This recipe is so freely adapted from
the more authentic ones, that I hardly dare to put it into ‘Curries
for Cooks’. However, as it uses one or two spices/herb which only
dedicated curry cooks are likely to have on board, that’s how I
shall categorise it. (This, of course, assumes that anyone ever
looks at the pages on this blog!)
I made this when I had been ‘off my
food’ for a while and unable to face the thought of any Indian
food. As I generally adore such recipes, this was a personal tragedy
at the time. I had been sent a malai recipe in one of my blog feeds,
and it attracted my attention as having not too many spices and
looking like something might tempt my appetite. The recipe in
question was for paneer, which I can’t obtain locally (and as an
aspiring vegan, try to avoid), I looked to see if there were any more
recipes on the Internet and came across a mushroom malai, with even
fewer spices – perhaps too few- so I took a bit from both recipes.
When I came to look more closely, I
discovered that these ‘white’ curries usually contain cashew nuts
(this isn’t just a vegan spin on Indian food: a lot of Indian
recipes call for cashews), which I don’t include and malai, which
means cream, which I also left out. Vegan versions use cashew nut
cream; vegetarian versions seem to use cream plus some yoghurt, which
I think is because Indian cream is thicker than what is available in
most countries (the UK being – or was! - a notable exception) and
sounds more like ‘double cream’. Anyway, this is all irrelevant,
because I simply used a goodly amount of nice, thick yoghurt.
The onions, garlic and ginger are meant
to be ground to a paste in a blender. I couldn’t be bothered
(another side effect of the appetite loss) and simply diced them very
finely. They certainly didn’t intrude.
Matar, by the way, means peas, so they
are, strictly, essential. Otherwise it will be simply mushroom
malai. I used freeze-dried peas – essential voyagers’
provisions. The curry, even with all my alterations, was incredibly
good. I could have scoffed the lot – so obviously it also restored
my appetite for Indian food!!
I have made it several times since, and
it has become one of my favourite ways to eat mushrooms. I’ve been
tweaking the spices to keep the curry mellow, but with lots of
flavour and, having now got it about right, I feel I can finally post
the recipe. If you’re not fond of too much chilli, leave out the
chillies and simply use the Kashmiri chilli powder. I have even made
this recipe without any cream, yoghurt or cream substitute and it is
still delicious. I’m afraid the photos don’t show a white
curry: the button mushroom that I buy locally, always turn any sauce
brown. Oyster mushrooms would probably produce a lighter-coloured
sauce. Use as many mushrooms as you think you can eat: this isn’t
a particularly filling meal.
Serves 2
Ingredients
1½ tbsp ghee or oil
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 small piece mace
1 or 2 green chillies,
chopped
1 small onion, finely
diced
1/2 tsp ginger paste
2 garlic cloves, finely
diced or 1/2 tsp garlic paste
2 green cardamoms,
seeds only
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp Kashmiri chilli
powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp water
2 cups of white
mushrooms quartered
1/2 cup thick yoghurt,
thinned to pouring consistency
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup freeze-dried
peas
1/4 tsp ground white
pepper or black, if that’s all you have
1/4 tsp garam masala
1 tsp kasuri methi
(dried fenugreek leaves)
Method:
- Heat the ghee in a heavy-based saucepan and sizzle the cumin seeds and mace.
- Add the chilli and cook for a few moments.
- Now add the onion, ginger, garlic, cardamom seeds, coriander, chilli powder and salt. Cook for a couple of minutes, lower the heat and add the water. (This is to stop the vegetables browning). Cook until the onions, etc are soft adding a drop more water if necessary.
- Now raise the heat once more, add the mushrooms and cook for a few minutes, ensuring that they are well-covered in the ghee/spice/aromatics mixture.
- When the mushrooms are starting to soften, add the peas and a drop more water if necessary.
- Cook for another four or five minutes and then stir in the yoghurt and cinnamon and bring everything to a very gentle boil. Now turn the heat right down until the mixture is barely simmering and add the pepper.
- Put a lid on and simmer until the mushrooms are cooked. Remove the lid so that the sauce can thicken to the consistency you want, then add the methi and garam masala. Cook very gently for another couple of minutes.
Serve with roti, brown basmati rice, or
cumin rice if you prefer.
Notes:
- Whole mace, unlike the ground variety, has a surprisingly intense flavour. If you’re not used to using it, be careful how much you add. I broke off a piece about the size of a small cardamom pod
Variations:
- This recipe would be a good one for voyagers who make their own yoghurt, or have cream on board or have cashews and a grinder. I would suggest that if using dairy cream, you would add some powdered milk to thicken it.
- For a more filling meal, add ½ cup chickpeas or white beans, soaked, cooked and drained. Or a can.
- This is quite a quick meal to make because you can just add everything in order, stirring to ensure that it’s all mixed as you don’t want the fried vegetables and spices to turn brown
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