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    You are here: Home / Entrees / Portobello Panang Curry

    LAST UPDATED: January 19, 2022 • FIRST PUBLISHED: March 19, 2016

    Portobello Panang Curry

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Pan-seared portobello slabs are simmered in a rich sauce of coconut milk, peanut butter and red curry to create this succulent vegan remake of a Thai classic.

    Portobello Panang Curry

    I totally cheated with this one, but that's okay. Let me explain.

    Portobello Panang Curry

    Have you had panang curry before? It's delicious. Much like red curry, but better. (Yes, that's possible.) I wanted to create a vegan version for the blog for a while, I've never come across a commercial brand of panang curry paste, and I'm guessing that if one is out there, it probably isn't vegan. And while I am a fan of whipping up DIY curry pastes as fun little projects when I have the time, it's nice to know I can rely on something easy and store-bought.

    Portobello Panang Curry

    I always kind of wondered if I could pull it off with red curry paste, but I thought that would be cheating. Then I happened to see a comment on this recipe dealing with that very question. I took that as an invitation to go ahead and do as I pleased.

    What I ended up doing for my cheater's portobello panang curry is pretty simple. Red curry + full fat coconut milk + peanut butter. And a few other seasonings to boot, but that's pretty much it, and it was just fine by me. Tasty as heck, in fact, and yes, between all that peanutty and coconutty goodness, pretty darn rich, but so worth it. Since beef panang curry seems to be a big thing, went and included some big fat meaty portobello mushrooms in lieu of the tofu and/or mixed veggies I might normally be inclined to go with in a Thai curry. If you're more of a tofu and veggies type of person, be my guest. This sauce would taste good on just about anything.

    Portobello Panang Curry
    Plate of Portobello Panang Curry Over Rice
    4.5 from 2 votes
    Print

    Portobello Panang Curry

    Pan-seared portobello slabs are simmered in a rich sauce of coconut milk, peanut butter and red curry to create this succulent vegan remake of a Thai classic.
    Course Entree
    Cuisine American, Thai
    Prep Time 5 minutes
    Cook Time 20 minutes
    Total Time 25 minutes
    Servings 4
    Calories 488 kcal
    Author Alissa

    Ingredients

    • 1-14 oz. can full fat coconut milk
    • 2-4 tbsp. vegan red curry paste to taste
    • 2 tbsp. creamy peanut butter
    • 2 tbsp. maple syrup
    • 2 tbsp. soy sauce or tamari or to taste
    • 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
    • 4 large portobello caps stemmed, cleaned and cut into ½ inch thick strips
    • 1 red bell pepper sliced into strips

    For Serving

    • cooked jasmine rice
    • ¼ cup chopped roasted peanuts
    • 2 scallions chopped
    • ½ cup fresh basil leaves loosely packed

    Instructions

    1. Whisk coconut milk, curry paste, peanut butter, maple syrup and soy sauce together in a medium bowl. You can warm the mixture up a bit if needed to fully blend.
    2. Coat the bottom of a large skillet with oil and place over medium heat. Working in batches if needed, add portobello strips in a single layer and cook until browned on bottoms, about 5 minutes. Flip and cook 5 minutes more.
    3. Add coconut milk mixture and bell pepper. Raise heat and bring to a simmer. Lower heat and allow to cook, stirring occasionally, until peppers and mushrooms are tender, 10 minutes.
    4. Divide rice onto plates and top with mushroom mixture. Sprinkle with scallions, basil and peanuts. Serve.

    Recipe Notes

    As far as vegan curry paste options go, Maesri is my favorite. This time around I used Thai Kitchen though, just because it's milder, which I think works better for this type of curry.

    Nutrition information does not include rice.

    Nutrition Facts
    Portobello Panang Curry
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 488 Calories from Fat 384
    % Daily Value*
    Fat 42.7g66%
    Saturated Fat 25.8g129%
    Sodium 898mg37%
    Potassium 711mg20%
    Carbohydrates 22.1g7%
    Fiber 4.3g17%
    Sugar 12.4g14%
    Protein 9.3g19%
    Calcium 40mg4%
    Iron 4.7mg26%
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
    « Creamy Kale Pesto Risotto
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    About Alissa Saenz

    Hi, I'm Alissa! I'm a former attorney turned professional food blogger. I love creating vegan recipes with bold flavors! You can read more about me here.

    I'd love to connect with you on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Emma {Emma's Little Kitchen} says

      March 20, 2016 at 6:32 pm

      Love panang curry, and LOVE the meatiness of the mushrooms in this, yummy!

      Reply
    2. Karlie S. says

      March 26, 2016 at 7:15 pm

      Just made this tonight with only 1/2 the coconut milk and it was delicious!!!

      Great idea, love all the recipes I try of yours

      Reply
    3. Stephanie says

      March 30, 2016 at 8:53 am

      I love this recipe! You need to write a book - I have tried so many vegan bloggers recipes with mixed results. Your recipes are consistently the most consistent...and delicious! :) Thanks for all you do!

      Reply
    4. Sarah says

      October 31, 2017 at 4:49 pm

      Is there a way to reduce the amount of coconut milk in this recipe without sacrificing that special panang flavor? I am trying to make this healthier because I love it so much!!

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        November 01, 2017 at 9:38 am

        It's a very saucy dish, so you could probably get away with cutting back on all of the sauce ingredients listed in step 1 by a third to a half. Another option is to try using light coconut milk or even cut it with some almond milk. :) I hope you enjoy it!!

        Reply
    5. Mette Nielsen says

      April 07, 2018 at 12:25 pm

      5 stars
      This is such an easy fix, liked y almost everyone, - Just made it two nights in a row for two different sets of pop-up guests.
      I was running low on bell pepper the second night, added a couple of hand fulls of spinach last minute of cooking for wilting.
      Also added a generous sprinkle of lemon juice at serving.
      Love it!
      Thank you for a fantastic recipe!

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        April 08, 2018 at 6:35 pm

        Spinach sounds like a delicious addition! I'm so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks Mette!

        Reply
    6. Jody says

      June 30, 2018 at 8:11 pm

      FYI Maesri makes a panang curry paste. Also available on amazon, and ingredients are listed there. Only addition over their Red is bay leaves, otherwise it's the same, just different ratios. It's definitely my favorite.

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        July 01, 2018 at 8:23 pm

        Maesri is my favorite store bought vegan brand! :)

        Reply
    7. David says

      October 07, 2019 at 10:42 am

      4 stars
      Just a hint from Thailand, add just a little (2-3 leaves) of what we call Makgroot or you would call kafir lime leaves finely chopped, with the panaeng curry when it's cooking. NOW that's a superb Thai Penang curry ;-) BTW if you want to make vegan penang curry paste just replace the fish sauce with soy sauce and there's plenty of recipes for it on the web.

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        October 13, 2019 at 11:11 am

        Thanks for the tips!

        Reply

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    Hi, I'm Alissa! I'm a former attorney turned professional food blogger. I love creating vegan recipes with bold flavors!

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