Marinated portobello mushrooms provide endless opportunities (recipe)

Mushroom lovers probably already know this; Portobello mushrooms are incredibly versatile! At the Cracker Box we put these tasty fungi on a breakfast sandwich with Swiss cheese, a couple eggs, and tomato.

But with their meaty versatility, it's quite easy to turn this into a different meal all together. You can slice and sauté them as a delicious side dish, or leave them whole, roast them in a 350⁰ oven for about 10 minutes, and serve as a meat replacement. Or even stuff them with any combination of ingredients and create an all-in-one meal!

Think about feta and spinach topped with breadcrumbs. Or even sausage, rice, and peppers. The possibilities are endless!

Marinated portobello mushrooms

Portobello mushrooms
2 cups balsamic vinegar
2 cups olive oil
2-3 shallots
4 cloves garlic
3 TBL honey
1 TBL kosher salt
A pinch of black pepper
5 or 6 sprigs of thyme

Depending on how many you’re feeding and their appetites; I usually do 1 mushroom per person.

Start by cutting the stem out and use a spoon to scrape out the gills. Next use a damp paper towel to gently wipe off any excess dirt from the surface of the mushroom.

Chop or julienne the shallots. I personally like the longer slivers in with mine.

Minced or chop the garlic, or just roughly crush your garlic depending on how much you like garlic.

Combine all of the ingredients aside from mushrooms in a mixing bowl and combine.

In a large baking dish, place mushrooms upside down and cover with marinade. Let chill in refrigerator for 30 minutes up to a couple hours. You just want the meat of the mushroom to soak up all that goodness.

You can then take the out of the liquid and store them in the refrigerator, in a tightly sealed container, or cook them right up. I prefer to leave the shallots and garlic with the mushrooms but discard the stems of the thyme.