Annie Barbecued portobello cheeseburgers are my ultimate spring and summer comfort food. I’ve been eating these things since I was a kid (mainly when my fam went vegetarian for a few years), so they’re nostalgic goodness to me. The process is simple—season a mushroom cap, grill it, and top it with cheese and barbecue sauce. But this time I decided to dress it up a with quick marinade and a heaping pile of crisp pear slaw.
Have you ever had one of those pears that just wouldn’t ripen? That’s where this slaw recipe began. Slaw is the perfect way to use those stubbornly firm pears. Apples, Asian pears, or even jicama could be swapped in for the pear, if you prefer.
Now about the barbecue sauce. You can make the sauce yourself or use your favorite purchased brand. Don’t be afraid to make your own—it literally takes less than 10 minutes to whip up my go-to sauce.
Portobello Cheeseburgers with Pear Slaw
Ingredients
- 6 Tbsp. olive oil
- 2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar
- 2 tsp. dried oregano, rosemary, and/or sage, crushed
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
- 4 medium to large Portobello mushroom caps
- 1 large firm pear (or 2 small), julienned or coarsely shredded
- 1 stalk celery, thinly sliced
- 1 carrot, julienned or coarsely shredded
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
- 1 small lemon
- 4 to 6 oz. Cheddar cheese, thinly sliced
- Burger buns
- Barbecue sauce (or use my quick homemade one, here)
Instructions
- For marinade, in a small bowl whisk together 3 Tbsp. of the olive oil, vinegar, oregano, garlic powder, mustard, salt and pepper. Place mushrooms in a large resealable bag. Drizzle in marinade and turn several times to coat. Chill at least 30 minutes or up to 4 hours.
- Meanwhile, for slaw, in a medium bowl combine pear, celery, carrot, and onion. Squeeze lemon juice over all; toss to coat. Drizzle with the remaining 3 Tbsp. olive oil and toss again. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper. Cover and chill until serving time.
- Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Remove mushrooms from marinade and grill, gill-side down, 5 minutes. Turn and grill 5 minutes more or until tender, topping with the cheddar cheese in the last 1 or 2 minutes of grilling. Serve on buns with barbecue sauce and slaw.
