Roasted Mushrooms with Herbed Quinoa
Delicious side dish or light meal of roasted mushrooms on herbed quinoa, topped with toasted pepitas and olive oil! This is a healthy vegetarian recipe.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on July 10, 2024
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Have you ever tried roasting your mushrooms? I discovered during the making of my cookbook that roasting not-so-fancy mushrooms condenses their flavors into gourmet territory. They transform from spongy raw fungi into tender, richly flavored umami bombs along the way.
I understand that mushrooms aren’t for everyone (sometimes, they’re not even for me), but I’m into these roasted mushrooms. For those of you who are on the fence when it comes to mushrooms, I hope this recipe brings you over to my side.
This recipe is a great side dish or light meal. First, I roasted up some cremini mushrooms, also known as baby bella mushrooms (they’re young portobellos—get it?). Then I served the roasted mushrooms, with all of their delicious mushroom juices, on a bed of herbed quinoa. A squeeze of lemon juice and sprinkle of pepitas rounds out the flavors and textures.
For a more complete meal, I think you could stir some chickpeas or white beans into the quinoa. You can also change it up by roasting the mushrooms with a splash of balsamic vinegar (so good).
Once again, I bought all of my ingredients at ALDI. They have organic quinoa and olive oil, plus a wide variety of fresh produce and rBST-free cheeses, all at impressively low prices. Their new blog called Hello, Healthy, offers recipes, cooking videos and resources on how to live a healthy life. You can check out my recipe on their blog here. Have you been to an ALDI yet?!
Watch How to Make Perfectly Fluffy Quinoa
Roasted Mushrooms with Herbed Quinoa
Delicious side dish or light meal of roasted mushrooms on herbed quinoa, topped with toasted pepitas and olive oil! Recipe yields 4 generous side servings.
Ingredients
Roasted Mushrooms:
- 16 ounces Baby Bella mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon SimplyNature Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Herbed Quinoa;
- 1 cup SimplyNature Organic Quinoa, rinsed in a fine-mesh colander
- 2 cups water
- ½ cup Priano Parmesan cheese, grated
- ¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided
- ¼ cup thinly sliced green onions, green parts only
- 1 clove garlic, pressed or minced
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon SimplyNature Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus more for drizzling on top
- 2 to 3 teaspoons lemon juice, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons toasted pepitas
Instructions
- To prepare the mushrooms: Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper for easy cleanup (the rim is important, as the mushrooms release a lot of juices while roasting—use a large baking dish if you don’t have a rimmed baking sheet).
- Quarter the large mushrooms, halve the medium mushrooms, leave small mushrooms whole, and place them all onto the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle the olive oil over them and sprinkle the salt on top. Toss until the mushrooms are evenly coated in oil. Roast until the mushrooms are tender and somewhat condensed in size, about 15 to 18 minutes, tossing halfway.
- Meanwhile, to cook the quinoa: Combine the rinsed quinoa and water in a saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, then decrease the heat a bit to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook until the quinoa has absorbed all of the water, about 15 to 20 minutes. Reduce heat as time goes on to maintain a gentle simmer.
- Remove the pot from heat, cover, and let the quinoa steam for 5 minutes. Then, remove the lid and fluff the quinoa with a fork. Add the Parmesan, most of the parsley (reserve about 1 tablespoon for garnish), green onions, garlic, salt and olive oil. Stir to combine, then add 2 to 3 teaspoons lemon juice to the mixture and black pepper, both to taste.
- To assemble, pour the quinoa into a small serving platter or medium serving bowl. Top with the roasted mushrooms and their extra juices, then sprinkle pepitas and the remaining parsley on top. Finally, finish the dish with a light drizzle of olive oil over the mushrooms. This dish is best when fresh, but leftovers keep well in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 3 days.
Notes
Make it dairy free/vegan: Omit the Parmesan cheese. You might appreciate a light drizzle of balsamic vinegar or even soy sauce for extra flavor in its place.
Change it up: For even more depth, roast the mushrooms with 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar tossed in. Finish the dish with a light drizzle of balsamic vinegar instead of lemon juice.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
This post was created in partnership with ALDI and I received compensation for my participation. Opinions are my own, always. Thank you for supporting the sponsors who support C+K!
I really enjoyed this and made it exactly as directed, except I didn’t have fresh parsley so I used dried, and I used garlic powder because I was not convinced that I could thoroughly mix in one clove of minced fresh garlic in the almost finished quinoa. I will definitely make it again. Thanks for posting this.
You’re welcome, Yvonne! I’m glad you were surprised.
I made this tonight as a side with grilled chicken. Delicious. I sprinkled some za’atar on top of the mushrooms for added flavour. I will definitely make it again.
Thanks for sharing! Sounds delicious, Candy.
This has become a staple in our house enjoyed by adults and kids alike !
That’s great to hear!
I am obsessed with this recipe. A friend of mine actually made it first (she’s the one who first told me about your blog) and since then I’ve made it twice! I use more mushrooms, but only because I can’t ever find a 16 oz package so I use 24 oz! I keep everything else exactly the same! It’s so good and light and fixes me right up after too many days of eating out!
I’m so happy to hear how much you love this recipe, Jennifer! Thanks so much for your review.
That was very good. I doubled the amount of mushrooms because I had bought a lot. Will do it again. Thank you for being so dedicated to always offer winner recipes! Have a wonderful year!
I’m glad you loved it, Nath!
Parmesan cheese isn’t vegetarian. just saying.
Hey Kris, Bel Giosio and Whole Foods 365 make vegetarian Parmesans.
I have never in my entire life thought of roasting mushrooms! I’m in! This looks incredible. I might combine it with your crispy tofu.
This recipe is so good!!! I was apprehensive because I’ve never thought of combining a zesty quinoa with super savory mushrooms but I’m so glad I tried it. I also added some beet greens that I had on hand and it made for a delicious meal. Thank you!!!
I made this a couple of weeks ago and am already making again for dinner tonight! The first time I made it, I only had regular white mushrooms on hand, and it came out great. It makes a great dinner or side dish and reheated great for lunch the next day. I added a little extra lemon juice because we all love lemons around here. this is a great recipe that you can customize based on what you have at home. Tonight I’m using a combo of baby bellas and white mushrooms and adding garbanzo beans to make it a complete meal. Thank you for all the great recipes.
Made this dish twice now. I eat mainly plant based and this is now a staple for me. I add lentils when I’m feeling more hungry. Delicious!
This came out wonderfully, super flavorful and easy! Thank you!
I’m happy you loved it! Thank you for sharing, Katelyn.
I didn’t have any fresh greens except romaine lettuce so I used it and dried parsley. I didn’t use Parmesan, leaving that to personal taste. Delicious! I wish I had doubled the recipe. It was gone before I knew it. Kate, I’m wondering about what to match it with?
Hi! I think this is great on it’s own. Or, pair with a delicious soup.
Just made this and boyfriend is very pleased. I also rediscovered my love of mushrooms :D thank you. This will now be a staple in this house. Soooo good
i just made this for lunch and it is delicious. i made my Quinoa in a rice cooker. 1 part Quinoa 2 parts water. mushy but i dont care i’m still eating it. Any tips how to make Quinoa in a rice cooker?
Hi! I recommend How to Cook Perfect Quinoa & 10 Quinoa Recipes as my method.
I just made this dish and I absolutely loved it! I don’t really even like r mushrooms and the combination of all these flavours and textures are fabulous!! I have been looking for a quinoa dish with a difference and this is my new gem. I did add a drizzle of balsamic vinegar glaze to the mushrooms as well as a final drizzle and that just did it for me. Thank you so much for sharing your recipe. I am new to your site but you have a new fan!
You’re welcome, Francine! I appreciate your review.
The roasted mushrooms were great! Next time, I think I’ll leave out the cheese so the quinoa will stay fluffier. The cheese caused mine to clump a bit, and the mushrooms have such great flavor, that I don’t think the cheese is really necessary.
This was delicious! I’m not a huge quinoa fan- but the add-ins made it really tasty! I used vegan parm. and cannellini beans to make it a main meal. This would be a great base for any roasted veggie.
I was make this yesterday as a complete meal. So i was added some red bell pepper and some red onions by the mushrooms and added the balsamic vinegar. I was really easy to make and very delicious. Thank you for this easy recipe Kate. Before i discover this blog i was never eat quinoa now it is one of my favorite ingredients for beautiful salads en diners like this one. Thanks for the tips en wonderful recipes Kate!!
You’re welcome, Marco! Thank you for your review.
You can substitute nutritional yeast in any recipe for Parmesan cheese.
I loved the salad , great umame flavour , found more the types of mushrooms i added in the better the taste…it was almost like eating risotto but hopefully with lesser calories :)
I had some king oyster mushrooms that I bought at a good price and was looking for a recipe to use them in. If I see produce at a good price I will often buy it and then look for a way to use it later. I don’t think that they’re the best mushrooms to use in this recipe. They had an odd texture. Perhaps I should have cut them up into smaller pieces. I’ve used those mushroom in the past in a miso mushroom pasta recipe but I cut them into small strips.
I’ll probably make this again but will use the baby bella or just the common white mushrooms that are so prevalent in grocery stores. I would also probably make the quinoa using vegetable broth. During the summer months we always have a lot of fresh basil & oregano and I may add some of that as well.