Monday, April 20, 2015

Kadai Mushroom with Potatoes and Methi

This past week my favorite section in the Washington Post, carried this headline "Can Vegetable Biryani Satisfy Mr. Meat and Potatoes?" no prodding is necessary to read the Food Section but this heading piqued my curiosity. There were a few Indian Recipes and the Kadai Musroom recipe was one that I wanted to try immediately. Mushrooms bought here have too much water and so the simple stir fry with just chilli powder and salt that my mother does in India does not taste all that good. The 2 packets of mushroom were not sufficient so added a few potatoes, also added fresh Methi leaves with the tender stems which gave it the special taste and aroma. If you have enough mushrooms leave out the potatoes.



Ingredients
  1. Cremini Mushrooms 2 Packets cleaned and sliced (about 3 cups)
  2. 6 garlic cloves minced or grated
  3. 5 Green Chillies (deseeded) and chopped fine
  4. 1 1/2 inch ginger piece grated
  5. 1/4 cup of fresh Methi leaves chopped or frozen (use more or less)
  6. 5 Roma tomatoes (I added one big tomato and one roma tomato) (or chopped/crushed canned tomatoes)
  7. 3 Medium sized Red potatoes cut into lengthwise strips (optional)
  8. handful of corriander leaves chopped
  9. 1/2 tbsp kassor methi crushed coarsely
  10. 2 tsp of any masala powder or 1/2 tsp garam masala powder
  11. 2 tsp Red chilli powder
  12. 1 tbsp coriander powder
  13. 1 tbsp of oil
Method
  1. In a Kadai add a little the oil and when it is hot add the mushroom and stir fry till all the water is evaporated, transfer to a bowl.
  2. Clean the kadai add some more oil and stir fry the potatoes if using till they are 3/4 cooked and set aside.
  3. Add the remaining oil and when it is hot add the garlic and ginger and let them cook till they turn color, don't let the garlic burn, adjust the heat to a little below medium.
  4. Now add the methi and coriander leaves and chilli powder and saute till are wilted.
  5. Add the green chillies and fry for a minute.
  6. Now add the tomatoes and cook till they are soft and mushed.
  7. Add masala and coriander powders and mix well.
  8. Add the the mushrooms and Potatoes, salt mix well, cover with a lid and let it cook for 6-8 minutes till the potatoes are cooked through.
  9. Now add the kasoor methi and after a minute switch off the heat.
Serve with Rice, roti or any Indian Bread

Recipe Source: From chef Nilesh Singhvi (article in the Washington Post)
From the archives. Originally posted 4/22/07

30 comments:

  1. That's a great combination Indo.Mushroom and potatoes do well together.Most Americans will not even try to taste Indian,I bet once they do they will get addicted:)

    I will check that link,thanks.

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  2. This looks so yummy Indo. We do a mushroom with mustard Paste :D, which is simple and yet very tasty, shall post that soon.
    I have not used Cremini mushroom ever. What is the significance ?
    Another thing is one of my friends had a tip which I dilligently follow for mushrooms, she says to soak the mushrooms for an hour in water with a pinch of turmeric and change the water 2-3 times.

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  3. Asha that is so true once they taste Indian they get hooked.
    The potato mushroom combo was really good, this is the first time I am trying them together.

    Sandeepa, I used to buy button mushrooms but tried creminis once liked them better than button mushrooms, they have a slightly woody taste, try them you will notice the difference.
    What does soaking do to the mushrooms?

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  4. wow that just looks so inviting !
    love it!

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  5. thats one cool recipe indo. ilove mushrooms and i usually add peppers with mushrooms which tastes really good. should try adding potatoes which will give quite thick gravy... ah!!!!

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  6. putting the home grown methi to good use , I see. Totally right about the mushrooms here. My mom makes a simple mushroom dish with just ginger/garlic and green chillies paste that tastes awsome in India and not so awsome here. The cremini are more 'mushroomy' than the button ones, aren't they?
    Pray, what be the chicken masala?

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  7. mushroom and methi - unusual and fabulous.

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  8. Roopa, it really is tasty, try it.

    Sia, I have never tried adding any other Veg to Mushroom before this, will try with bell pepper. Yup the gravy was thick and yummy.

    Vee, how handy it is growing them at home. Did not have enough corriander leaves and hence added the Methi but hereafter I would not try the recipe without the methi leaves.

    You cook Indian food and don't know Chicken Masala Powder? Oh MY! Kidding Vee, it is like Garam Masala probably the same basic ingredients plus a little bit of chilli powder and turmeric. I don't buy Garam Masala, smell a little too strong for my liking and the Chicken Masala Powder works well.

    Sandeepa, that is the word I was looking for, Vee supplied it, Cremini is more "mushroomy" and a little more solid than the white button mushroom.

    Bee, Methi is excellent with any dish what else can I say!

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  9. hey, this looks like a great combination, will give it a try! I usually make the mushroom-peas subzi in a spicy gravy.
    thanks for ur recipe.
    BTW ur methi looks so good!

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  10. hey indo, you know, every time I say 'indosungod, I wonder what your name would be and have come with a few names. :)

    cremini mushroom sounds wonderful. I got to try it. I love mushrooms. I'm eager to here about what Sandeepa has got to say about washing the mushrooms. I've stopped washing it (umm! I know!) after hearing on food channel that mushrooms should not be washed and just wiped with a cloth.. Seems like they soak as much water as they can. when it's washed.

    Also, tip from amma - goes like this. dont add water when you add the mushrooms - it will let some water out, let it completely dry up before adding water (that is, if you need to add water at all). She washes her mushrooms though.

    hey, have you tried oyster mushrooms... usually chinese stores have these in plenty. now that's another mushroom that's mushroomy. :)

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  11. hmmm this looks lovely and spicy.love mushrooms a lot so any dish with mushrooms i just love to try.Thanks for sharing

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  12. Richa thank you, give it a try yes spicy too.

    Kay, I am curious about what names you came up with. I saw the same tip on Food Network but I still wash the mushrooms because of the black soil stuff. I never add water to any mushroom dish. Love the oyster mushrooms too, I don't see them in the grocery store all that much, if I see it they are black and not that inviting. Our Korean store's roof caught on fire waiting for them to reopen, they had Oyster mushrooms always. That reminds our Farmers Market carries fresh mushrroms also.

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  13. Sowmya if you love mushrooms this is must try.

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  14. that is an unusual combo. should try it hmm... i make mushroom and tofu fry often.

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  15. I never thot of that combo. It should be really good.

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  16. Indo
    http://www.williamrubel.com/mushrooms/cleaning-mushrooms/

    I do it because I am not very fond of the mushroomy smell, soaking with turmeric and little salt does remove that. Also it cleans the mushroom well, if I change the water 2-3 times
    Don't know if it does anything to the flavor
    After removing from water, you have to dry it out though and I saute till all the water is evaporated !!!

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  17. I know of very few ways to use mushrooms..this seems like an excellent way to use ..& a very different one..a must try for chapathi soon..thanks for sharing..

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  18. You are showing an incredible knack of throwing my words back at me. Hum Khush hue!

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  19. I haven't tried adding potato to my mushroom curry. Now that i have learnt, i will try them.

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  20. u are on, girl.. jalfrezi, kadai.. sound like a propah chef! what happened to ur low carb eating?

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  21. Now that I've read your comments and Sandeepa's, I think I'm going to wash mushrooms again. Cleaning them with a damp paper towel is too time consuming!!! After washing them in slightly turmeric+salted water and letting them drain for 1/2 hr, I'm going to refrigerate the mushrooms. Refrigeration usually dries up stuff.

    Indo, That's sad to hear about your korean store. I hope they open soon. I didnt like the dark oyster mushrooms they had at our usual grocery haunts. When I 'discovered' this chinese market, that is so near to my place, I found white oyster mushrooms that are as good as the ones we get in India. Very woody!

    As for the names, :) well, somewhere along the lines of Indumathi + Surya or Indra prabha devi or Indra + Prabhakar... Am I close?

    Alright, Laugh on!

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  22. Mallugirl
    Indo doesn't need to eat low carb anymore, she has achieved that perfect figure and can eat as many potatoes she wants ;-)

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  23. Hi,
    It is a different combination....... very different recipe......I realy want to try this out........

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  24. Shaheen I am still on a low carb diet but have gone uppity in my taste hence the kadai and Jalfrezi.
    By the way did your son like the lunch you packed him?

    Sandeepa, I never had included potato in the high carb category in the first place. It is a vegetable so I am still eating healthy. I keep up the rice control. I never eliminated it completely. Perfect figure yes if I can shave a little bit of the hip and the butt, picture Cyndy Crawford! One can dream can't they?

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  25. Reena, Inji, Aahar Vihaar it is a combo I am going to come back to often. Give it a try.

    Sukanya, Welcome to my blog, give it a try and let me know how it turns out.

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  26. Kay, yes I miss my Korean store, cheap + variety.

    My pseudonym is a take off of my daughter,s name. you have the right one in the several choices you gave, now you have to narrow it down.

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  27. ISG- that's a great combination! I buy cremini mushrooms every week, have to try it with methi and potatoes.

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  28. Hi ISG, I don't think I'm quite ready for soy yogurt, but I enjoyed the article, and I will surely try your mushrooms with potato and methi! Looks wonderful!

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  29. Linda, I am ready to go Vegan either. Soy Yogurt no way, Soy Milk a gulp is how much I can manage. Soy scares me a little bit now that I am starting to read about some of the side effects.

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  30. I meant to say not ready to go Vegan

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