Saucy Chipotle Mushrooms

Need a veggie main? Sometimes I have a craving for mashed potatoes and my entire meal plan basically revolves around "something to go with the potatoes."

Enter mushrooms.

Before I stopped eating meat, mushrooms were never my choice. I would tolerate them if they were cooked WITH something I wanted to eat, or chopped in very small pieces and added to another dish, but never would I order something like stuffed mushrooms off an appetizer menu. Know what I mean? However, after cutting out meat from our diet, and learning how beneficial mushrooms are to our health, I started incorporating them into more and more meals, and I have found my favorite way to eat them.

(By the way, if you aren't sold on 'shrooms, factor in the fact that studies have shown an over 60% decreased risk for breast cancer with as little as 1/2 a mushroom a day. Study here.)

So here are my tips to start incorporating more of these little smurf houses into your meals: marinate them, and don't undercook them. Additionally, when adding mushrooms to a dish, wait until they brown before adding your salt, otherwise they will hold on to more of their liquid and won't cook down as well.

Once everything's in the skillet, you'll cook this for about 20-25 minutes over medium heat to allow the veggies to release their liquid and to soften and brown. Keep the heat low so your onions don't burn before your mushrooms are soft.

Ingredients:

2-3 Tablespoons* Chipotle in Adobo (you can buy these canned, and run them through a food processor to form a paste or buy the paste jarred.)

1/2 cup Coconut Aminos

3-4 Tablespoons Red Wine and/or 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce (I used both, you can use either/or if you have an aversion to alcohol. If vegan preferred, you can find vegan Worcestershire, but I usually just settle for organic.)

1/3 cup Avocado Oil

1 teaspoon Dried Parsley

2 cloves Garlic, pressed or minced

salt/pepper

1 pint Whole Baby Bella mushrooms or mushrooms of your choice

1 red bell pepper

1 yellow bell pepper

1 yellow onion

oil for pan (optional)

Directions:

In a large, shallow dish, add all liquid ingredients and garlic and whisk to combine.

Wash, dry and trim mushrooms (we don't mind stems, I usually trim the dry tips after I rinse and dry.

Place mushrooms into the marinade, caps down, and let marinate for 20-30 minutes, turning halfway through to coat them as much as possible.

Meanwhile, roughly chop the peppers and onion in pieces close to the size of the mushrooms. Heat 1 tablespoon of avocado or coconut oil (if using) in a large skillet over medium heat to stir fry the peppers and onion. (for oil-free, add a splash of veggie broth or water)

Once veggies soften, move them to one side of the skillet, and place the marinated mushrooms, caps down, on the other side. Reserve the marinade liquid. Let the mushrooms cook until they soften and start to brown, stirring them slightly and the other veggies as needed to keep from sticking. Once the caps start to brown, integrate the mushrooms into the other veggies, add your salt and pepper, and continue to stir and toss until all are tender and slightly browned, adding the reserved marinade as needed for moisture and desired sauciness. If the sauce is too thick, add more water or broth.

Serve over rice or mashed potatoes.

*We like spice. If you prefer a milder level of heat, start with a 1T at a time and taste as you go. The spice will intensify as it cooks. If needed, add more coconut aminos or a little veggie broth.