I am a big fan of mushrooms, all kinds that is. I love fresh mushrooms, Portobello mushrooms in particular. There are countless number of ways of preparing a mushroom dish.  You can stew them, stir fry them, add them into salads, used as an ingredient in other dishes like in bak kut teh, vegetarian dish, roast them, bbq them and grill them.  Some species of mushrooms are even used as supplements.

One very easy, tasty and healthy way of preparing a fresh Portobello mushroom dish is to grill the mushrooms in the oven. My favorite way is to grill the mushrooms with chopped garlic, drizzle of olive oil, ground black pepper and cheese.  You can even sprinkle some chopped spring onions on the mushroom caps after they are out from the oven.  I normally grill the mushrooms for about 15-20 minutes or until the garlic and olive oil sizzle. Do try out this very easy and wholesome dish for your family.  Mushrooms are bursting with anti-oxidants too.

My grilled Protobello mushrooms with garlic, olive oil, black pepper and cheese.

Food For Thought

One cup of sliced portobello mushrooms, approximately 121 g, makes up a single serving and has only 42 calories. There is 1 g of fat and 5 g of protein in a cup of sliced portobello mushrooms. The total carbohydrate content of a serving of portobello mushrooms is 6 g, of which 3 g is fiber. Water makes up 108 g of the total weight of a 1-cup serving. There are only 12 mg of sodium in a cup of portobello mushrooms, so it is considered a low-sodium food.

A 1-cup serving of portobello mushrooms supplies 31 percent of the daily recommended intake of selenium, or 21.4 mcg. It also contains 30 percent of the recommendation for copper and 18 percent of the requirement for both phosphorus and potassium. Other minerals in portabello mushrooms include iron, magnesium, manganese, calcium and zinc. In a serving of portobello mushrooms, there is 7.2 mg of the vitamin niacin, or 36 percent of the daily recommended intake, and 0.6 mg of riboflavin, or 34 percent of the recommendation for that vitamin. Portabello mushrooms also contain the vitamins pantothenic acid, folate, choline, vitamin B6 and thiamin, also known as vitamin B1. The nutrient betaine is also found in portabello mushrooms

Phytochemicals
Portobello mushrooms are a source of phytochemicals, food components that are not considered vitamins or minerals. Mushrooms, including portobello mushrooms, are one of the best sources of L-ergothioneine, a powerful antioxidant. Other antioxidant phytochemicals in portobello mushrooms includes a group called polyphenols. These compounds give portobello mushrooms an extremely high ORAC rating, a measurement of the antioxidant capability of a food.

Normal Physiological Effects
The selenium in portobello mushrooms operates in DNA repair in the body and also helps the body produce its own antioxidants. The iron and copper in portobello mushrooms aid in hemoglobin synthesis, which is needed for the transportation of oxygen through the blood. The high level of riboflavin in portobello mushrooms contributes to cellular energy production, and the pantothenic acid provided by these mushrooms aids adrenal gland function. Zinc, also found at high levels in portobello mushrooms, plays a role in immune function, wound healing and cell division. The consumption of niacin, found in high amounts in portobello mushrooms, has been linked to a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease, explains World’s Healthiest Foods.

Considerations
More antioxidant activity is found in the caps of mushrooms than in the stems. Unlike many other foods, most of the antioxidant level in mushrooms is not destroyed by cooking. Mushrooms also contain compounds called purines, which may cause health problems in individuals with gout. People with this condition may want to avoid eating portobello mushrooms.

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/279766-portobello-mushroom-nutritional-value/#ixzz1QwBMj75c