Portabello Mushroom Burger

These mushrooms are my go to when I am craving something meaaaty. I don’t eat beef anymore but in my opinion, these are better than beef burgers. After I cook them, I put them on a freshly toasted bun with either goat or blue cheese, some mustard, arugula, and maybe even a fried egg. Customize it and make it your own - I promise you’ll love it.

What you’ll need:

makes 2 servings but can easily be doubled

• 2 large portabello mushroom caps

• 2 T olive oil 

• 2 t paprika 

• 1 t soy sauce 

• 2 T Balsamic vinegar 

• 1/2 t red pepper flakes & 2 t kosher salt 

• 2 T thyme leaves

• 1 T lemon juice 

What you’ll do:

First, pre-heat that oven of yours to 375f. Next, clean your dirty little portabello mushrooms. To clean the portabellos, scoop out the thick stem with a spoon and wipe off pieces of dirt with a dry towel. Once cleaned, mix all the above ingredients in a bowl until combined and then coat your cleaned portabellos in them. Let them marinate for about 20 minutes at room temp and turn them every 5 minutes or so to make sure they’re evenly coated. If you have mushrooms on the larger side, mix in a little more olive oil to the marinade. 

Once marinated for 20 minutes, bake them in the oven for 20 minutes, flipping halfway through, until then become tender. Next, heat a cast iron or other skillet on medium high heat. Once your pan is hot, sear on both sides for about 3 minutes - you want a little bit of a char here. Your mushrooms shouldn’t be dry, but if they are, add a little oil to the pan first. Because I like to eat them as a burger, I will sometimes put weight on them to flatten them and get a better sear (another cleaned pan on top for instance).

Add it to a toasted burger bun with some blue cheese, arugula and a fried egg for the ultimate deliciousness.