Kadai Mushroom Recipe 

Ingredients

For Kadai Masala

• 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
• 3 to 4 dry red chilies – broken and deseeded if preferred
• ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
• ½ inch cinnamon
• 1 green cardamom
• 2 cloves
• 3 to 4 whole black pepper
• 1 single strand of mace – optional

Other Ingredients

• 200 to 250 grams button mushrooms – sliced
• ½ cup thinly sliced capsicum – or 1 medium-sized capsicum (red or green or yellow bell pepper)
• 1 cup chopped tomatoes – pureed or about ¾ cup tomato puree or 2 medium-sized tomatoes (use tomatoes which are ripe, red and not too tangy)
• ½ cup finely chopped onions or 1 medium-sized onion
• 1 teaspoon Ginger Garlic Paste or 1 inch ginger + 3 to 4 small to medium-sized garlic, crushed in a mortar-pestle
• 1 teaspoon crushed kasuri methi (dry fenugreek leaves)
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder – optional
• ½ cup water or 125 ml water
• 3 tablespoons oil – sunflower oil or any neutral vegetable oil
• salt as required

For Garnishing

• 1 to 2 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves (cilantro)
• 1 inch ginger – julienne

Variations

• 1 or 2 tablespoons cream – low fat 25 to 35 % cream can be added right at the end and mixed with the gravy
• ¼ teaspoon Garam Masala or punjabi garam masala- garam masala powder can be added when you add the kasuri methi (dry fenugreek leaves)

Instructions 

Making Kadai Masala

1. First dry roast all the spices mentioned above for the kadai masala, on a low flame in a kadai or wok or a pan till fragrant. Don’t burn them.
2. Once the spices cool down, add them to a grinder jar.
3. Grind to a semi fine powder. You can also grind to a fine powder. Keep the ground kadai masala aside.
4. In the same jar, add chopped tomatoes. Blend the tomatoes to a smooth puree. Keep aside.
5. Rinse, wipe and then slice the mushrooms. Also thinly slice the bell pepper & chop the onions etc. Keep the veggies aside.

Sautéing Mushrooms

1. Heat oil in a kadai or pan. Add the sliced mushrooms.
2. Stir & sauté the sliced mushrooms. First you will see the mushrooms releasing a lot of water.
3. Then later the water evaporates. Saute till the mushrooms get browned from the edges.
4. Remove the mushrooms and keep aside.

Making Dry Kadai Mushroom

1. In the same oil, add finely chopped onions. Saute the onions till translucent or light golden.
2. Now add the ginger-garlic paste and saute till their raw aroma disappears.
3. Add the tomato puree. Stir and saute till you see some oil releasing from the sides.
4. Then add the sliced capsicum (bell pepper). Stir and saute for 5 to 6 minutes on a low flame
5. Add the ground kadai masala which we made. You can also add ¼ tsp turmeric powder at this step. Adding turmeric powder is optional though.
6. Then add ½ cup water. Season with salt.
7. Stir & bring the gravy to a simmer on a low flame till you see a few specks of oil on top.
8. Add the sautéed mushrooms and mix very well. You can add some more water if the gravy looks very dry.
9. Lastly add crushed kasuri methi (dry fenugreek leaves) and mix well. Switch off the heat.
10. Serve kadai mushroom dry hot with roti, paratha or naan. While serving you can garnish with ginger julienne and chopped coriander leaves.