Name: Teriyaki Oyster Mushroom Steak
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 2 Tbsp Coconut oil; 12.5 oz Oyster mushrooms; ½ cup Teriyaki sauce; 2 tsp Corn starch; ½ tsp Garlic powder; 2-3 pinches Salt and Pepper to taste; 3 Bok choy

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You can turn pearl oyster mushrooms into a deliciously crispy, chewy beef-like steak. Just take a cluster of mushrooms marinated in teriyaki sauce and pan-fry it between two cast iron skillets to make them flat and crispy. In 20 minutes you will have yourself a flavorful mushroom steak.

Black boardabove with crispy brown juicy flattened oyster mushroom clusters and half bok choy with charcoal stripes

If you are looking for more meatless steak recipes try this cauliflower steak with green peppercorn sauce or this spicy tofu steak with chimichurri sauce.

What to expect from this recipe?

You might already know that mushrooms, especially oyster mushrooms have a sturdy, meaty, chewy texture. However, they don’t have a strong earthy flavor so you can season them to your heart’s content.

If you make this oyster mushroom steak recipe, you will get a flavorful dish with a quite beefy chewy texture that pairs well with teriyaki sauce. You should thank Derek Sarno from Wicked Healthy Kitchen for his pressing technique to use two cast iron pans to really flatten out the mushrooms into a steak. It is one of the most interesting methods out of these 11 ways to cook with oyster mushrooms.

Ingredients

Well, the main ingredient is pearl oyster mushroom. Except for king oyster mushrooms, any other types of oyster mushrooms (pleurotus ostreatus) are suitable to make this recipe. They are very similar in taste and texture, although not all of them are widely available. You have to know where to buy them or grow them at home.

What other ingredients do you need?

Coconut oil – You need this to make it crispy. This recipe will not really work without oil. Since it has a high smoke point and resistance to oxidation it is the ideal oil for frying compared to other oils like olive oil.
Teriyaki sauce – If you need to eat gluten-free, please choose gluten-free teriyaki sauce as the main ingredient of the classic sauce is soy sauce, which is not gluten-free.
Cornstarch – It is to thicken the sauce. Teriyaki is a rather thing sauce, but cornstarch will turn it into a marinade that would stick on the mushrooms.
Garlic powder
Black pepper
Salt

Preparation

As pearl oyster mushrooms grow on trees in a cluster they are usually not dirty, so you don’t need to wash them. Cut off the last bit of the stem and you are good to go. As you will pan fry them whole, no need to shred or cut them. You can read about all the what, how, and why in our how to prepare oyster mushrooms guide.

To turn the teriyaki sauce into a marinade, you need to heat it over medium/high heat with cornstarch until it thickens. It should not take longer than a couple of minutes.

How to make oyster mushroom steak?

Heat up your cast-iron skillet* over medium-high heat. And add coconut oil.
Spread the oyster mushroom clusters evenly in a circle with caps down.
Use a smaller cast iron skillet and press down the mushroom as much as you can. Try to distribute the weight evenly so they get flattened evenly.
Fry them for approx. 8-10 minutes. Check time to time to ensure they don’t get burnt but have crispy edges.
When the first side is ready, season it with salt, black pepper and half of the garlic powder before flipping it over with a tong.
Turn the heat down to medium. Add a bit more oil, and season the other side as well.
Press it down again with the smaller skillet and fry them approx. 4-5 minutes or until they are crispy but not charcoaled.
When they are ready, take it off the heat and let it cool for a bit.

Black cast iron skillet from above with crispy dark brown juicy flattened oyster mushroom clusters

Brush generously the crispy mushroom steak with the teriyaki marinade on both sides.
Place mushrooms in a grill pan over medium heat to get the sauce really sticky on both sides. Alternatively, you can use a baking sheet and roast or broil them in the oven.

Black grill pan from above with crispy dark brown juicy flattened oyster mushroom clusters

Top tips to make it perfectly every time

Watch the heat! – Frying means high heat, so you need to start with high when frying the mushrooms. However after adding the marinade, you should grill it over medium heat only.
Minced vs powder – Minced garlic will get burnt and bitter as you need to fry the mushrooms to make a steak for a relatively long time. We recommend using garlic powder in this recipe.

What to serve with it?

Several side dishes pair perfectly with these teriyaki oyster mushroom steak slices, but in this recipe, we added some pan-fried bok choy (pictured). We also love to pair teriyaki sauce with green beans just like in our teriyaki tofu stir fry recipe.

Other delicious combinations are:

Roasted asparagus, sauteed carrots, broccoli, sauteed leafy greens
Roasted or fried potato, or sweet potato
Riced Sweet Potato
Savory Vegan Sweet Potato Casserole
Potato salad
Easy Vegan Coleslaw
Wedge Salad or other Fresh Garden Salad
Vegan Mashed Potatoes
Vegan Scalloped Potatoes
Vegan Risotto
Creamy polenta
Rice or quinoa or couscous (Note: Couscous is not gluten-free)

Variations

To create show-stopping steaks, you can use any other marinade like

vegan BBQ sauce
hoisin sauce (we also use it in our vegan hoisin duck rice paper dumplings)
Chinese BBQ sauce (we also use it to make Chinese BBQ tofu burger)

FAQs and substitutions

Is teriyaki sauce gluten-free?

The main ingredient is soy sauce, which is not gluten-free. Read more about it in our “Is soy sauce gluten-free?” post. However, there are certified gluten-free brands, like Kikkoman Teriyaki Sauce*, which are safe to use in the gluten-free diet.

Can you use other mushrooms?

Except for king oyster mushrooms, you can choose any of the 7 types of oyster mushrooms as all of them to grow in clusters. If you want to use king oysters, then you should slice them and fry them like that. However, you may not get the same beefy texture as with pearl oysters.

You can seek out one of these 13 oyster mushroom substitutes, but choose those types which also grow in clusters like lion’s mane. Mushrooms that are sold loose or individually will not make a good steak.

How to store them?

Dishes are usually best served fresh, but this oyster mushroom steak recipe keeps well in the fridge for 3-4 days without any change. They keep their chewy, sturdy texture even if days go by. They may lose a bit of crispiness around the edges though, but you may experience enhanced flavors.

Can you make them ahead of time?

You can store oyster mushrooms easily up to a week in the fridge, or at room temperature for 1-2 days. For more tips, read our how to store oyster mushrooms article. The finished dish can be stored in the fridge for 3-4 days. When you are ready to serve it, re-heat it in a frying pan or skillet.

This Teriyaki Oyster Mushroom Steak recipe is vegan so meat-free, dairy-free, and egg-free. It is suitable for a vegetarian and nut-free diet. This recipe is not WFPB-friendly (whole foods plant-based) as it uses oil. It is only gluten-free if you use gluten-free teriyaki sauce.

More vegan oyster mushroom recipes

You can find several delicious oyster mushroom recipes here or check out one from the below list: