My 208th recipe, “Mushroom Pulao”, a quick and easy Indian rice entree. Mushroom is something which I do not cook frequently in my kitchen. Though I know that it is vegetarian, I tend to get a meaty kind of a flavor while eating mushrooms. It has become an acquired taste for me now. However, mushroom is one of RK’s very favorite ingredient. Whenever we visit a restaurant, he will try to use any available opportunity to order a mushroom dish. So when I sent RK to buy dinner from Saravana Bhavan for taking with us on our Alaska flight, he had used that opportunity and got mushroom pulao for himself. Initially, I was little apprehensive about how the pulao would taste, however, after the first few bites I really started to like it. While I make peas and vegetable pulao frequently at home, this mushroom pulao tasted a little different. The addition of pepper corns was a real game changer and the flavor paired perfectly well with the mushrooms. Based on that experience, I decided to recreate the dish in my kitchen as soon as I got a chance. I had picked up some mushrooms from the supermarket during the weekend shopping. I used my other pulao recipes as a base and my earlier tasting experience to make this mushroom pulao today. When RK gave it a taste, he was quite impressed. I now have added a new quick and easy lunchbox recipe to my arsenal 🙂
Mushroom Pulao
Ingredients
- Basmati Rice - 1 Cup
- White Mushroom - 6
- Oil - 1 Tbsp
- Cardamom - 3
- Cloves - 2
- Cinnamon stick - 1 small piece
- Cashews - 10
- Black pepper corns - 1/2 Tbsp adjust per taste
- Coriander leaves chopped - 2 Tbsp
- Mint leaves chopped - 2 Tbsp
- Green chilli - 1 large
- Onion - 1/2 medium sliced
- Garlic - 4 roughly chopped
- Salt - 1 tsp adjust per taste
- Water - 1 Cup
Instructions
- First, wash and soak the rice for atleast 10 mins or until needed. Wash the mushroom nicely and then slice them up and keep aside.
- Heat the oil in a pressure cooker pan and add the cardamom pods, cloves, cinnamon stick, cashews and black pepper. Saute until the cashews start to turn color. Add the coriander, mint leaves and green chilli and saute further until the cashews turn golden brown.
- Now, add the onion, garlic and saute until the onions turns translucent.
- Now, add the sliced mushrooms and continue to saute for a few mins. The mushroom will start to release water when sauteed. In about 2 mins, the mixture will again become dry.
- Add the soaked rice, salt and water to the pan, at this stage. Mix well. Close the lid of the pressure cooker and cook for 1 whistle or until the rice is fully done. Turn off the flame. Wait until the pressure subsides, before opening the lid.
- Enjoy hot with a spicy gravy.
Notes | FAQ
- Coriander and mint leaves are mandatory to provide the best flavor to the dish.
- You can also temper using ghee instead of oil for an extra flavor.