Chettinad Mushroom Masala is a south Indian restaurant style gravy of silky tomatoes and onions with juicy mushrooms. Serve it with a simple but delicious dal and basmati rice for a tasty dinner you will want to make again and again.
Table of Contents
What is Chettinad mushroom masala?
Chettinad mushroom masala is a spicy dish from the Chettinad region of Tamil Nadu in south India. This is a region known for its opulent wealth, beautiful temples, and a cuisine so delicious but so fiery that it can make your mouth, eyes and nose water simultaneously.
The fire come from a liberal use of black pepper. Black pepper is part of nearly every garam masala recipe or spicy curry ever cooked up in India, but its heat usually mingles and merges with other ingredients and mellows during the cooking process. But in Chettinad cuisine the black pepper is usually added to dishes at the tail end, which means you will taste it in the prepared dish. It's a unique deliciousness and not one to be missed if you love Indian cuisine.
Chettinad cuisine is famous for its non vegetarian dishes; in fact the first Chettinad dish I ever ate many, many years ago was a spicy chicken curry. But those spicy curry bases are also perfect with vegetarian preparations, like this Chettinad Mushroom Masala, a velvety curry of tender mushrooms in a tomato onion sauce flavored with ginger, garlic and curry leaves. It has the allure of other spicy Indian masala dishes you might already love, like Chana Masala and Baingan Masala, but it's differently delicious.
If you don't love very fiery foods, you can tailor the spiciness of this dish to your palate by reducing the amount of black pepper and chili peppers. My recipe is only mildly spicy but if you like more fire in your food, add in more black pepper and red chili powder or cayenne to dial up the heat. I know there are many mushroom haters out there, but this is truly a delicious and nutritious veggie to add to any diet. Try this dish, and you just might change your mind!
Recipe card
Chettinad Mushroom Masala Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds (rai/kadagu)
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera/jeeragam)
- 2 sprigs curry leaves (kadi patta/karuveppilai)
- 2 tablespoons cilantro (coriander leaves/dhania. Chopped)
- 2 green chilli peppers (like jalapeno or serrano, slit down the middle. Deseed or use less for less heat)
- 1 large onion (finely chopped)
- 2 tablespoons ginger garlic paste
- 3 medium tomatoes (diced)
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander (dhania)
- 1 teaspoon ground fennel (saunf/sombu)
- ½ teaspoon turmeric (haldi/manjal podi)
- 12 oz cremini mushrooms or button mushrooms or button mushrooms
- 2 teaspoons garam masala
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper (miri/milagu)
- ¼ cup coconut milk
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat oil in a skillet or wok. Add the mustard seeds to it, then the cumin. As soon as the mustard seeds crackle, add half the cilantro, curry leaves and slit green chili peppers.
- Stir in the onions with a pinch of salt and saute them until they are a rich golden brown. Onions fried this way will melt into the gravy and help thicken it, so take your time and don't leave them half-cooked.
- Add the ginger garlic paste, stir it in and saute for a minute.
- Add the tomatoes along with the turmeric, ground fennel and ground coriander. Mix well and let the tomatoes cook, stirring frequently, until they are pulpy and very soft and have acquired a deeper color
- Add the coconut milk and cook the curry for 4-5 minutes until it's a rich reddish-brown in color.
- Add the chopped mushrooms and stir them in. Let the curry come back to a boil, then stir in the garam masala, ground black pepper and salt to taste. Turn off the heat.
- Stir in the remaining cilantro, then serve hot.
Notes
- Refrigerate: Place in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days.
- Freeze: Freeze in an freezer-safe container for up to three months.
- Reheat: Reheat the frozen or refrigerated curry on the stovetop or in the microwave before serving.
Nutrition Information
To print recipe card without images, uncheck "instruction images" after clicking the "print recipe" button.
Chettinad mushroom masala FAQs
Chettinad Mushroom is not as saucy as some Indian curries. But it is saucy enough that you can eat it with basmati rice or jeera rice, or a flatbread like roti or vegan naan.
Chettinad mushroom masala is meant to be spicy but you can tune the spice level to whatever you are comfortable with. My recipe is moderately spicy, but if you have very little tolerance for heat I'd advise you use just one green chili pepper and deseed it. You can also halve the quantity of black pepper.
Absolutely. This sauce would be awesome with roasted eggplant or cauliflower. It would even work with potatoes or sweet potatoes --boil them before you add them to the sauce.
Serve the mushroom masala as a side with dal and rice, or serve with roti or vegan naan, with vegan raita on the side. You can also eat this dish with dosa.
ilanapurr says
This looks delicious! Can I use canned tomato instead?
Vaishali says
Yes absolutely, a 15 oz can of diced or puréed tomatoes would work!
ilanapurr says
Thank you. I made the recipe with canned tomatoes and it was so good. I will definitely be making this again!
Megan says
This was so delicious. It took some time to make, but good things do take time! I used milk instead of coconut milk because I had some that needed to be used up. I enjoyed this tonight as a side with dosa. It reminded me of my time in India. Thanks so much for a great dish, I will make it again.
Amitha says
Very nice recipe thanks a lot
Thomas says
I love Indian dishes and thanks to you I can make them at home.
Rachel says
I made this today and it was delicious, and quite different to the other curries I tend to make. I will definitely make it again. Thank you!
Vaishali says
So happy you made it, Rachel. It's one of my favorites too.
Karyn says
I made some adjustments to this, but it was still delicious. Comfort food for the win! We had ½ can of jackfruit that went in with the tomatoes & a small bunch of sliced baby bok Choi that went in with the mushrooms. There wasn’t a timing on how long to cook the mushrooms or how fine they should be chopped. I went with until done. Oh - full cans of coconut milk. Served over jeera rice. This was DELICIOUS!
Vaishali says
Sounds simply delicious!
Smanders says
Hello and thank you! I obsessed with this dish; I have made it 3 times so far. Each time the only thing I add is some broiled eggplant. The heat is perfect and the large chunks of mushroom and green pepper really make it hearty. My only question- Is there a trick to removing the whole spice pieces and pods? I have been trying to sort through before I dig in but invariably I get big bite of cardamon or clove… That in no way stops my from chowing down of course!
Vaishali Honawar says
Hi Smanders, eggplant is a great addition. You can add ground garam masala instead of the whole spices, but add no more than a teaspoon. Or just fish out the whole spices before serving. So happy you liked the dish, and thanks for letting me know! 🙂
Carol ROBSON says
I cannot find the quantity for the coconut milk to put in the Chettinad Mushroom Masala please advise.
Vaishali says
It's 1/4th cup.
Hannah says
I made this for dinner on Friday and it was delicious! Chucked a tin of chickpeas in and it worked wonderfully. And was lovely for a quick lunch on Saturday too. Many thanks! 🙂
Vaishali says
I used crimini or small portabella mushrooms here. But you could try shiitake or button mushrooms-- they would be great. And this dish would actually taste better the next day because the flavors have had time to percolate into each other.
Hannah says
I can't wait to make this but just a quick question what variety of mushroom do you prefer? O and do you think this would keep and reheat well/work cold the next day or is it best fresh? Thanks!
Vaishali says
Dear Hannah, thanks for breaking the silence, and for your kind words. The tomato masial is Desi's favorite dish, and I'm happy to hear you love it too.
My recipes would typically feed about six people, although that can of course vary. I would serve this curry with rice and parathas, and some chickpeas or tofu would actually work quite well in here. Good suggestions. 🙂
Hannah says
Hi Vaishali I've been reading your blog and making and enjoying your recipes for ages so I feel the need to break the silence and say Thank You!!! I've made many of your dal recipes (my mum and I LOVE your green tomato masial and green tomatoes are surprisingly easy to get year round from the Turkish shops in London). This looks absolutely delicious do you think it would be good with some chickpeas or cubed tofu or would you serve it as a side dish? Also how many people are your recipes for?
Thanks again! 😉
Poornima Nair says
Love spicy chettinad dishes....this looks amazing!
Vaishali says
Anthony, thank you: you are kind. This is a great dish for a black-pepper-lover. Hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Rashmi, Sanjeeta, Priya, thanks!
Priya says
Super delicious mushroom chettinad..
Sanjeeta kk says
Perfect dinner recipe!
Rashmi says
Looks yummy and beautiful.It must be spicy,I will try it.
anthony stemke says
Yeah what they said, all your recipes are superb. I adore black pepper and all the ingreds here,going to make it soon.
Thank You.
Vaishali says
Sharmilee, Divya, Thanks!
Priyanka, welcome to the blog, and thanks!
Elena, yes, but as I say in the post, adjust the pepper and chilies down to your taste.
Priyanka says
First, I love all your recipes. Mushrooms are my favorite and this chettinad looks so good!
Lin says
I didn't have a few of the ingredients, curry leaves, fresh coriander and black mustard seeds. I live in Turkey and these ingredients are not always readily available, so I left out the curry leaves, substituted yellow mustard seeds and put in extra ground corridor. It was still absolutely delicious, I will make again and again. My sister is coming out in a few few weeks and she will bring me the missing ingredients. Thank you Vaishali xxxxxxx
Elena says
Is that really one TABLESPOON of black pepper? O my. It looks delish, tho, and really, you had me at indian flatbread.
divya says
Wow.. that looks delicious.!! Amazing clicks
Sharmilee! :) says
Looks flavourful n yummy