As I've said a few times on this blog, I'm not a vegetarian. But I do have some sympathies with them - my sister is a vegetarian*, and eating lighter on the planet makes sense to me. I try to make a vegetarian dinner at least one day a week.**
*Hi, Deb!
**Yes, I know, you wouldn't know it from reading this blog. I tried Mark Bittman's "Vegan until six" approach from Food Matters
, but I couldn't make it work. Â I count too much on intentional leftovers for my lunch. Â I kept winding up with gladware containers of dinners that I wasn't "allowed" to eat. Â So I switched to being a part-time vegetarian. Â I try to eat one or two vegetarian days a week.
Portobello burgers are one of my regular vegetarian dishes. When I do a hamburger cookout for our kids' parties, I always throw a few of these on the grill. That way, my sister has something she can eat, as does anyone who wants something healthier than regular burgers.
*I'm not sure how much healthier; by the time I'm done marinating them in oil and topping them with cheese, I think most of the caloric advantage is gone. Â But they sure do taste good!
📖 Recipe Card
Grilled Portobello Mushroom Burgers with Grilled Onions
- Total Time: 27 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Description
A vegetarian burger - portobello caps marinated in balsamic vinaigrette, grilled gill side up to hold in their juices, and topped with melted pepper jack and grilled red onion.
Ingredients
Mushrooms and Onions
- 8 large portobello mushroom caps (a little larger than your buns)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 8 slices red onion, ¼ inch thick
- 8 slices pepper jack cheese
Balsamic Vinaigrette Marinade
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- Pinch of salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
To Serve
- 8 whole grain hamburger buns
- Whole grain or dijon mustard
- Lettuce leaves
- Tomato slices
- Pickles
Instructions
- Prep the mushrooms and onions: Wipe any dirt off the mushroom caps with a damp towel, and pull off the stems. Put the caps in a large baking dish, gill side up, and sprinkle with the kosher salt. Sprinkle the onion slices with salt too. Whisk the marinade ingredients together, and pour evenly over the mushroom caps.
- Prepare the grill: Set up your grill for direct medium heat. On a gas grill, preheat with all burners on high for 10 minutes, then turn them down to medium.
- Grill: Put the mushrooms on the grill top side down (gill side up), along with the onion slices. Close the lid and cook for 5 minutes. Move the onions to a plate, and rotate the mushrooms 90 degrees - don't flip them, or you'll lose the juices. Cook for another 3 to 5 minutes, until the juices in the mushrooms are bubbling and the caps start to wilt. Top each mushroom with a slice of pepper jack and a grilled onion slice, and cook for 1 to 2 minutes more, until the cheese melts. While the cheese melts, toast the buns cut side down on the grill for 30 seconds to 2 minutes - watch them closely.
- Serve: Spread mustard on the bottom buns, and top with the mushrooms, keeping them gill side up. Serve with lettuce, tomato and pickles on the side.
Notes
Equipment: A grill (I use a Weber Summit 650) and a large baking dish.
The secret is to cook the mushrooms entirely gill side up. If you flip them, all the juices pour into the grill. If the bottoms start to burn, move them to indirect heat (over an unlit burner) and cook with the lid closed.
Try my homemade pickles on top.
Cheese: Use your favorite. Sharp cheddar melts well, or spread goat cheese on the top bun instead of melting cheese on the mushroom.
Vinaigrette: Use any oil and vinegar vinaigrette you like - my lemon herb dressing is great. Skip creamy dressings, which may curdle on the grill.
Toppings: Go nuts - avocado, roasted red or poblano peppers, pickled onions, barbecue sauce...
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
Questions? Comments? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
Related Posts:
Why not make a grilled vegetable side dish while you're at it?
Grilled Zucchini recipe
Grilled Corn recipe
Grilled Asparagus recipe
Inspired by:
Mark Bittman: Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating with More Than 75 Recipes
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Alison says
This recipe is what brought me to your site and is one of our favorites--we've been enjoying it for a few years now and have it at least a couple of times a month. Since my husband is on a low-sodium diet, we don't use the salt, and I can honestly say we don't even miss it.
Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says
Great! I'm glad you liked them. (If it's any consolation, my 11, 9 and 7 year olds won't touch them either...)
Shawn says
Mike,
Wow. I can't thank you enough for this one, my wife and I loved these (Our 2 year old not so much).
Weber One Touch (18.5)
MikeV @ DadCooksDinner says
@Anonymous:
You're welcome! Glad you like it.
Anonymous says
Yum! Thanks for the recipe.
MikeV @ DadCooksDinner says
@Tino:
Yum. Aioli is a great suggestion for a topping. Thanks for the idea!
MikeV
Tino says
I do something very similar when I'm in the mood for a portobello burger. I also add fresh thyme to my marinade (adds a nice earthy flavor to the mushroom). For a topping, try making a roasted garlic aioli.
* Roasted garlic
* Egg yolk
* Dijon mustard
* White wine or Champagne vinegar
* Grapeseed or light olive oil
* Salt and pepper
You get a nice moistness from the aioli and that nice hint of sweetness from the roasted garlic. It also works well as a topping for a fish fry, too.
I'm always surprised at how quickly the meatless version disappear over the meat-laden version.
Tom
Exploring Food My Way
A Year on the Grill says
wow those look great!
I just made an all vegetarian meal as a challenge (no big salad was allowed). I made mushrooms as well, but they sure didn;t look that good