Portobello steak with vegan green peppercorn sauce & asparagus

Jump to Recipe

A hearty and flavorful plantbased dish with steak from portobello mushroom. Perfectly complemented by a rich and creamy vegan green peppercorn sauce. The meaty texture of the portobellos provide a satisfying bite. While the sauce, made with cashews, coconut aminos, maple syrup, and a touch of lemon juice, delivers a delightful balance of creamy, savory and sweet flavors. This dish is a deliciously elegant option for any occasion, whether you’re enjoying a casual weeknight dinner or preparing for a special gathering like Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Looking for other vegan main dishes for festive holidays? Check out my:

whole roasted cauliflower with tahin beetsauce and pickled onions
mushroom stew with apple butter
whole grilled watermelon with a coconut aminos maple sauce
stuffed pumpkin with lentils and chestnut crumble

Or take a look at my vegan and Medical Medium Christmas special for appetizers, side dishes and sweets.

Portobello

A portobello is a large mushroom with a soft taste and a firm bite. In this recipe you marinate the portobello with coconut aminos, maple syrup, lemon juice and olive oil. After that it just needs 15 minutes in the oven.

Green peppercorns

Also referred to as green pepper, but it has nothing to do with chili peppers or jalapeno. It’s the fresh version of dried black peppercorns.

The sauce can be prepped ahead

You can prepare the sauce in advance. Which can deliver a nice zen moment in the planning of a large festive dinner, where as the cook you still want to enjoy some time with your guests at the table. You can even bring it to a potluck: it just needs some warming up. For this end you add extra water at the end, just before serving. Since thinning is always easier than thickening up.

Ingredients

Green asparagus – briefly steamed, just wash them and chop of the woody part at the end.
Portobello mushroom – large mushroom so you wil be able to cut them like steak.
Coconut aminos
Maple syrup
Lemon juice
Extra virgin olive oil

Ingredients for the sauce

Cashew nuts – soaked for at least 4 hours.
Broth – you can use MM healing broth (link in the recipe) or regular vegetable broth or even just water will do.
Yellow onion – sjalots or red onion will do as well. I used a large one, use two when you have small onions.
Garlic
Green peppercorns
Maple syrup
Lemonjuice
Kombu flakes – for extra umami, any other dried seaweed flakes will do.
Mushroom powder – for extra umami.
Paprika powder – preferably smoked, but regular will do.
Coconut aminos – leave out for fermentfree.
Salt – I used Celtic sea salt. You can use pink Himalayan, but be sure to buy the real without contamination.
Extra virgin olive oil – to caramelize the onions. Use just a few drops of water for baking Medical Medium style, but the caramelization will be less.

FAQ’s

Is this recipe AIP paleo?

It is paleo, just leave out the paprika powder if you follow a strict paleo diet. It is NOT AIP because of the cashews and peppercorns.

Is this recipe vegan and Medical Medium?

Yes, it is especially designed to be vegan. It is Medical Medium as well, but it’s not fatfree due to the cashews. Leave out the oil to keep as low fat as possible. The coconut aminos are optional, leave out for fermentfree.

Portobello steak covered with green peppercorn sauce made from cashews. On a plate with steamed green asparagus. Square, taken from above.

Portobello mushroom steak with vegan green peppercorn sauce and asparagus

ME (Marjolein Eikenboom)

This recipe may contain

affiliate links

A vegan twist on the classic filet mignon steak with a peppercorn sauce made from cashews. Served with steamed green asparagus.

Rate Pin Print

Cook Time 20

Total Time 20

Free from (speudo)grains, beef, chicken, ferment, fish, legumes, nightshade, oils, peanuts, seeds

Diet Medical Medium, paleo

Dish & season Christmas, main

Cuisine European, French

Course dinner

Servings servings

Calories 359

Equipment

sauce pan
large ceramic non-stick pan
oven at 430F or 220C
ovendish
steamer
immersion blender
garlic press
brush
2 bowls 1 small, 1 larger
teaspoon
sauce bowl with sauce spoon

Ingredients

Portobello steak & asparagus

24 green asparagus
8 portobello mushrooms
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons coconut aminos or 1 tbsp lemon juice + 1 tbsp maple syrup extra for fermentfree
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil or 1 tbsp lemon juice + 1 tbsp maple syrup extra for oilfree

Green peppercorn sauce

½ cup (65 g) cashew nuts after measuring soaked for at least 4 hours in plenty of water
½ cup (120 ml) MM healing broth or vegetable broth or water
¼ cup (60 ml) water to be added last to make the sauce thinner
1 large yellow onion
2 cloves garlic
½ cup (75 g) green peppercorns from which about a quarter served at the table
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon kombu flakes
1 tablespoon mushroom powder
2 teaspoons paprika powder preferably smoked, leave out for strict paleo
1 tablespoon coconut aminos leave out for fermentfree
Celtic sea salt to taste
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil for baking, leave out for oilfree

Instructions

Sauce prep

The sauce can be made ahead and kept in the fridge. My advice would be to do so if you have a large festive dinner like Thanksgiving or Christmas.
Soak the cashews in plenty of water for at least 4 hours (this is not added into the time needed).
Cut the onion into thin half slices. Bake in the non stick pan until translucent. For Medical Medium preferably with just some drops of water.
Press the garlic and add. Bake until the onion is caramelized. Be patient, all together that'll take about 10 minutes.
Drain the cashew nuts. Add them to the cup of your immersion blender with the cup of broth or water.
Add the baked onions with the maple syrup, coconut aminos, lemon juice, kombu, mushroom powder and paprika powder. Don't add salt yet.
Mix several minutes into a creamy sauce.
Add the sauce to the pan and bring it to a soft boil.
Add the peppercorns. Keep at least a quarter aside to serve at the table for people that like more kick.
Taste. Add salt if you feel it's necessary. But for Medical Medium try to keep it low.
You now have the thickest version of the sauce. You can keep this in the fridge. For finishing the sauce will need some extra thinning. Probably you will need an extra quarter cup of water (and mushroom fluid), but this depends on how long you will be reheating it.

Mushrooms (15+ minutes)

Preheat the oven at 430F or 220C.
Mix the coconut aminos, maple syrup, lemon juice and olive oil.
Brush in the portobellos with the marinade.
Put the portobellos in the oven dish with the top down. This will keep the marinade in. Put in the oven for 10 minutes.
Turn the portobellos. The bottom part faces down now. This will allow the marinade to drip out. Put in the oven for an extra 5 minutes.
Take the dish out of the oven. Take the portobellos out, put on a rack. Or tilt the dish a bit and place the portobellos on the highest end. This will get rid of all the excess fluids. Don't throw the fluids away, these will be used in the sauce.

Asparagus and finishing (5+ minutes)

Cut the woody part off the asparagus and wash them, especially the heads. Steam for 5 minutes.
Warm up the sauce (if needed). Add the fluids from the portobellos. Stir and see it the sauce is thin enough. Only then add extra water, so only if needed! It's always easier to thin than to have to thicken again.
Cut the portobellos like steak. Dress on the plate with a bit of sauce. Serve the rest of the sauce at the table with some extra peppercorns. Put the asparagus next to the mushrooms and ser e with some peppercorns on top.