WHB: Poblano And Cheddar Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

I love looking at portobello mushrooms. They remind me of the mushrooms from Alice In Wonderland, almost big enough to sit on.  Almost.  And they're a great substitute for meat, delicious grilled and served on a hamburger bun.  But, I love best to stuff them.  This recipe was quite easy to make, but I didn't expect to like the stuffing as much as I did.  It was very good, with a light and savory "green" taste.  I know that may seem odd, but I immediately had that thought as I ate my behemoth fungi. It's a simple recipe made from poblano (or pasilla) peppers, onions, baby spinach, rice, cheddar cheese, and my favorite herb, cilantro. 

Most of us know that some people can't tolerate cilantro.  It has a very special taste, and is hated as much as it's adored.  I'm clearly one of the people adoring it, but if you're a hater, don't feel bad.  It's not your fault.  It's genetic.  Feel free to substitute some other herb if you wish.   Since this recipe does feature the Favorite Herb Winner Of Weekend Herb Blogging, it's perfect for this week's WHB.  As we all know, WHB was created by the marvelous Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen and is being hosted this week by one of my favorite bloggers, Astrid at Paulchen's Food Blog.  She will get lots of help from Othello and Kashim, no doubt. Make yourself some stuffed mushrooms and eat them as you read the Roundup at her site. 

The recipe calls for poblano peppers, and I'm showing a picture of them because they are often called pasilla peppers in the store. Not hot at all, they're similar to bell peppers, but have a better flavor in my opinion.  I roasted mine over the gas flame until they were charred, then let them cool under some plastic wrap.  Then I rubbed the charred skin off and chopped the peppers fine in my food processor.  They give the stuffing a marvelous flavor.

I must say, these mushrooms are so good, you might need to double the recipe. 

Poblano And Cheddar Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

(Food & Wine)

2 poblano chiles
4 jumbo portobello mushrooms, stemmed
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup baby spinach
1/2 cup cooked rice
1/4 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped cilantro

Light a grill, preheat the broiler, or roast over a gas flame. Roast the poblanos over the grill or under the broiler, turning, until blackened, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let cool. Peel, core and seed the poblanos then finely chop them.

Brush the portobello mushrooms with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill or broil the mushrooms over high heat, turning, until softened, 6 to 12 minutes (the size of the mushroom will determine the time). Transfer to a plate, stem side down; let drain and cool.

Meanwhile, in a medium skillet, heat the remaining 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Add the onion and cook over moderate heat until softened, about 6 minutes. Add the baby spinach and cook until wilted, about 1 minute. Transfer the spinach to a sieve and press out the liquid. In a bowl, mix the spinach with the rice, cheese, cilantro and poblanos. Season with salt and pepper.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Season the mushroom caps with salt and pepper. Spoon the rice mixture into the mushrooms, mounding it slightly. Transfer the mushrooms to a baking dish and bake for about 20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the top is lightly browned. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Yield: 2 servings  402 Calories per serving

Comments

[Anh]

Sher, bring on the cilantro! I love stuffed mushrooms, too. Actually I love mushroom regardless of the way they cook!

[Lydia]

Seriously, those mushrooms look absolutely amazing! These days I make a lot of portobello burgers on the grill, with goat cheese or blue cheese topping. I like the use of poblano peppers here -- and instead of the cilantro, I might just add a bit of something hot (a jalapeno, maybe?). Thanks for this great recipe.

[angie]

This looks wonderful, I should really try portobello mushrooms after seeing these!

[Tanna]

Oh WOW that is awesome . . . my kind of food. Love the peppers and the portobella!
Great entry for a wonderful event.

[Cate O'Malley]

8:42 am and my mouth is totally watering. So making these!

[Butta Buns]

LOL at the Alice in Wonderland reference. What's in those fertilizers the farmers are using?

I adore stuffed mushrooms and desperately want to make some now.

[sandeepa]

Looks delightful and I am a cilantro lover

[Rosa]

Those mushrooms look very fancy and highly yummy! You always cook exactly the kind of dish I like...

[sammawow]

Those mushrooms look so delicious! I am putting them on my grocery list right now!

[Alisha]

Another awesome looking (and sounding) recipe. This needs to go on my lunch menu this week. Yum!

[e]

All of my favorite things stuffed in a mushroom cap, this looks awesome Sher.

[burcu]

Those mushrooms look yummy. I've already put portobellos and poblanos on my list. Thanks for the recipe Sher.

[Nicole]

This looks amazing. I love mushrooms and I am a Cilantro addict. I use it ALOT. Great recipe and I loved your blog.

[Lindsey]

I am so in love with your blog! The pictures of the food... dang! Making me seriously hungry.

Do you think I could leave the rice out of this recipe? Would it still hold together ok?

[Jennifer]

Is it really genetic to not like Cilantro? It's a bit ... much (I can't really put it into words) for me.

Those mushrooms look divine (and this is coming from a mushroom hater!).

[Callipygia]

Yes! Big Fungi are so fun, so jolly to look at. I will definitely try this with the cilantro-

[Kalyn]

I must try this type of peppers. I know I've had them in restaurants, but I think in the grocery store I'm just never sure which ones they are. The stuffed mushrooms sound amazing. Wish I could come over and eat them with you! That would be fun. I would even help clean up.

[peabody]

Your stuffed mushrooms look devine.

[Glenna]

those look and sound delicious! Thanks for taking away some of my cilantro aversion guilt.

[Deborah]

You are killing me!! I promised myself that I will not go to the grocery store for a whole week, but now I want to rush out and buy the ingredients to make this!!

[Kristen]

Those look sooooo good! Wow!

[Patricia Scarpin]

Sher, I know you won't believe me but I have never had portobellos - your dish is making me both hungry and curious! :)

[Alanna]

OH MY -- just delicious. And I'm a fiend for poblano these days!

[The Culinary Chase]

Oh my gosh! These look sooooo delish! I'm going to have to make this very soon! Do you think green bell pepper will suffice? It's highly unlikely I'll get a poblano here in Hong Kong.
Like you, I love portobello mushrooms especially when I want a meat substitute. Cheers!

[sher]

Anh,

I love cilantro and mushrooms too. Great combination.

Lydia,

Portobellos are marvelous grilled, aren't they? And goat cheese? Yum!

Angie,

I hope you like them as much as I do!

Tanna,

Thank you--this was fun to fix--and very easy!

Cate,

Hope you enjoy them Cate!

Butta Buns,

I wish I could grow my veggies as big as Alice experienced!

Sandeepa,

Thank you, cilantro fellow cilantro lover! :)

Rosa,

They do look fancy, don't they? But, they were soooo simple!

Sammawow,

Oh, I do hope you like them! :)

Alisha,

That's great to think you will make them! :)

Burcu,

Here's hoping it turns out the way you like them!

e,

Thanks you! We really liked them!

Nicole,

Thank you--I hope you get a chance to make these!

lindsay,

Thank you! Yes, you could take the rice out, I believe. Maybe you could add something else, bread crumbs maybe? I think the rice is more to lighten it. Good luck!

Jennifer,

Yes, it's all genetic. Isn't that interesting? I think so!

Callipygia,

Oh good! I think you will like it. Big fungi are fun!!!!

Kalyn,

Yes, it's confusing the way they label them different ways. I checked on the Internet and real pasilla peppers are skinny. But, they often label poblanos as pasillas! :):)

Peabody,

Thank you!

glenna,

Cilantro guilt! Just another thing to be guilty for! :)

Deborah,

:) You sound like me! I do that too!

Kristen,

Thank you!

Patricia,

Oh, its' always fun to have something new to look forward to (I think). They are quite nice...meaty devils!

Alanna,

I think a portobello fiend club would be great!!! :)

The Culinary Chase,

Yes, I think green pepper would do very nicely as a substitute. :) The portobellos are very meaty, aren't they?

[Elise]

These look absolutely delicious!

[s'kat]

Man, those look amazing! And perfectly proportioned for the single eater.

I LOVE cilantro, while Dave barely tolerates it!

[astrid]

Sher! I adore you! ;o)

lots of my favourites as there are cheddar, mushrooms, cilantro (yeha!!) in one recipe and it looks soooo yummy!!
I will put that on next weeks lunch-table for sure!

Kashim & Othello are already sorting the WHB entries and we will get ready for the round up soon ;o)

[Lisa]

These look amazingly good. I was checking the ingredient list to see if I had the stuff to whip some up immediately! Alas, I'll have to experience them vicariously till I make a grocery run. Wow.

[burcu]

Sher, I just wanted to let you know that portobellos turned out to be great! Thanks for the recipe. Using poblanos gave me ideas and I stuffed some; they turned out great, too.