Mushroom curry

Some dishes always evade you no matter how much you try! Mushroom is one such vegetable - I love it's crunch and texture but making it to suit my taste has been a challenge. Some of my favorite mushroom dishes are my mom's "Chicken Ala King" and "Plain old mushroom fry". Both are just out of this world but sad that I can never replicate them! At least now I have dish below...the pic was taken using my latest iPhone 4S!

I am so excited about the new phone - still figuring out all the new features. I am having lot of interesting answers from "Siri" - it's automated voice recognition and response software. It has a good sense of humor for sure! :) It was funny going to the store and saying that I am upgrading from iPhone 2 without raising a few eyebrows. And one store clerk even went on insisting that I must have iPhone 3 assuming I was non-techie and did not know my phone - what an insult! :( I had to retort and say "I know what I have, trust me, my dear!" :) So that was my phone shopping experience - short and quick and eventful! Phone talk over - hope you enjoy the new mushroom recipe from my kitchen to yours.."Paula Deen" style! :)


Ingredients:

Brown mushrooms - 1 box (Costco-size includes about 30 button mushrooms) - This tastes closer to the mushrooms we get in Odisha (thanks to hubby for pushing me to buy this and try out! :) )
Canola oil - 2 tbsp
Dry Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Dry Red Chilli - 2
Onion - 1 chopped, tiny
Ginger - 1 tsp
Garlic - 1 tbsp
Cinnamon - 1 stick
Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp
Coriander Powder - 1 tbsp
Curry Powder - 1 tbsp
Tomato Paste - 2 tbsp

Salt, Chilli Powder - as per taste
Fresh Coriander Leaves - few sprigs, as per taste

Method:

• Chop the button mushrooms into 2 pieces each. Put them into water that has been mixed with turmeric powder and salt (I even add some chilli powder) and let them soak as you cut the rest of the mushrooms. This will help clean it further (even though in Western cooking, they usually advice to not soak the mushrooms but just dab it with a wet towel - feel free to use this method of cleaning, if you prefer.)
• In medium-high heat, add canola oil. Add dry cumin seeds and dry red chilli and let them splutter.
• Add onion. 
• As the onion browns and looks translucent, add the ginger and garlic paste. I use fresh ginger and garlic.Let it cook.
• Add cinnamon stick and turmeric powder and toss.
• As it gets mixed well, add coriander powder and curry powder and mix it well.
• Add the tomato paste. To help it mix well, add a few drops of water.
• Add salt and chilli powder as per taste. I wait till the end coz mushroom reduces a lot after cooking and the amount of salt needs to based on the final amount else you may over-salt the dish (experience, of course! ;) )
• Reduce the heat to medium, cover and let it sit for about 5-10 mins till the mushroom is evenly well-cooked.
• Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve with rice \ roti.
I had it for lunch with Coconut chutney and Rice and it was yummy (self-praise, ahem!) :) Enjoy!