SMOKY PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS

Well since the vegan cooking retreat in Wales, I have discovered a love of smoky flavoured food! 
Smoky flavours are big in Mexican food and we had a whole spread of chilli, bean, dishes to eat our way through! It wasn't difficult, the food was all delicious!
The main ingredient to impart a smoky flavour is smoked paprika, quite different to sweet paprika or normal paprika. It generally comes in a wee square tin and is a lovely deep red colour. A little goes a long way! This is a store cupboard essential in our house.
Jenna spent a  few months in Mexico last year and just loved all the vibrant food. Chillies are a big part of the cuisine and there are so many varieties, some of them extremely hot! I am a total chilli wimp and really can't handle hot food, unless I have some cooling yoghurt or a big jug of cold water!
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Anyway, back to these delicious and so simple big portobello mushrooms with a lovely smoky marinade.

These literally take 5 minutes to prepare, then they are cooked in the oven, no faffing about with hot frying pans! I like to make life as simple as possible and will always choose to oven bake rather than fry foods in oil. Oven baked is healthier too so another reason to use this method.

I love mushrooms of all varieties but the big portobello mushrooms are fabulous sliced and marinated, they almost taste meaty so make a great alternative to animal protein.

Mushrooms are a great source of protein, fibre, iron, zinc, selenium, folate, B vitamins and are low in carbohydrates so are always a healthy choice. 

So back to this extremely simple recipe! I kind of made it up and it worked so well I've made it a few times! Great when you need a meal in a hurry and this tastes and looks good enough to serve up at a dinner party!
I have served them on a bed of sweet potato mash and also on a pea & mint puree, both delicious drizzled with any extra marinade.
You can use a mixture of mushrooms, you will need around 500g or around 6 big portobello mushrooms for 4 people. They do tend to shrink a bit when cooked!

I really hope you give this a go, its so easy and tastes delicious! You can impress your friends and family with a healthy meat free main!

So here is the very simple recipe.....

Smoky Portobello Mushrooms
Ingredients

• 6 big portobello mushrooms or 500g mushrooms of choice
•  1 tablespoon rapeseed or olive oil
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons tamari sauce
• 2 tablespoons tomato puree
• 1 heaped teaspoon smoked paprika
• sea salt and black pepper to taste
• fresh thyme and flat leaf parsley (optional but nice)

Method

1. Give your mushrooms a good wipe with some damp kitchen roll.
2. Slice them and put them into a large flat dish, in a single layer if possible, or on a flat baking tray.
3. Measure the oil, tamari, maple syrup, tomato puree, smoked paprika and salt and pepper into a jug and give it a good mix. 
4. Either brush the mushrooms on both sides with the marinade or if you are using smaller mushrooms, just pour the marinade over and gently toss to coat them. Sprinkle with some fresh thyme if you have any!
5. If you have time to spare, then leave the mushrooms aside for an hour or so for the flavours to develop. This step isn't essential as the mushrooms will be delicious even if you cook them straight away!
6. Spread the mushrooms out on your baking tray, pour over any extra marinade and bake in the oven at 180 C for around 20 minutes. 
7. Serve on a bed of mashed potato, sweet potato or mashed peas, drizzled with extra marinade and garnish with chopped flat leaf parsley.

​                                            ......your health in your hands.....