Mushroom Masala/ Koon curry

Mushroom, according to me, looks so unassuming and plain that it is hard to imagine making an amazing dish with it. But as you know, it is so easy to process and cook that it can quickly produce a flavorful recipe like this Mushroom masala or Kadai Mushroom.

About mushrooms

Mushrooms come in many different varieties , the most common being the Agaricus bisporus or the common white button mushroom and innumerable special varieties like portabello, porcini, cremini, shitake etc. The button mushroom is mild in its flavor and low in protein content. Many other mushrooms like portabella have higher amounts of protein and more meaty flavor and is commonly used as a meat substitute. Maybe that is why many strict vegetarians do not eat mushrooms.

Availability

Since mushrooms are now found extensively in supermarkets that I always make it a part of my regular recipes . During my childhood, we had a single store in town which sold specialty food products where we could find the white button mushrooms. Now it has grown into a business opportunity for many and so is very readily available.

Wild mushrooms

As you know, mushrooms come in both farmed and wild kinds. Experts say that it is hard to distinguish between poisonous and nonpoisonous varieties in the wild. I feel it is safer to avoid all that is growing in the wild and buy mushrooms from a supermarket.

Well, not always the case in my family. In India, my mom’s family loves a particular type of wild mushroom that sprouts in our yard after a lightning storm. It has to be plucked from the ground before it opens up, within in a few hours of sprouting. So my mom or grandpa will be roaming the yard the morning after an overnight thunderstorm to search for these favorites. I do not know much about these mushrooms, other than how it looks. In fact, I never ventured out to check them out myself till now. And the curry made with the mushroom is one of the most coveted dishes in our family. I remember when it used sprout only in my grandfather’s yard and not in ours. In those days, my grandma would make the curry and grandpa would travel all the way from his home to my home on a bus, to deliver this curry.

I would have loved to share my family’s mushroom curry recipe here but unfortunately it is hard to get a hold of those particular mushrooms and they never taste as good with any other type of mushroom. Maybe one of these days, I will be able to get it.

Mushroom masala

I make the mushroom masala with regular white button mushrooms. It is very tasty and easy to make. Like any other simple recipe, the main stipulation is that you have to pay attention to the steps. It tastes great with roti or Kerala porotta or naan. I got the recipe for the mushroom masala from here .

Wash and cut the mushrooms. I cut the mushroom into quarters or slice them into smaller pieces. Depending on the cut, the curry can be a slightly watery curry with quartered mushrooms or a thick gravy with mushrooms almost disappearing into the gravy.

Grind some cashews and tomatoes into a fine paste. Crush or grind ginger, garlic, green chillies and curry leaves. Heat oil in a saute pan and add the crushed mixture and saute. Add onion and saute till translucent. Add the spice powders and mix well., Add the ground tomato mixture and mix well and let oil seep out to the top. Put the mushrooms, salt and cover and cook on a low flame. Keep stirring once in a while. Once the masala has reached your desired consistency and switch off.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

•