Mushroom Carnitas with Garlic Cashew Crema and Pickled Onions
I recently had a conversation with a friend who is in the midst of a plant based revolution. Blame it on documentaries, climate change, or the (literal) thousands of research articles supporting its importance and key to life, but who’s counting— plant based eating is real and it’s here to stay. For me, my decision to go vegetarian (or pescatarian if we’re being accurate) was 10 years ago when I started conducting my own research on the realities of America’s agricultural systems, practices, and to be frank, ruthless marketing strategies encouraging consumers to buy more meat or meat related products. It’s a much larger conversation than I’m willing to get in to here (largely because I don’t want to type that much), but I’d encourage you do do your own research so you can make a well informed decision about how you want to approach your grocery shopping and meal planning.
My family probably thought my decision to go plant based 10 years ago was a phase, but I’ve stuck it out and don’t have a single regret. My body functions better, feels better, and my creativity in the kitchen skyrocketed. I love being able to create great food with tons of flavor that is made purely from the thing mother Earth gives us. Plants are our friends.
In a pivot from our beloved #toasttuesday, the people have spoken and the people want tacos. So, here we are: plant based tacos to set your heart on fire. Typically I like fish tacos, but last week I had a craving for mushrooms and decided I wanted the challenge of developing a recipe that would feel accurate to a real carnitas recipe. In true carnitas form, this recipe uses oregano and orange juice and zest, which give is such a great freshness. I’m totally sold.
These tacos would also fit well with some of the slaw or avocado sauce from my blackened salmon taco recipe. That avocado sauce on anything is pure magic!
Some Recipe Notes:
Feel free to buy store bought pickled onions here if you can find some and don’t want to make yourself. They add such a nice tang!
Baking the mushrooms first ensures a dryer, more accurate texture to carnitas. The tacos will still be juicy but a bit easier to handle. If you want just one step here, you can just sauté together with all carnitas ingredients/spices and skip baking.
King oyster mushrooms are on the pricier side, so feel free to substitute here with portobellos or baby portobellos. I’d still recommend baking before sautéing.
Cashew cream is not a science, people. Make to your own liking and thickness!
In the photos shown here, I added a bit of feta cheese. You could omit to keep it vegan, or use cotija if you like.
Mushroom Carnitas with Garlic lime Cashew Crema and Pickled Onions
For the Mushroom carnitas
1 lb king oyster mushrooms, shredded
3 tbs olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 orange, zested and juiced
1 bay leaf
1-2 tsp chile in adobo sauce
juice 1/2 lime
pinch cayenne
salt & pepper
Pickled onions
1 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
3/4 c red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup hot water
2 large cloves garlic
10 peppercorns
2 1/2 - 3 Tbs sugar
Garlic Lime Cashew Crema
1 1/4 cup cashews, soaked at least 6 hours or overnight and rinsed
2-3 Tbs nutritional yeast (more for a cheesier flavor!)
3 cloves garlic
juice of 2 limes
1/4 tsp cumin
1 cup water (added in 1/4 cup increments)
splash apple cider vinegar (optional)
For the tacos
radish, thinly sliced
tomatillo salsa
fresh cilantro
avocado, sliced
corn tortillas
tomatillo salsa
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350.
First, shred the mushrooms. To do this, hold the cap top down with a fork, and use another to pull the mushroom apart, just like you would chicken or pork. (see image above) I found scraping vertically first and then pulling it off horizontally was a good method.
Place shredded mushrooms in a bowl and add 1 tbs olive oil, 1/4 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp cumin, and pinch cayenne. Season with salt and pepper. Toss well to coat. Spread evenly on a foil lined baking sheet and bake for about 15-2- minutes. The mushrooms should be cooked well with a few crispy pieces.
To finish the mushrooms, heat a sauté pan with olive oil on medium high eat. Add mushrooms, remaining spices, adobo sauce bay leaf, orange zest and juice. Sauté for about 5 minutes or until well combined.
To make the onions, add sliced onions, garlic, peppercorns, vinegar, and water to a large bowl. Let sit for at least 40 minutes. Put in a jar with an air tight lid and keep in the fridge for up to 4 weeks.
To make the cashew crema, combine rinsed cashews and ingredients, starting with 1/4 cup water to blender. Continue adding water until desired consistency is achieved.
Assemble the tacos, starting with the carnitas, and topping with onions, salsa, crema, radishes, and finally cilantro and fresh squeezed lime juice.