Name: Mushroom Ghee Roast
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 65 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 266⅔ g Button Mushrooms, cleaned and halved; 4 Dried Byadagi Chilies, soaked in hot water; ⅔ tbsp Coriander Seeds, for masala paste; ⅔ tsp Cumin Seeds, for masala paste; ⅓ tsp Fennel Seeds, for masala paste; ⅓ tsp Black Peppercorns, for masala paste; ⅛ tsp Fenugreek Seeds, methi dana; 4 clove Garlic, for masala paste; ⅔ tsp Tamarind Paste, for tanginess; 1⅓ tbsp Indian-Style Yogurt, whisked; 10 Curry Leaves; 2⅔ tbsp Ghee, do not skimp, it's a ghee roast!; ⅔ tsp Salt, to taste

1 hr 5 mintotal

35 min hands-on30 min hands-off

Prep 20 min · Cook 15 min

Serves: 2
Difficulty: Medium
Spice: Spicy

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Method

Make the masala: in a dry skillet over low heat, dry-roast the coriander seeds, cumin, fennel, fenugreek and black peppercorns. Take them off the heat the moment they smell strongly aromatic. Let them cool completely.
Put the cooled spices in a blender. Add the soaked Byadagi chillies, raw garlic cloves, thick tamarind paste and a small splash of water. Blend to a completely smooth, bright red paste.
Cook the mushrooms first: heat 1 tbsp of ghee in a heavy pan. Add the halved mushrooms and sauté them hard for 5 minutes. They will release a lot of water; keep the heat high until it has all evaporated. Lift the dried mushrooms out and set aside.
5 min
In the same hot pan, add the remaining 3 tbsp of ghee. Add the fresh curry leaves and let them crackle so the fat takes up their earthy aroma.
Add the bright red masala paste to the flavoured ghee. Stir continuously over medium heat for 6-8 minutes. Keep going until the raw taste has gone and the deep red paste visibly splits, with ghee separating out at the edges.
6–8 min
Turn the heat right down. Add the well-whisked curd. Stir quickly and continuously so the curd does not curdle.
Return the seared, dried mushrooms to the pan with the salt. Toss well so the rich, heavily spiced masala coats every mushroom.
Sustain the thermal load for a final 2-3 minute window. The objective is forcing the reduction to cling tenaciously to the mushrooms, polymerizing into a wildly glossy, menacingly dark red armor.
2–3 min
Turn off the heat and serve immediately.

How to tell it's done

Expect yielding, hyper-juicy mushroom structures entirely imprisoned within a deeply roasted, assertively spicy, complexly tangy, and unapologetically heavy ghee-saturated paste.

Getting it right

Tip

Use real Byadagi chillies for a proper Mangalorean ghee roast. They give the deep blood-red colour the dish is known for while keeping the heat manageable.

What to serve it with

Serve it with neer dosa or appam. It is also good hot on its own, as a rich, spicy starter.

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Ingredients