When I was a kid, we would get takeout from our local Chinese restaurant on the occasional Friday night. This was always cause for celebration because, as Ukrainian immigrants, we were still not that familiar with many cuisines besides our own. Not to mention the concept of takeout in general – as in, someone else is gonna cook our dinner?!

The thick brown paper bag stapled shut at the top, the white boxes stuffed with fried rice and lo mein, the crunchy, pleasantly-greasy egg rolls – as an American, one might take these magical inventions for granted, but zero of the magic was lost on us.

This tofu mushroom stir-fry is inspired by the chicken in garlic sauce we would sometimes get (although, it is in no way meant to be “authentic”). Specifically, I wanted to replicate the vibe of that thick, glossy sauce for two of my now-favorite ingredients: tofu and mushrooms.

This dish comes together in 35 minutes and entirely in one pan, making it ideal for weeknights. It’s made with simple ingredients that you might already have in your kitchen as we speak.

Continuing on with my quest to find light and uplifting TV, last weekend I started Breaking Bread, a 6-part documentary series that follows actor Tony Shalhoub (Monk, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) as he travels to different cities to eat and learn to make different types of bread.

Yes, this is a real show concept someone signed off on!

And yes, it is as lovely as it sounds. Tony seems like the nicest person, who loves bread as much as yours truly. And there’s a real emphasis on diversity in terms of the chefs and bakeries featured. So far I only watched the New York episode and immediately starred every place mentioned in Google Maps. It’s the epitome of feel-good television. (Streaming on HBO Max)

This Substack is the newsletter companion to my site, thenewbaguette.com. You can find all my recipes published there in full, with helpful tips and step-by-step photos. You can also follow along on Instagram, where I share video tutorials and behind-the-scenes content.