This delicious Indian mushroom curry riffs off a mutton curry recipe my dad made each Sunday. Chunky mushrooms soak up a spicy coconut sauce, creating so much flavor and texture that no one will miss the meat!
Table of Contents
Easy, healthy mushroom curry
I created this mushroom curry recipe, which I call "my dad's not-mutton mushroom curry," in memory of my father who was a great cook. A mutton curry he made for lunch every Sunday was the highlight of our weekends.
Dad's family was from Karwar, a beautiful coastal city in the south Indian state of Karnataka, known for its spicy, coconut-based cuisine. Dad had a fierce love for Karwari food and, true to form, he made this curry with lots of coconut and spices. He did most of the work himself, from buying the mutton (goat's meat) in the morning to actually cooking it, as well as supervising everyone in the household who had some role to play in the actual preparation. My job was peeling a whole bulb of garlic and grating two kinds of coconut, fresh and dry. I hated both jobs: the juices from the garlic set my fingernails on fire, and I don't remember a time when I didn't grate my hand along with the coconut!
But I did love that curry. I can close my eyes and still see Dad standing over a two-burner stove in our Bombay kitchen, carefully roasting the spices and then grinding them to perfection in a little blender. He loved making that curry, just as much as we loved eating it.
After turning vegetarian, I would crave the spices in my dad's mutton curry. That's when I came up with this mushroom curry. Mushrooms are delicious in Indian recipes like this Chettinad mushroom masala and a natural meat substitute. They are also supremely healthy. They add so much delightful texture to this curry, and soak up all the flavor of the spices.
I make this easy mushroom curry with the exact masalas Dad used but because I use only veggies, I get to skip several steps involving marinating and tenderizing the meat. The curry is creamy and loaded with flavor, with lots of texture from the mushrooms and potatoes. I swear you will not miss the meat. Even omnivores I've served it to love its robust flavors.
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Recipe card
Mushroom Curry
Ingredients
- 1.5 tablespoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
- 2 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1-2 dry red chili peppers (can use cayenne, up to 1 tsp, or any red chili powder, like Kashmiri chili powder for good color and moderate heat)
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 inch cinnamon stick
- 5 cloves
- 5 pods green cardamom pods
- ½-inch piece dagad phool (stoneflower, optional)
- ½ flower mace (optional)
- 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns (use less for less heat)
- 1 large onion (half sliced, the other half finely diced)
- 6 large cloves garlic (sliced)
- 1-inch piece ginger (thinly sliced)
- ½ cup shredded coconut (unsweetened. Use freshly grated or frozen)
- 2-4 tablespoon cilantro (chopped)
- 2 medium potatoes (cut into 1-inch cubes)
- 2 cups dried mushrooms
- 8 oz cremini mushrooms or button mushrooms (or button mushrooms are fine)
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice (plus more lemon wedges for serving)
Instructions
- Soak the dry mushrooms in 3 cups boiling water for at least 30 minutes to help them reconstitute. Once they are plump and juicy, halve or quarter them. You can trim out any tough stems.
- Heat ½ tablespoon of the oil in a skillet. Add the coriander, cumin, chillies. cardamom, cloves, dagad phool and mace if using, cinnamon, peppercorns, poppy seeds and fennel seeds, Roast over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the coriander seeds start changing color and become fragrant.
- Add the sliced onion, garlic and ginger and saute until the onions get brown spots. Stir in turmeric after turning off the heat. Remove the spices to a plate to cool down.
- Without adding any more oil, roast the shredded coconut in the hot pan until some of the shreds turn quite brown but be careful not to burn. Coconut has oils and can burn easily. Place the coconut on the plate with the other roasted spices.
- Once the coconut and spices have cooled, add them to the blender with a cup of water (or use a cup of the water you soaked the mushrooms in). Blend into a very smooth paste.
- In the same skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil.
- Add the chopped onions and cilantro with about ½ teaspoon of salt and cook until the onions begin to brown.
- Stir in the potatoes and the shiitake mushrooms. Add the water remaining from soaking the mushrooms to the pot, stir, cover and let the potatoes cook until almost tender. Stir a couple of times while they are cooking to make sure there's some liquid in the pot.
- Once the potatoes are almost done, add the crimini or button mushrooms, stir to mix, and then add the ground masala from the blender.
- At this point add a cup or two of water or vegtable stock to thin out the curry to your liking. Stir well, check the seasoning and add salt, and let the curry come to a boil. Let it cook, uncovered, over medium-high heat until you see some specks of fat pool at the top, about 10-15 minutes. You can add more water at any point if the curry gets too thick.
- Garnish with cilantro and turn off the heat. Serve hot with wedges of lemons to squirt on top of the curry.
Notes
- For a low-carb diet, leave the potatoes out of this recipe to reduce carbs to 16 net grams.
- To reduce oil, cut down the oil in step 6 to ½ tbsp.
- If you are feeding this to children, cut down the quantity of peppercorns to up to ¼ teaspoon and also cut down or leave out red chili peppers/powder.
- Use 1 cup coconut milk instead of grated coconut.
Nutrition Information
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Mushroom curry FAQs
I use two kinds of mushrooms in this recipe, fresh cremini mushrooms and dried, reconstituted shiitake mushrooms. The fresh and dried mushrooms add different flavors and textures. Use any mushrooms you can find, fresh or dried, including button mushrooms, oyster mushrooms, lion's mane mushrooms, portobello mushrooms and maitake mushrooms.
There are potatoes in this recipe, in addition to the mushrooms. I strongly recommend not adding more veggies for the best flavor, but if you must, you can add eggplant, zucchini or cauliflower.
The mushroom curry pairs nicely with any Indian bread, including roti and vegan naan. We would eat the curry with a soft roll called pav, tearing pieces of the bread with our fingers and dunking it into the curry. A soft sourdough roll would be just as wonderful.
I also love this curry with rice, like jeera rice, carrot rice or turmeric rice. Serve vegan raita on the side.
VK says
Thanks for this excellent recipe. I made it as is , used chanterelle mushrooms. Next time I will reduce pepper to 1/2 teaspoon. My husband who used to be a meat eater 15 years back said it tastes like mutton.
Pradeep Kanthan says
Have tried this recipie a couple of times. It does come out well. I add few big pieces of cauliflower. They absorb the masala well.
Finishing it off with thin cocount milk enhances the flaovour.
Having been a meat eater ... this is as close as it gets without harmful chemicals.
Good one.
Vaishali says
So great to hear this feedback. Thanks, Pradeep. I like the use of cauliflower.
NIcola says
How much flower mace please?
Vaishali says
Hi, 1/2 of one flower.
Purvi says
Sorry for your loss Vaishali ....Condolences. This receipe is a family favourite since a long time now
Vaishali says
Thanks, Purvi. And so happy to hear your family has enjoyed the recipe. 🙂
Ambica says
Vaishali,
So sorry to hear about your Dad. Our deepest condolences. Your Dad's not mutton curry is our family's favorite recipe from your blog and we make it for special occasions. Through your words, His memory will live on in all our houses whenever we make this.
Warm hugs
Vaishali says
Thanks Ambica, for that lovely, lovely thought. Hugs ❤️
Sangita says
Sending you positive thoughts during this tough time. This is such a loving tribute to Honawar uncle.
I loved this recipe when you'd posted it earlier, the spices are so perfect, it feels like a caring hug. I think I will make it this week again, maybe with Portobello since we have some, we all can use some hugs in these days. Thinking of you.
Vaishali says
Thanks dear Sangita for being thoughtful and kind, as always. Hugs. ❤️
Charity says
I'm so sorry for your loss - your tribute to your father's memory is touching. May you experience joy in the midst of your grief as you remember and honor his life in the days to come.
Vaishali says
Thanks for the kind words, Charity. ❤️
Mrs. J. says
Hello Vaishali. I have been enjoying your blog for a long time. I don't usually comment on public blogs; however, I just want to offer my condolences on the loss of your father. You don't know me, but you seem like an old friend to me. God bless dear.
Vaishali says
I really appreciate your comment. Thanks so much for your kind words. ❤️
Savita Bailur says
So very sorry to hear about your father's passing. What a strong person he was. Will definitely try this as I miss Konkani crab curry!
Vaishali says
Thanks, Savita. ❤️
Hemi says
Hello Vaishali,
So sorry to hear about your dad. May he Rest In Peace and may you get the strength in this difficult time.
Hemi
Vaishali says
Thanks, Hemi. ❤️
Mehul Mardania says
Lovely recipe, thank you!
Sheena says
Winner Winner no lamb dinner! Really great little recipe which was even better the next day as the shiitake mushrooms gave out and absorbed more flavour!!
Sheena says
What a lovely recipie! I made this with shiitake mushrooms, aubergine and potatoes!!
Suzanne says
O.m.g. I died and went to heaven with this recipe...??❤️??
John says
Great flavor in this. I made it with Italian eggplant and was pleased. I will make an adjustment next time because six teaspoons of black peppercorns was overwhelming. The pepper flavor dominated by a wide margin and also made it too hot for my taste. Next time I'll try one teaspoon of peppercorns, maybe two.