Roasted King and Oyster Mushroom Tacos

👩🏻‍🍳 Tamara Talks – About Oyster Mushroom Tacos and Protein

Tacos are a thing at Andersen casa, as evidenced by the fact that I have an entire category dedicated to taco recipes! I have done a couple of vegetarian tacos like this, including these air fryer tofu tacos and these nopales tacos. I really do try to get to 20 grams of protein, but it doesn’t always happen.

What’s a girl to do? I do my best to practice #MeatlessMonday even if it’s not on Monday in an attempt to do my small part to fight climate change. My husband and I work out regularly, and keep track of macronutrients – calories, protein, carbohydrates, and fats. I don’t “sweat” it when we have a vegetarian meal that falls short on protein because most days, we get plenty of lean protein, and it all evens out.

Meaty mushrooms are a great stand-in for the taste and texture of animal-based protein. I have been intrigued by the idea of doing mushroom tacos for years (literally). The maillard reaction bumps up the flavor of mushrooms in the process of roasting them, and this marinade plus roasting really landed right on what I was looking for.

I stopped short of providing directions for taco toppings. This mushroom taco recipe focuses on the mushrooms and the umami miso marinade. My hope is that you will run with it!

📋 Ingredients Notes

Here is a quick look at the ingredients in the recipe – it’s handy to use at the grocery store or as a summary of what you need. Skip to the recipe for quantities.

• mushrooms – Given that this is a taco recipe for king oyster and oyster mushrooms, I specify them. However, you can adapt the recipe to other mushrooms as well. We have a new Asian market in McAllen that carries beautiful king, oyster, shiitake and enoki mushrooms. I’ve really been enjoying playing with them! NOTE: King mushrooms are a variety of oyster mushrooms.
• miso paste – Miso is a fermented soybean paste that is composed of 3 ingredients – soybeans, salt, and koji. There are over 1,300 types of miso, but white (shiro), and red (aka) are the most common in the US. Both contain the same ingredients, but aka miso ferments longer, so the umami flavor is more intense. You can use either, but I prefer aka miso if I have it.
• neutral oil
• vinegar – I use this aged black rice vinegar, but regular aged balsamic is a great substitute.
• soy sauce
• garlic
• ground cumin
• chipotle powder

Toppings Ideas

NOTE: If you’re vegan, omit cheese, or use a plant-based cheese. There are many great options available now!

🔪 Step-By-Step Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 400º.

• Prep the mushrooms – Slice off the stem ends of your mushrooms. Using a damp cloth or paper towel, brush away any dirt or debris. Slice into manageable pieces (as shown in the photos).
• Make the marinade – Whisk together the marinade ingredients.

• Combine the marinade and the mushrooms.

• Spread the marinated oyster mushrooms out in a single layer on a baking sheet. DO NOT CROWD THE PAN!

• Roast the oyster mushrooms – Place the mushrooms in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so. Remove the roasted mushrooms when they are tender, somewhat dry, and caramelized. NOTE: AVOID BURNING.
• Make the toppings – While the oyster mushrooms roast, prepare your tortillas and toppings.

• Assemble tacos – Arrange roasted mushrooms on warmed tortillas, and add toppings as desired. Enjoy!

🌮How to Warm Tortillas

Warmed on a comal or cast iron skillet:

This is my favorite way to heat up tortillas if I have time. Get the comal or skillet really hot. Once it’s ready, place your tortillas on the skillet and allow them to heat for about 30 seconds on each side. You will start to see the tortillas bubble up and that is how you know they are ready to enjoy. The little bit of char gives them a toasty flavor. Place them in a tortilla warmer until ready to serve.

Warmed in a tortilla warmer in the microwave:

Put six or fewer tortillas in a tortilla warmer, and cover them with a damp paper towel. Microwave for 30-60 seconds until they are warmed through. I’m cooking for two, so this works really well for us (3 corn tortillas each). This is the method I use most often! If you need to do more than 6, transfer them to a warmer until ready to serve.

Wrapped in foil in the oven:

I rarely use this method because it heats up my kitchen, and I live in McAllen, Texas! Wrap a stack of six or fewer tortillas in a foil packet, and heat in a pre-heated 350° oven for 15-20 minutes, until heated through. You can do multiple packets of five tortillas each all at the same time. This is probably the most efficient method if serving a lot of people.

❓ FAQ

💭 Tips

When shopping for oyster mushrooms, select mushrooms with firm, smooth caps and stems. Shriveled, soft, or slimy mushrooms should be avoided! The gill structure should be dry and firm.

Don’t be intimidated by cleaning and slicing either the king oyster mushrooms or the regular oyster mushrooms. Slice off the stem end. Use a damp cloth or paper towel to brush away any dirt or debris. Cut into manageable bite-sized pieces.

These vegetarian tacos are not a great source of protein. If you follow a plant-based or vegetarian diet, and you’re a grams of protein counter, try adding this air fryer tofu from one of my other taco recipes. It’s delicious!

We enjoy these tacos as shown in the photos, in spite of the fact that they’re relatively low in protein. We make sure we have adequate protein at breakfast and lunch, so it’s all good.😋

While I almost always do corn tortillas with tacos (preferring their taste and texture), but we really like these bakery-made flour tortillas charred in a cast iron skillet for mushroom tacos. We only have 2 oyster mushroom tacos (rather than the typical 3 with corn tortillas) to reduce the additional calories of flour tortillas.

If you love all-things-mushroom as I do, you ought to give this oyster mushroom taco recipe a try… Do these tacos sound appealing, or just too weird? I’d love to hear from you in the comments section below!