Mushroom Salad

Deeply golden brown mushrooms and roasted baby potatoes top this savory mushroom salad. Loaded with vibrant vegetables and dressed in a delicious, creamy balsamic vinaigrette, you will love this mushroom salad recipe.

I love mushrooms! And, I try to eat salads as often as possible. While developing this mushroom salad, I wanted savory deep flavors, and a hearty, filling salad. There's nothing worse than leaving the table hungry, which never happens at my house. Instead, I chose whole foods and layered this mushroom salad recipe with nutrient-dense ingredients.

Jump to:

• Marinade Ingredients
• Marinade Substitutions
• Roasting Mini Potatoes
• Salad Ingredients
• Salad Ingredient Substitutions
• Assembling the Salad
• Dressing Options
• Recipe FAQs
• Tips
• Great Vegan Salad Recipes to Try!
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Reviews

Mushrooms are full of savory flavor, rich in texture, and versatile in their cooking. Mushrooms easily act as earth meat in a plant-based diet. They are fantastic because they add grounding depth to a hearty dish and can be cooked in many ways to illuminate flavor.

Since learning to cook vegan meals, I've embraced the power of marinades, herbs, and spices to turn vegetables into delicious plant-based meals.

Because this mushroom salad recipe contains both cooked and raw vegetables, let's begin with mushrooms or vegan meat.

Marinade Ingredients

Mushrooms absorb flavors like little sponges. For that reason, I chose a savory marinade. I chose medium-sized portobello mushrooms.

• Soy Sauce: Choose regular or low-sodium, whichever you prefer.
• Liquid Smoke: I like the hickory flavor, but the mesquite is tasty. Liquid smoke is a natural product that condenses the smoke from burning wood. It is used as a flavoring in place of real wood smoke.
• Vegan Worcestershire Sauce: I like Amy's vegan Worcestershire sauce.
• Garlic: I prefer fresh minced garlic instead of jarred garlic.
• Balsamic Vinegar: Balsamic vinegar gives the marinade depth and sweetness.
• Stone-Ground Mustard: Whole grain mustard has been ground just enough to form a paste, but not so much that it entirely breaks down all the mustard seeds, creating a thick, coarse texture.
• Montreal Steak Seasoning: Montreal steak seasoning is made of coarse salt, black pepper, red pepper, garlic, onion, and paprika.

Marinade Substitutions

• Use liquid aminos or Tamari for a gluten-free option.
• Smoked paprika is a great substitute for liquid smoke. Also, the chipotle powder is famous for its smoky flavor.
• Vinegar is a substitute for vegan Worcestershire sauce but lacks the complexity of Worcestershire, but it brings plenty of bites to enhance the other flavors of your dish. Miso paste is another alternative.
• If you dislike a little spice hint, skip the Sriracha. Or, use a hot sauce you prefer.
• If you don't have stone-ground or yellow mustard: you can use spicy brown mustard! It's a bit spicier than Dijon and also has a textured appearance.
• If you don't have Montreal steak seasoning, combine two teaspoons of salt with a teaspoon of ground black pepper, a half teaspoon of paprika and chili powder, and a quarter teaspoon of garlic powder, onion powder, and turmeric. 

For the best results, marinate the mushrooms overnight. At a minimum, marinate for a couple of hours.

Then, saute the marinated mushrooms in a saute pan in the marinade until golden brown.

Because the mushroom salad is served cold, allow the mushrooms to cool completely, or transfer them to a container and refrigerate until ready to prepare the salad.

Roasting Mini Potatoes

These tiny potatoes aren't a type of potato but a size classification. Any potato can be called a "petite potato" if it is a very small spud.

Even in a petite format, the potatoes will have the same flavor and texture as their larger versions, so keep that in mind when it comes to cooking.

I chose a bag of mini or petite creamy potatoes, cut them in half, and seasoned them with garlic powder, onion powder, and fresh rosemary.

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
• Toss the cut potatoes in the seasoning.
• Then, place potatoes in a single layer on a baking pan with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
• Cook for 30 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.

Salad Ingredients

While the mushrooms and potatoes cool, assemble the other mushroom salad recipe ingredients.

• Romaine Lettuce: Romaine lettuce is longer, greener, and leafier in appearance. It's crunchy and crisp in texture.
• Pickled Red Onions: I make my own pickled red onions. Pickled red onions have a distinct flavor and texture. They hold true to the crunchiness and slight bite of raw or cooked onions. Once pickled, they become sweet, tangy, and slightly aromatic providing a tasty addition to an array of dishes.
• Cucumbers: I prefer English cucumbers for the firm texture and few seeds.
• Baby Bell Peppers: Baby bell peppers are sweeter than bell peppers. And they come in a variety of beautiful colors.
• Campari Tomatoes: Campari is a type of hybrid tomato noted for its juiciness, high sugar level, low acidity, and lack of mealiness. Camparis are deep red and larger than cherry tomatoes.
• Vegan Feta Cheese: I make my own tofu feta cheese, which adds a protein and salty component tot eh mushroom salad.
• Fresh Dill: Dill has a deliciously fresh, citrus-like taste, with a slightly grassy undertone. The trademark subtle sweetness means it works particularly well with garlic and mint.

Salad Ingredient Substitutions

• Choose any greens, such as kale, red lettuce, spinach, or a combination you prefer.
• Use raw red onion instead of pickled red onions.
• Try zucchini as a replacement for cucumbers in a pinch.
• As a substitute for baby bell peppers, I recommend red bell pepper, which is sweet like baby bell peppers.
• Cherry tomatoes are about the same size and flavor as Compari tomatoes.
• Skip the tofu feta cheese, or buy store-bought brands available in the health food section of the grocery store.
• If you don't have access to fresh dill, use dried dill. However, remember the ratio is: 1 tablespoon of fresh dill = 1 teaspoon of dried dill.

Assembling the Salad

First, place the Romaine Lettuce on the base of the salad platter. Then evenly distribute the raw ingredients around the top of the lettuce bed. Or, choose to make individual salads in the same manner.

Then, arrange the chilled mushrooms and potatoes on top of the raw ingredients.

Dressing Options

I chose to dress the mushroom salad with a creamy balsamic dressing because the balsamic flavors taste beautiful with the ingredients in the salad. However, I suggest other dressings to meet individual preferences.

• Lemon Basil Dressing
• Maple Dijon Dressing
• Mustard Dipping Sauce (add ¼ cup more water to use as a dressing)

Recipe FAQs

Tips

• Marinate the mushrooms overnight, and cook them in a skillet with only the marinade left in the container.
• Use vegetable broth or water instead of oil; if mushrooms stick to the pan, add a little until the mushrooms are browned.
• Return the mushrooms to a container to chill in the refrigerator while preparing the other salad ingredients.
• Make the tofu feta cheese in advance and allow to chill before adding to the salad.
• Using a vegetable chopper expedites vegetable preparations.
• Do not dress the salad in advance. Instead, serve individual portions and dress right before eating.
• The creamy balsamic dressing will stay fresh for 5 days in the refrigerator.

If you love mushrooms, give this hearty mushroom salad recipe a try. And try not to lick your plate!

Great Vegan Salad Recipes to Try!

If you love this mushroom salad, give us a 5-star review and comment below. We would love to hear from you!

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