Vegan Pörk Medallions w/ Görgonzola Crēam Sauce
King oyster mushrooms are magically turned into vegan “pork” medallions smothered with a delicious, non-dairy gorgonzola cream sauce made of soaked cashews. Excellent served alongside mashed potatoes (or cauliflower!) and steamed veggies.
Servings 4 petite or 2 large
Equipment
- 2 cast iron skillets
- 1 large non-stick skillet (or stainless is fine)
- blender, preferably high-speed
Ingredients
- 4 large king oyster mushrooms
- 2 cups chicken-flavored vegetable broth I use Imagine No-Chicken Broth, or bullion by Edward & Sons or Better Than Bullion
- 1 Tbsp + 1 1/4 tsp pork seasoning If you can’t find any store-bought see link in notes for a simple recipe.
- 1 tsp olive oil plus more for cooking
- 1/2 cup unflavored/unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 1/2 cup + 1 tsp cornstarch You can substitute 1/2 cup all purpose flour, if not gluten-free. Will still need 1 tsp cornstarch.
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup water or more as needed
- fresh cracked black pepper to taste
For the Görgonzola Crēam Sauce...
- 1 1/4 cup raw cashews soaked for at least 4 hours (soak overnight if using a standard blender instead of high-speed)
- 1 cup water
- 3 Tbsp white miso paste for soy-free substitute chickpea miso
- 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 Tbsp sea salt
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
Instructions
- Slice the tops off each mushroom, as well as, the pointy stub on the opposite end. Discard the stubs and save the mushroom tops for a future recipe. Now cut the remainder of each mushroom into 3 or 4 equal sized pieces, each about 1” in length (a little longer is fine). Add the cut mushrooms into a baking dish, or other container, of appropriate size to fit the mushrooms snuggly (or at least without too much excess space). I use a 9” x 9” baking dish.
- Whisk together the broth and 1 teaspoon of the pork seasoning. Now pour the broth into the dish with the mushrooms. Flip each mushroom to well cover in the broth. Marinate for 1 hour. If the mushrooms aren’t completely covered by the broth, flip them over after 30 minutes.
- While the mushrooms marinate, make the Görgonzola Crēam Sauce. Add all of the sauce ingredients to your blender. Start the blender on low and gradually increase speed until you’ve reached the highest setting. Blend on high, stopping to scrape the sides of the carafe as needed, until the sauce is completely smooth. This may take several minutes, especially if using a standard blender. Set sauce aside.
- In a small dish, stir together 1 tablespoon of the pork seasoning with 1 teaspoon of olive oil. When the mushrooms are done marinating, remove them from the broth and rub them down completely with the seasoning-oil mixture.
- Preheat a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Once hot, turn the heat to medium-low and add the mushrooms. Add a second cast iron skillet on top of the mushrooms, this will press them to help them flatten. Let the mushrooms cook/press for 30 - 35 minutes, flipping every 5 minutes. When finished pressing, the mushrooms should be about half of their original size.
- Prepare a station with two medium-sized bowls. In the first bowl, whisk together the milk with 1 tsp cornstarch. In the second bowl, mix the remaining 1/2 cup of cornstarch (or AP flour), 1/4 teaspoon pork seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Take the mushrooms, dunk them into the milk bowl, let excess milk drop off, then add them to the second bowl with the cornstarch mixture. Flip the mushrooms to coat completely with the cornstarch.
- Heat a large skillet, drizzled with oil, to medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the coated mushrooms. Brown the mushrooms on each side (it should take about 2 minutes on each side), working in batches, if needed. Transfer the browned mushrooms to paper towels or a clean dish towel.
- Turn off the burner, wipe the skillet completely clean, and then turn heat to low. Add 1/4 cup of water to the skillet and then slowly whisk in the Görgonzola Crēam Sauce. As the sauce heats it may thicken more. If needed, whisk in more water to thin. Once the sauce is hot, stir in a crank or two of freshly cracked pepper (to taste). Add the mushrooms and cover the skillet with a lid for 2 to 4 minutes, until the mushrooms are reheated.
Notes
You can use this recipe for a simple pork seasoning blend, but first understand this links to a non-vegan site. The simple spice blend is vegan (make sure to use organic brown sugar — I choose to go light on the sugar, as well), but you will see pictures of meat, if you make the choice to click through.