Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Portobello “Steaks”



These last few warm days with the tease of the toasty summer to come has me itching to get out the grill. And by get out the grill I mean make sweet puppy dog eyes until the fella drags the grill out of the garage and does his manly imperative above the open flame. The grill is his territory and I'm happy to let him keep it.

It's been a crazy week and our cooking schedule has been thrown into a tizzy so I settled for the next best thing to the grill on such a tight schedule. We got out the grill pan and tossed some marinated portobellos on it and reveled in the meaty herby smells filling the kitchen. These couldn't be easier and I always do at least a double batch because they taste so good I can guarantee each of us will want to eat more than one. And until the nice weather is here to stay that grill pan is going to be getting a lot of use.



Portobello “Steaks”


2 large portobello mushrooms, stems removed
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup dry red drinking wine
1/4 cup oil
1-1/2 tsp. dried thyme
2 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. Montreal or Chicago-style steak spice
salt and pepper, to taste


The day or morning before you plan on serving these, mix together all ingredients but the mushrooms in a large glass or ceramic casserole dish with a lid. Lightly score the tops of the mushrooms in a criss-cross pattern. Place the mushrooms top-up on the marinade and swish around so the liquid fills some of the spaces in the underside, then flip over and lay them down with the tops in the marinade. Cover and let marinate until evening, or at least 4 hours, flipping the “steaks” over occasionally.


Preheat a cast-iron frypan or griddle; spray lightly with oil spray. Sear the mushrooms on each side quickly, then pour the marinade over mushrooms and sauté for a few minutes so that the marinade cooks and the steaks absorb the flavors, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove to serving dishes and spoon more marinade over top.


Original recipe from Diet Desserts and Dogs Blog.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Oooh, yum.

I'm think these would make an awesome burger topped with caramelized onions and goat cheese.

Sharon said...

You mean you actually know what you're having more than half an hour before you start? Huh.

Emily said...

We're giant nerds, we plan everything out for the week. Otherwise we would never eat.