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By shredding king oyster mushrooms, seasoning with spices, and baking, you can create a vegan mushroom pulled pork that rivals the real stuff! This foolproof vegan pork has been devoured in kitchens all over the world (and our step-by-step photos will walk you through how to make it perfectly every time).
save this recipe!This is one of the most popular recipes on Live Eat Learn. And for good reason! This pulled mushrooms recipe is:
- Stupid easy, just shred, bake and saute.
- Meat-eater approved, just check the comments!
- A fun new technique to add to your vegetarian dinner recipe arsenal.
And the thing is, I didn’t even like mushrooms when I first created this recipe back in 2018. But this recipe changed it all for me. Now, mushrooms are one of my favorite ingredients to cook with, and we have hundreds of mushroom recipes on the site.
Ready to try out your new favorite vegetarian meat substitute? Let’s cook!
Reader rating
“Invited my meat eater friends over for pulled pork sliders…after a couple of servings someone asked “I thought you didn’t eat meat?” I responded…I don’t but I eat mushrooms!!!” —Diane
You just need a few ingredients
This is just an overview! Jump to the recipe card for full measurements and instructions.
- King Oyster Mushrooms: The thick stem shreds into perfectly “pulled pork” pieces. Find king oyster mushrooms in almost any or Asian supermarket and some health food stores. You can substitute the smaller version of these mushrooms–oyster mushrooms–if needed (about 3 heaping cups worth).
- Spices: The spices can be adapted to what you like, but we tend to use smoked paprika (for that roasted flavor), salt, and a bit of cayenne.
- BBQ Sauce: It’s not a pulled pork alternative without the best barbecue sauce! We love Sweet Baby Ray’s around here (it’s a vegan BBQ sauce we always keep stocked), but any sauce will do.
Reader rating
“Absolutely incredible and genius!!! You would never know you were eating mushrooms or anything other than pulled pork or chicken!!” —Erin
Serving
What’s BBQ without the condiments you serve it with? We paired this BBQ pulled mushroom with coleslaw on burger buns, but it’s also delicious on vegan nachos, in mushroom carnitas tacos, or even as a filling for vegan bao buns.
Next-Level BBQ Pulled Mushrooms
Ingredients
- 4 king oyster mushrooms*
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 30 mL, divided
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup BBQ sauce, 60 g
Instructions
- Shred Mushrooms: Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C). Clean 4 king oyster mushrooms* with a damp paper towel. Using two forks, shred the stems and caps roughly into pieces. Set on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
- Bake: Drizzle with half of the oil, 1 tsp smoked paprika, ¼ tsp salt, ¼ tsp cayenne pepper, and 2 cloves garlic (minced). Toss around to evenly coat the mushrooms, then bake for 20 minutes, or until mushrooms are a bit crispy and brown on the edges.
- Sauté: Heat remaining oil in a large saute pan over medium/high. Transfer cooked mushrooms to pan and add ¼ cup BBQ sauce. Stir and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until mixture is thick and fragrant. Serve warm on sandwiches, nachos, salads, tacos…or whenever you eat pulled pork! (Our favorite way? On a soft bun with sliced red onion and shredded cabbage!)
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information calculated by Sarah Bond, degreed nutritionist.
did you make this?Leave a comment below and tag @liveeatlearn on social media! I love seeing what you’ve made!More ways to use oyster mushrooms
Now that you’ve fallen in love with oyster mushrooms, here are a few of our favorite oyster mushroom recipes to inspire your vegetarian cooking!
- Vegetarian Philly Cheesesteak made with flavorful oyster mushrooms? Yes please (this went viral on Tastemade!)
- Buttermilk Fried “Chicken” isn’t chicken…and it’s not even fried. Battered oyster mushrooms cooked in the air fryer!
- Pulled Mushroom Tacos seasoned with TexMax flavors and loaded with toppings.
Very tasty but… My mushroom were rather chewy so not sure if I should bake them longer?
Yes bake them longer if they’re still chewy! And shred them into finer pieces.
Can I make this in advance- for example bake at home and then fry when I get to my friends house an hr or so later or will that impact the texture?
That would work well! 😀
Invited my meat eater friends over for pulled pork sliders … after a couple of servings someone asked “I thought you didn’t eat meat?” I responded … I don’t but I eat mushrooms!!!
Made a broccoli slaw, pickled red onions and topped them with French fried onions for crunch!!!
Too funny, so happy to hear it was a hit!! 😀
been vegetarian for nearly 40 years and this is one of the best vegetarian meals i’ve ever eaten and it couldn’t be easier!
This makes me so happy to read, Andy! Enjoy!!
This was my first experience with oyster mushrooms. The recipe was so easy and delicious. My meat eating husband requested we have this again soon. Thank you for a great new favorite.
I’m so happy to hear it was a hit! Enjoy! 😀
My girlfriend says this is the best mushroom pulled pork knockoff she’s ever had, and she’s almost 25!
Yay! I’m so happy to hear she loves it!
Baked them significantly longer than 20 minutes, and they still turned out very chewy. Sorry, this one didn’t work for me.
Hi Sarah,
I see a pink creamy dressing on top of the pulled pork sandwiches just before you put the final bun on the sandwich you see it by the onion, is it Thousand Island Dressing? I would like to know as soon as possible because I am going to make it for dinner tonight and my dad HATES mushrooms, but he LOVES BBQ PORK and I am hoping that he won’t be able to tell the difference between the mushroom pulled pork and the regular pulled pork. I have time on my side. We don’t eat BBQ pulled pork often, so I hope he doesn’t remember what the pork meat tastes like. Not that this doesn’t taste exactly like pork. I don’t know as I have never had it. But I am confident that all your and the review’s praise is warranted. So I will go with that. The main differences that I am making in my recipe are that I am using pita bread and not using slaw, my dad doesn’t like coleslaw or cabbage. Since I am trying to get him to eat 1 ingredient that he doesn’t like. I don’t think it is fair to make him try and eat other ingredients he doesn’t like. The whole purpose of making this meal is to make my first vegetarian meal. My mom is on board with all of this. She doesn’t think that he will notice or be mad if he finds remnants of making this meal. The whole reason he doesn’t like mushrooms is their texture. If we can change their texture even a little bit I believe he will be on board. Sorry, I took so much of your time I hope you get back to me regarding the sauce. thank you very much. Sarah
Hi Sarah! That’s a mayo BBQ sauce (basically just 1 to 1 ratio). Enjoy! 😀
Brilliant idea! Where has this delicious recipe been all my life? I got myself in an oyster mushroom rut and this recipe got me out!
We returned to an omnivore diet a few years ago, having been fully vegetarian/vegan for 25+ years, and long before the meat “alternatives”
became available. In that time we probably tried them all.
Wanted this receipe for a change since we bought fresh king oyster mushrooms at an Asian store.
But it is a no for us!
Made with suggested adjustments for texture, but still no!
Plus, it takes longer to “pull” the mushrooms than it does to pull real pork!!!
The best part of the overall meal was my homemade BBQ sauce, and coleslaw.
Need to find other recipes using the delicious king oyster mushrooms in a more traditional way, and would appreciate any tips on that!