CAJUN MUSHROOM TACOS WITH MANGO SALSA & PINK RADISH SLAW

This shoot was in collaboration with Lowri Bethan Photography

If there are tacos on the table, they are for me. They are my favourite things in the world. Tacos capture the essence of everything the eating and entertaining process should be. Calm and comfortable with a much needed excitement. It’s the ideal meal for when you’ve got a bunch of people sat around a big table that’s groaning under the weight of all the fillings you’ve prepared. And not one of them took more than 20 minutes to prepare. Rest assured of that.

Tacos are my go-to when entertaining because 80% of the prep can be done beforehand and stashed in the fridge, plus it takes away any cutlery-bearing anxiety of having to plate up food at particular times and ensure everybody is enjoying the meal. It’s low-effort, ‘Plonk on the Table’ food that allows room for the host to breathe and the guests to get stuck in so you can focus more on enjoying the evening than sweating over a stove.

And I’ve tried this with my most carnivore of friends who had absolutely no idea this recipe was meatless. God I love a sneaky Veggie.

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Serves 6 People

For the Mango Salsa
50g Mango Slices (from a packet)
2 Big Tomatoes
3 Spring Onions
Bunch of Coriander
1 Lime
Pinch of salt

For the Pink Radish Coleslaw
Half a Head of White Cabbage
5/6 Little Radishes
2 Carrots
1 tbs Apple Vinegar
1 tbs Mayonnaise
Pinch of Salt & Pepper

For the Tacos
400g Chestnut Mushrooms
1 Yellow Pepper
1 Red Chilli
Drizzle of Olive Oil
Big pinch of Salt
1 tsp garlic powder
2 teaspoons Smoked Paprika
1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
1 teaspoon Dried Oregano
6 Tortillas

Serving Recommendations
1 Avocado crushed up with some salt and lime
A handful of pomegranate seeds
Some chopped coriander
Lime Wedges

Prepare your mango salsa first and get it out of the way by finely chopping all the ingredients and throw in a bowl with a squeeze of the lime. Mix everything up, cover and keep in the fridge until you’re ready. Now do the same with the pink coleslaw by finely slicing the vegetables (use a vegetable peeler for the carrot – it’s easier), throwing in a bowl with the vinegar and mayonnaise. Season, stir, cover and store with the salsa.

Seasoning, stirring, covering and storing is the story of my life, I think.

Now for the tacos themselves, we’re going to make our own taco filling out of mushrooms. So in a processor, blitz up the mushrooms to a rubble and pour into a big saucepan. It may look a lot but don’t panic, mushrooms shrink beyond belief when they cook. Deseed the yellow pepper and add to the empty processor bowl along with the chilli (seeds in, why not) and blitz to a carnival coloured confetti. Empty this into the pan of mushroom rubble and stir to combine. Pour in the olive oil and the salt and put the pan on a medium heat.

You’re not actually using mincemeat with fatty flavours here so it gives you so much room to play with flavour and I use a mixture of Cajun spices to saturate the mushrooms with warmth and smoke. So once the mushrooms and pepper mix start sizzling, add all of the spices to pan and stir to coat all of the mushrooms with the seasoning. Allow this to cook for about 10 minutes so that all of the ingredients are infused.

Remove off the heat and replace with a dry frying pan and heat the tortillas up for about 20 seconds a side and keep warm in a tea towel. Do this last because once this is done, you’re literally ready to plate up. I recommend doing as I do and just plonk the pan in the middle of the table for everybody to help themselves and bring the salsa and coleslaw to the table alongside it. Encourage your friends to stack up their tacos as they see fit, just don’t tell them there’s no meat.

It’s always fun to watch them be shocked.