Easy Vegan Portobello Mushroom Steaks (Gluten-Free)

These easy vegan Portobello Mushroom Steaks are juicy and meaty, but totally meat-free and healthy! Marinated and oven-baked, my mushroom steaks are perfect along side any vegetable or grain.

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Hey Internet, want a vegan steak? No, I'm not talking about seitan (although soon… hehe), I'm talking about mushrooms!

As you know, I'm kind of obsessed with mushrooms. This is a dish I've been making in some variation since we went vegan a few years ago.

Even before I felt comfortable in the kitchen, I loved making marinated baked mushrooms. They feel fancy but are ridiculously easy!

Not to mention, they're a fabulous side or main dish, complemented well by rice, potatoes, pasta, veggies--our favorite way to enjoy them is either on top of a salad or with some grilled asparagus with vegan Hollandaise sauce!

What You'll Need

The mushrooms will shrink a little, so keep that in mind when you're picking out your mushrooms. I look for mushrooms that are thick with a dome like cap on them (as opposed to more flat) as they have the most steak-like appearance and juicy flavor when cooked.

Besides some big thick portobello mushrooms, you'll need some low sodium soy sauce or gluten-free tamari (if needed), Balsamic vinegar, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and a tiny bit of coconut sugar.

The great thing about this recipe is you can use any marinade you'd like, and customize it to your tastes and what you have on hand. Speaking of which…

What Substitutions Can I Make?

I've always changed up the recipe depending on what I've had in my cabinet at the time whenever I've made these (and I've made them at least dozens of times by now).

The recipe I'm giving you today happens to be my favorite combination, but feel free to use any of the substitutions or anything else! If you create a great marinade for these, let us know in the comments below! Your ideas could help others as well. :)

Oh and you can use any mushrooms you like for this! This works great with smaller shrooms -- just reduce the cook time.

If you don't have low sodium soy sauce (use gluten-free tamari if gluten-free), you could use another salty liquid like Bragg's liquid aminos or coconut aminos (omit the coconut sugar if you do this as it's sweet enough already), vegan Worcestershire sauce or vegetable broth (add extra salt if it's not salty).

Balsamic vinegar can be replaced by any vinegar you like, or even juice from a lemon or lime. What matters here is some kind of acid to give it a little tang but the balsamic is quite good here (and I'm not even a big fan of it).

Smoked paprika gives this an awesome, well, smokey flavor, but you can use liquid smoke instead if you like.

Garlic powder because I'm lazy, but use fresh minced (or jarred minced) if you are so inclined.

Instead of coconut sugar, you can use regular sugar, brown sugar, or even a liquid sweetener like maple syrup or agave. If you use coconut aminos, you don't need the sweetener because it's kind of sweet already.

Here's some more ideas on how to mix up the marinade:

• fresh or powdered ginger
• add a little bouillon paste or powder for a massive kick of flavor
• minced onion or onion powder
• fresh or dried herbs
• sriracha or cayenne pepper for some heat
• use fresh citrus in place of vinegar
• melt some vegan butter and add that to the marinade (this would make it not oil-free)

How To Make Portobello Mushroom Steaks

As I've mentioned above, these vegan Portobello Mushroom Steaks are ridiculously easy. Let me elaborate.

• First, clean your mushrooms by rinsing and drying with a damp towel (use the towel to wipe away any remaining dirt). Trim the stem off (I like to save it in the freezer with other vegetable scraps to make vegetable stock/broth) and place upside down on a lined baking dish.
• A note about the baking dish: I line mine with foil because I hate when the marinade sticks to the bottom and makes clean up hard for me (let's be honest and change that to Mr. Zardyplants because he's a sweetheart who does all the dishes).
• If you don't want the foil to touch your food, add a layer of parchment paper between your mushrooms and the foil. Clean up will still be easy.
• Mix up the marinade in a jar, bowl, or measuring cup (a habit I got from my mom). Pour ¼ of the mixture over the mushrooms' undersides. Use your fingers or a basting brush to rub it in a bit.
• Let the mushrooms sit marinating for 10-15 minutes. Turn them over (so now they're right side up), score the top with a knife, and add a little more marinade (about ¼ more of the mixture).
• Put the mushrooms in the oven for 15 minutes. Pull them out, flip them once more, and add some of the remaining liquid.
• You can also use a spoon to grab any excess liquid in the pan and baste the mushrooms with it. It's too delicious to go to waste!
• Cook for 15 more minutes, then remove from oven.
• If I have leftover marinade I don't need, I will often add it to a salad dressing or to whatever I'm serving it with.
• And that's it! Let them rest to soak up the juices for about 10 minutes before slicing.

Anything else?

As always, I hope you love this recipe--I know I do (otherwise I wouldn't post it, duh).

Let me know in the comments below if you make it and tag me @Zardyplants on Instagram so I can see your beautiful recreations! If you tag me on IG, I will share your post in my stories :)

Also, one quick request: if you love how this recipe looks or tastes, please leave me a 5-star rating and a nice comment–ratings help more people find my recipes which helps me keep providing them! Thank you!

<3 Liz

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