Shahi Mushroom Matar

Shahi Mushroom Matar-

Sometime mistakes in kitchen are needed. While making this recipe, I made a mistake and was actually skeptical about the outcome, but I decided to move ahead with it. When I tasted the gravy I felt elated. Well “No risk no gain”. Mushroom and green peas partnered amazingly with the rich gravy base to create this very memorable dish.

Shahi Mushroom Matar -

Serves- 2-3 persons

Ingredients:

Button mushrooms- 200 gms (cut into thick slices)

Green peas- 1 cup (fresh)

Onions (small) - 2 (finely chopped)

Tomatoes (large) – 2 (roughly chopped)

Ginger-garlic paste- 1 tbsp

Coriander powder- 1 tbsp

Cumin powder- 3 tsp

Chili powder- ¾ tbsp

Turmeric powder- 1 tsp

Cashew- ½ tbsp

Melon seeds- ½ tbsp

Copra or grated coconut- 4 tbsp

Green cardamom- 2

Clove- 4

Cinnamon- 1’’ inch

Mace or javitri- 1

Milk- ¼ cup

Coriander leaves- 4 tbsp

Oil+ghee- 1 ½ tbsp

Bay leaf- 1

Shahi zeera- 2 tsp

Salt to taste

Procedure:

 Boil the green peas in salted water and the mushrooms in turmeric and salted water respectively till done.  Strain and keep them aside in separate bowls. Heat oil+ghee in a Kadhai, then add bay leaf and shahi zeera. After they have spluttered add onions and sauté them well till translucent. Meanwhile, grind tomatoes into fine paste. Then add ginger-garlic paste. Fry it well, and after the raw smell disappears add tomato paste alongwith turmeric powder, chili powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and salt. Cover and cook on a medium flame. During this time boil the cashew and melon seeds for 5 minutes. In another pan take copra or grated coconut, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and mace and dry roast it till browned completely. Well that was the mistake I was talking about- I forgot to re-enter the kitchen at the correct time as I got entangled with a short conversation with hubby. This resulted in complete browning of copra. I was scared and thought of discarding it as I did not want the gravy to emit any burned smell. However, I decided to go ahead with the trial. Then I took it off, cooled it down. Along with milk, boiled cashew-melon seeds and roasted spices grounded it into a smooth paste. When the masala is well cooked, add the grounded masala and some water according to your desired gravy consistency. Bring the gravy to boil, add mushrooms and green peas. Cover and let it cook for another 10 minutes. Check the salt and spice level. Finally add coriander leaves and take it off stove.

Notes:

If you want to impress guest with this Shahi mushroom matar sauté the mushrooms in ghee. Add cream and mint leaves to garnish.

Shahi mushroom matar tastes best with pulao or paranthas.