Oyster Mushroom Sliders with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto

These marinated oyster mushrooms are infused with pesto and grilled lightly to give them a wonderful depth of flavour. Serve them with vegan coleslaw, avocado and fresh rocket for a perfect summer’s dinner. 

The Happy Pear’s oyster mushroom sliders with sun-dried tomato pesto

The Happy Pear know their way around a good pesto! The pesto they make in this recipe is a version of their favourite sun-dried tomato pesto which is amazingly versatile and any leftovers will go wonderfully with pasta or in sandwiches.

They say: “Here we marinate oyster mushrooms in the pesto and then grill them on the barbecue until they taste amazing. Then we serve them in a burger bun with some vegan coleslaw, avocado and some fresh rocket. It’s next level! The recipe makes approximately 500g of delicious pesto which is more than you need for the mushrooms but you will definitely enjoy the rest of it during the week.”

Preparation time: 20 minutes | Cooking time: 20 minutes | Makes: 4 burgers

Ingredients

For the pesto mushrooms:

• 100g sundried tomatoes (not in oil)
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled
• 25g pack basil, leaves picked
• 100g cashew nuts
• 200g vegetable oil
• 4tsp balsamic vinegar
• 300g oyster mushrooms

For the subs:

• 4 white giant baps, sliced in half
• 1 ripe avocado, sliced
• 50g wild rocket
• Vegan coleslaw 

Method

1.  To make the pesto, first soak the sundried tomatoes overnight. Alternatively, if you’re short of time, put them in a saucepan, cover with hot water, bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes until softened. Drain, then gently squeeze until dry.
2. Add all the pesto ingredients, except the mushrooms, into a food processor with a pinch of salt and whizz until smooth. Don’t over blend – you want the pesto a little chunky so there is a little bite to it. Put half of the pesto into a mixing bowl and add the mushrooms. Mix well until the mushrooms are evenly coated in pesto.
3. Skewer the mushrooms onto metal skewers, or bamboo skewers soaked in water. Put the mushrooms on a hot part of the barbecue and cook, turning regularly, until they start to char and smell amazing, probably about 5-7 minutes. Carefully remove from the skewers.
4. Toast the giant baps. Add some vegan coleslaw and a few rocket leaves, then top with a decent portion of the pesto mushrooms. Add a couple of slices of avocado and top with the bap lid. Enjoy this next level barbecue sensation!