Last Updated on July 15, 2023

Vegan Butter Shoyu Maitake is a Japanese style, quick-fix maitake mushroom recipe! The combination of soy sauce and “butter” enhances the umami flavor of maitake mushrooms.

Vegan “Butter” Shoyu Maitake Mushrooms

When it comes to typical Japanese cooking, you would think of soy sauce as one of the most popular ingredients. While that statement is definitely true, there is another flavor combination that the Japanese people use often that is;

Soy Sauce + Butter

The Japanese often refer to that as “butter shoyu” which literally means “butter and soy sauce.” There’s something about this particular combination that makes any food so appetizing and addicting!

When soy sauce and butter are combined, it’s so savory, buttery, and rich. As you may know, when soy sauce is getting cooked in a pan, it slightly changes the flavor profile which gives a slightly smoky element on top of the savory aspect. As a result, that smokiness and the aroma of cooked soy sauce work magically with the creamy rich buttery taste (from vegan butter.)

Butter shoyu taste works with variety of Japanese ingredients and the dishes such as cabbage, potatoes, tofu, corn, pastas, fried rice, just to name a few.

Maitake Mushrooms

Maitake mushrooms are not a popular ingredient in the U.S. while shiitake has definitely gained its popularity. If you never tried maitake mushrooms before, you would really want to give it a try!

Maitake is rich in umami taste, has a good crunchy texture, and easy to cook. It’s great for sautéing as a side dish for a bowl of rice, but also works well for pasta like vegan butter shoyu maitake pasta, miso soup, tempura and more!

If you would like to know more about maitake mushrooms, check out the post of maitake mushroom on my Vegan Japanese Pantry Guide.

Condiment Suggestions

Vegan Butter Shoyu Maitake Mushrooms taste great as is! But if you would like to enhance the experience, I suggest you to consider some Japanese condiments such as:

• Grated daikon radish
• Shichimi pepper (Japanese 7-pepper blends)

Grated daikon radish adds some freshness to cut through the richness of butter and shoyu (soy sauce.) For some spicy kick, shichimi pepper (Japanese 7-pepper blends) will be great! The combination of the grated daikon radish and the shichimi pepper is what I actually do here in this recipe.

I have a daikon radish grater but you can use a fine grater that you may have in your kitchen.

How to Serve Vegan Butter Shoyu Maitake Mushrooms

I highly recommend serving vegan butter shoyu maitake mushrooms with a bowl of Japanese rice. That’s the way Japanese do!

Another one would be served as a topping of avocado toast. You may have tried avocado toast with mushrooms which tastes great. So why not trying with maitake mushrooms?

Be sure to check out the “Step-by-Step Instructions (w/ Photos)” after the Printable Recipe!

Print Recipe

5 from 33 votes

Vegan Butter Shoyu Maitake Mushrooms

Vegan Butter Shoyu Maitake is a Japanese style, quick-fix maitake mushroom recipe! The combination of soy sauce and "butter" enhances the umami flavor of maitake mushrooms.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time10 minutes mins

Total Time15 minutes mins

Course: Appetizers & Starters, Lunch, Dinner

Cuisine: Japanese, Japanese Inspired, Vegan

Servings: 2 people

Author: Plant-Based Matters

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp unsalted vegan butter
• 8 oz maitake mushrooms tear into small pieces (trim off the bottom if needed)
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• Pinch of sea salt adjust to taste
• 2 oz daikon radish peeled and grated (optional)
• Japanese shichimi pepper optional

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Heat up a frying pan at medium high heat. Add vegan butter. Once the butter is melted add maitake mushrooms. Cook for 3-5 minutes or so until the maitake has shrunk down and slightly caramelized.
• Reduce the heat to medium low. Add soy sauce give a quick stir. Add a pinch of sea salt to adjust the seasoning.
• Serve as is or with grated daikon radish and/or shichimi pepper.

Notes

Choice of Butter

• Use unsalted vegan butter for this recipe.
• If using salted butter, adjust the amount of salt to season accordingly.

 

Maitake Mushrooms

• Maitake is one of a popular mushroom in Japan. The Japanese word “maitake” means "dancing mushrooms" in Japanese.
• Maitake mushroom is rich in umami and delicate but slightly crispy texture. It’s also rich in fiber.

 

How to Serve

• It’s best to serve with a bowl of Japanese rice!

Did you make this recipe?Mention @plantbased_matters or tag #plantbased_matters!

Step-by-Step Instructions (w/ Photos)

Grate daikon radish (optional) and have all the ingredients ready.

1. Heat up a frying pan at medium high heat. Add vegan butter.

Once the butter is melted add maitake mushrooms. Cook for 3-5 minutes or so until the maitake has shrunk down and slightly caramelized.

2. Reduce the heat to medium low. Add soy sauce give a quick stir.

Add a pinch of sea salt to adjust the seasoning.

3. Serve as is or with grated daikon radish and/or shichimi pepper.

If you enjoy the recipe, please share, leave a comment below and tag us @plantbased_matters on Instagram! We appreciate your kind support 🙂