Mushroom-methi-matar .. A delectable curry

Hi.

One can confirm from my previous posts that ever since the onset of winter I have concentrated largely on greens. Seasonal produce is what I love to cook with.

When we visit any North Indian restaurant Methi matar malai is usually seen in the menu card and I wanted to play around this combination sans the malai.

I was keen on cooking with Mushroom. Now, S is not a die hard fan of it, he kind of compromises when he  eats them. I definitely ensure to make something interesting with Mushroom so that he can eat them pleasurably.

S loves Methi (fenugreek leaves) in any preparation, that did offer me a good chance to experiment with Mushroom with Fenugreek too as one of the key ingredient.

We all know that the greens reduce largely in volume on cooking, so do the Mushrooms. That’s how the peas came into the picture..err the curry.. They helped to increase the volume of the curry and also  aided in providing more texture.

Any curried vegetable tastes good if the curry/gravy is made to perfection. I strongly believe that making a good curry is an art and I guess all my blogger pals will agree with it.

The addition of perfect blend of spices along with the basic onion-ginger-garlic combination is what I have surely learnt over the years and have been appreciated by many for my curries. At the same time I do not shy away from taking  tips from the experts for the same.

While I was roasting the  masala for this curry my friend M had come to catch up with me. She entered asking what I was making? She then commented that she could smell Methi and when she eventually entered the kitchen, she said she could smell Cinnamon/ Dalchini too.

She quickly picked up from me what all I had added to the gravy and said she was making it for sure.. as it  smelt so good.

In this preparation  since I had replaced the Malai with the Muhrooms from the Methi malai matar combo,  the curry was not rich  but surely it was delectable. It had the nice aroma of Fenugreek and the Mushrooms had absorbed all the flavors and spices very well.

The peas were placed elegantly in this trio. It’s  a perfect side dish for every day cooking and is worth enough to charm your guests. My children loved every bit and I did not see S fussing at all,  in fact I just heard…it’s very nice.

Ingredients

200 gm Mushroom chopped
a large handful of fenugreek/Methi chopped
a cup of peas boiled

To grind together
2 large onions roughly chopped
2 tomatoes
4-5 garlic pods
1/2 inch piece ginger
a small piece cinnamon
2-3 cardamom
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
5  tsp desiccated dry coconut

spices…
1/2 tsp turmeric
2-3 tsp red chili pwd
3 tsp coriander pwd
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp cumin pwd

Method

Heat about 6-7 tbsp oil. Fry the chopped fenugreek leaves till crisp and keep aside.

Frying  Methi helps reduce the bitterness to a great extent plus adds a nice texture.

In the same oil add the ground paste and sauté  it till the oil separates.

Now add all the spices except the garam masala and sauté  for  a minute.

Add the mushrooms and salt and cook till done.

Add  the peas and fried Methi and mix properly, check the consistency, if required add a little water.

Just before turning the flame off add the garam masala and mix.

At the end, garnish with some fresh cream and serve with Naan or Paratha.