Portobello Mushrooms with Chipotle
The earthy meatiness of portobello mushrooms pairs wonderfully with the smoky flavors of chipotle chiles. The mushrooms are sautéed in butter, which imparts a delicious nuttiness and helps the mushrooms brown. Toasted pine nuts or pumpkin seeds are a traditional and tasty garnish that increases the nuttiness of the dish. Small, fresh portobellos have tightly closed gills that are easy to slice through. The spongy gills of large portobellos must be scraped off with a spoon before the mushroom caps are sliced—but don’t discard them. The gills can be tossed in the pan and cooked with the rest of the mushroom, adding color and depth of flavor.
Recipe information
Yield
makes 8 tacos
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Remove the mushroom stems, chop them, and reserve. If any of the mushrooms are large, scrape off the gills with a spoon and reserve. Cut the caps into 1/4-inch-thick slices and reserve.
Step 2
Preheat a heavy skillet large enough to hold the mushrooms in a single layer for about 2 minutes over medium-high heat. Melt the butter in the pan, then add the sliced mushroom caps, chopped stems, any reserved gills, minced garlic, salt, and pepper, and sauté until golden brown and caramelized, 8 to 10 minutes. You may need to cook the mushrooms in batches to be sure they brown and not steam from overcrowding. Add more butter as the mushrooms cook, if necessary, as they have a tendency to absorb all the butter from the pan.
Step 3
Remove from the heat and mix in the chipotle puree and cilantro. Sprinkle on the cheese just to melt and serve immediately or keep warm until ready to serve.
Step 4
To serve, lay the tortillas side by side, open face and overlapping on a platter. Divide the filling equally between the tortillas and top with salsa and pumpkin seeds. Grab, fold, and eat right away. Or build your own taco: lay a tortilla, open face, in one hand. Spoon on some filling, top with salsa and pine nuts, and eat right away.
