Vegetarian Herb Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

Vegetarian Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms are loaded with your favorite herbed stuffing, extra kale, and an indulgent dose of gruyere cheese. They’ll be a hit on Thanksgiving as an entree, or side, for everyone around the table!

Here we are: a few days before Thanksgiving and I’m bringing the ultimate vegetarian entree to you. Nothing like just in the nick of time, am I right?

Whether your Thanksgiving menu is set or not, I PROMISE you that this recipe is going to be served over and over throughout the next few months. It’s cozy, savory, and gives you all the Thanksgiving feels.

And what’s better than that – especially on any old weekday night when you need a comforting dinner? Nada, I tell you! Nothing.

How to Prepare Mushrooms

I’m so glad you asked. Because this is v. v. important.

Do not rinse your mushrooms under running water.

I repeat: do not rinse them under running water.

What the heck do I do then? They’re dirty! I know. I know. This is what you need to do: take a damp rag and wipe them clean.

Yes, seriously. Wipe them clean. I have a specific towel that I use (becuase yes, it WILL get dirty) so that I’m not wasting paper towels (eco-friendly!), but you can use paper towels if it’s what you have.

Get it damp, and wipe away. You’ll want to rotate the towel every so often as it does become dirtier, but that’s it.

Why do you need to wipe instead of rinsing the mushrooms? Because if you rinse the mushrooms under running water, they will soak up all that dirty water that’s created. They’re kind of like sponges in that way. So avoid the icky water flavor in your mushrooms and go ahead and wipe them clean.

Trust me, we want all the delicious flavors to come through instead.

To prepare the stuffed mushrooms, you’ll also remove the stems and scoop out the insides. The “gills” as I’ve heard them referred to. This will create more of a bowl for your stuffing. Want to leave them in? Go ahead, I won’t stop you!

How to Cook Portobello Mushrooms

I’d much rather cook them than spell them, but for the record, I’m pretty sure you can spell them portabella, too. But Google corrected me every time, so Os we’re going with. Onto the goodness…

The key to cooking mushrooms is to let the water seep out. No matter what kind of recipe you’re making, they’re going to release water. And you don’t want it to water down your recipe.

So before you stuff these mushrooms, you’re going to first bake them for 10 minutes. This way, they’ll release some water, you’ll drain it out, and our stuffing will keep its texture intact. Yep, crispy bits, melt-in-your-mouth bits, it’s all gonna be there.

But here’s the key to preventing soggy mushroom bottoms. Are you ready for it?

You need to use an oven-safe cooling/wire rack placed inside your baking sheet.

Now, need is a strong word because technically you can make these without the rack. However, the bottoms will get soggier than they would if you use a rack.

And I definitely don’t like soggy bottoms…

So on the rack they go. With a dash of salt to help those liquids release (and hello, flavor). Once they’ve baked, you’ll carefully pour out the liquid and continue on your way.

The Stuffing

Basically I was looking for any and every way to have my favorite Vegetarian Herbed Stuffing more times than just the holidays.

And I did it. I figured it out and by the grace of all things good, it’s even better than I could’ve imagined.

We have the traditional stuffing that starts with dried out bread cubes. Yes, let them dry out, this helps them hold their shape when the egg and stock get added.

Then we’ll add in the mix of onion, celery, garlic, and kale. The kale is a special addition to this version of the stuffing to make sure there was a little more oomph – and color.

And do not forget about the gruyere cheese. If you haven’t figured out yet, I’m obsessed with gruyere.

If you have any questions about it – I did answer some in my latest Mushroom Bruschetta post (ok – mushrooms. gruyere. clearly I’m obsessed with it all).

Then it’s time to stuff! In goes a heaping helping of the stuffing into the mushroom cap. It’s topped with – you guessed it! – more gruyere.

After it bakes to bubbly crisp perfection, an epic, savory dish that can be served as a meatless main dish, a side, or really, whatever you dang well please!

P.S. No matter what you’re enjoying this Thanksgiving (ahem but vegetarian stuffed portobello mushrooms would be YUM), I hope you have an amazing day that’s filled with deliciousness, laughs, and love. Much love to YOU!

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