Name: Chilli Mushroom (Dry)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 250 g Button Mushrooms, wiped clean, halved or kept whole if small; 4 tbsp Corn Flour, divided (for batter and slurry); 2 tbsp All-Purpose Flour, maida; 1 tsp Ground Black Pepper, divided; 1 tsp Salt, divided; ¼ cup Water, ice cold, adjust for thick batter; as needed Cooking Oil, for deep frying; 1½ tbsp Garlic, finely minced; 1 tsp Ginger, finely minced; 2 Green Chili Pepper, slit; ½ Onion, cut into square petals; ½ Green Bell Pepper, cut into square petals; 1 tbsp Soy Sauce, dark; 1 tbsp Red Chilli Sauce; 1 tbsp Tomato Ketchup; 1 tsp Vinegar; 2 tbsp Spring Onion Greens, chopped

30 mintotal

Prep 15 min · Cook 15 min

Serves: 2
Difficulty: Medium
Spice: Medium

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Method

Make the batter: in a mixing bowl, whisk together the first measure of cornflour, all-purpose flour (maida), some of the black pepper and some of the salt. Add ice-cold water a little at a time, whisking until you have a smooth batter of medium thickness. It should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Submerge the surgically dry, wiped fungi (mushrooms) directly into the dense batter pool, enforcing absolute and complete encapsulation of every unit.
Heat frying oil to medium-high in a heavy kadhai. Lower the coated mushrooms in one at a time so they do not stick together.
Fry for 4-5 minutes. Take them out the moment the coating is very crisp and pale golden. Any longer and the mushrooms collapse and shrink right down. Lift onto absorbent paper straight away.
4–5 min
Slurry Synthesis: In a dedicated secondary container, rapidly dissolve the residual cornflour allocation in water to create a high-efficiency thickening agent. Hold in reserve.
Make the glaze: heat a little oil in a wide wok over high heat. Flash-fry the crushed garlic, ginger and slit green chillies, tossing quickly for about 10 seconds to bring out the aroma.
10 sec
Add the onion and capsicum petals to the wok. Stir-fry over high heat for 60 seconds, so the edges blister but the pieces stay crunchy.
1 min
Temper the heat input drastically. Swiftly blast the dark soy sauce, fiery red chilli emulsion, tomato ketchup, vinegar, residual black pepper dust, and a microscopic trace of salt into the wok. Force rapid homogenization.
Stir the rested cornflour slurry and pour it into the wok. Keep stirring quickly for 30 seconds until the sauce turns glossy and thick and clings to the back of the spatula.
30 sec
Turn off the heat. Add the crisp fried mushrooms to the sauce straight away.
Toss quickly and firmly so the sticky, glossy glaze coats every piece. Garnish with chopped spring onion greens and serve while still piping hot.

How to tell it's done

A savoury, well-spiced sticky glaze clinging to a loud, shattering batter shell that breaks onto juicy, earthy, tender mushroom inside.

Getting it right

Tip

Chef's Tip: Mushrooms give up a lot of water, so wipe them with a damp cloth instead of washing them. And turn the heat off before the fried mushrooms go into the sauce, or the crisp coating softens almost at once.

What to serve it with

A ferociously savory, vegan-compliant monolith of the Indo-Chinese culinary canon. Optimize service by presenting immediately as an imposing standalone appetizer, equipped strictly with wooden picks.

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Ingredients