Mushroom Mattar Methi Malai

59 Comments

This recipe for Mushroom Mattar Methi Malai is a rich and creamy Indian dish that's vegan and paleo-friendly. Recipe by Ashley of MyHeartBeets.com

Mushroom Mattar Methi Malai. Can you say that five times fast?

It’s the tongue twister of my dreams. Pun intended. You know, because the tongue twister is about food… and I’m talking about tongues… which you use to taste food?

Jokes aren’t as funny when you have to explain them…

Not only is the title of this recipe a tongue twister (hehehe: pun), but it’s also a pretty good alliteration (4 m’s! mmmm… double pun!): mushroom mattar methi malai.

Why did I name this dish mushroom mattar methi malai? Because it’s the tastiest alliterative tongue twister ever? No… mainly because it’s made with mushrooms, green peas (mattar), fenugreek leaves (methi), and coconut cream (malai).

Now that I’ve talked for what seems like forever about the words that make up the title of this recipe let me describe the actual dish.

This recipe for Mushroom Mattar Methi Malai is a rich and creamy Indian dish that's vegan and paleo-friendly. Recipe by Ashley of MyHeartBeets.com

What is Mushroom Mattar Methi Malai?

It’s a rich, creamy, and filling dish that’s full of flavor. Mushrooms add a meaty quality to the dish, and the peas just sort of pop in your mouth. Dried fenugreek leaves, which are also known as kasoori methi, add a slightly sweet, slightly bitter, and somewhat nutty flavor to the dish. Fenugreek leaves are nowhere near as bitter as fenugreek seeds – so do not substitute! The leaves have a really unique flavor – I consider them to be the secret ingredient to making Indian curries taste “restaurant quality.”

Tip for adding the fenugreek leaves: rub them in your hands before adding them to the curry. Crushing them releases more flavor.

If you like this recipe, check out my eBook: South Asian Persuasion: 100+ Paleo-friendly Indian Recipes. I have a delicious Shahi Mushroom recipe in there that I know you’ll love too 🙂

This recipe for Mushroom Mattar Methi Malai is a rich and creamy Indian dish that's vegan and paleo-friendly. Recipe by Ashley of MyHeartBeets.com

Mushroom Mattar Methi Malai

This recipe for Mushroom Mattar Methi Malai is a rich and creamy Indian dish that's vegan and paleo-friendly. Recipe by Ashley of MyHeartBeets.com

Mushroom Mattar Methi Malai

4.96 from 25 reviews
Pin Recipe Print Recipe

Ingredients
 

Instructions
 

  • Add the onions, ginger and garlic to a food processor and puree until smooth. Set aside for now.
  • Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a saute pan over medium heat.
  • Next, add the sliced mushrooms and saute for 7-8 minutes or until the mushrooms soften. Set the mushrooms and water they release aside in a bowl.
  • Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in the saute pan.
  • Add the blended onion mixture that you set aside earlier and then saute for 10 minutes, or until the onions are cooked through.
  • Add the spices and stir for 30 seconds to help toast the spices. Then pour in the tomato puree and cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • Stir in the peas, kasoori methi, mushrooms, and coconut cream. Stir until the cream completely dissolves.
  • Garnish with cilantro and serve.

Notes

*You can scoop the coconut cream from the top of a can of refrigerated full-fat unsweetened coconut milk.
Did you make this recipe?Tag @myheartbeets on Instagram and hashtag it #myheartbeets!

Pin This Recipe

Like this recipe? Pin it to your favorite Pinterest board now so you will remember to make it later!

Pin Recipe Now0

Related Recipes

Cookbooks

Find out more about my cookbooks Indian Food Under Pressure and South Asian Persuasion.

About Ashley

Hi, I’m Ashley. Thanks for being here! I truly believe that food brings us closer together. Gather around a table with good food and good people, and you’ll have the ingredients you need to create some happy memories. My hope is that you find recipes here that you can’t wait to share with family and friends.

Subscribe

Subscribe to get our latest content by email. We won't send you spam. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Comment & Rating

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Comments

  1. Sarika says

    I’m wondering if you can just sub 3/4 cup of the frozen onion masala for the puree, onion, garlic, ginger and spices? Possibly do steps 2, 3 and 4, step 5 add the frozen masala, then go straight to step 7?

    • Ashley - My Heart Beets says

      Sarika, I haven’t tested the exact quantity to be sure, but this is what I’d do! I’d probably skip adding the extra 2 tbs of oil since the masala already has oil in it. Let me know how it goes 🙂

  2. Dweep says

    I made this today. It turned out slightly bitter ( without even adding kasoori methi). I suspect it’s because of ground onions. I fried the onion mixture for about 10 mins, how do I know it’s done? Anything to fix the bitterness now..I made a whole lot of this curry! Thank you 🙂

  3. Linda Noronha says

    The dish says mushroom mattar methi malai, mattar is green peas, there is no green peas in the recipe, have you forgotten to add peas?

  4. Dalbir says

    Since a lot of these ingredients are similar to your onion masala recipe – would we be able to use your onion masala for this? if so, how would I adjust the recipe?
    thanks!

    • My Heart Beets says

      Dalbir, yes you can definitely use onion masala in any Indian recipe calling for onions and tomatoes. I haven’t tested the onion masala in this recipe but my guess is to use ¾ cup of onion masala. The great thing about the masala is that since it is already cooked, you can stir it in at the end if you feel like the dish needs more masala. Hope that helps!

  5. Jyotsna says

    I had a dinner party yesterday and made the aloo baingan, butter masala, chicken curry, carrot kheer and the above mushroom mattar methi. All the recipes were good though the mushroom mattar methi and chicken were the best. Thanks Ashley for the wonderful recipes.

  6. Wil says

    5 stars
    I will be making this again!

    Couldn’t find Fenugreek leaves at Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s so I pan roasted some Fenugreek seeds, knowing it’d be a different flavor. Even with the trade, it was dynamite! Great spice! Good kick! Real crowdpleaser! I used dried peas and put it all in the instant pot for about 10 minutes, with a little bit of pea-crunch, it was mega yum.

    I also accidentally used sweetened condensed coconut cream GOOD LORD is this thing sweet! Seeing as it was too sweet to eat on its own I put it over some mushroomy-herb risotto and that made it a killer dish!

    Will try to make it correctly next time! : )

    • My Heart Beets says

      Thank you so much for the interest! I would love to do this but as a stay at home mama to a toddler I don’t have much time right now – maybe one day when he is a little older!

  7. Carey Letts says

    5 stars
    This was an amazing dish! I’m already planning when to make it again. What an amazing flavour for such a simple dish to make. Looking forward to trying more and more of your recipes!

    • Renu Chawla says

      5 stars
      Hi Ashley I just came across your recepie as I am planning to cook something with mushrooms. Reviews looks great so am about to give it a go..just wanted to know..as I avoid cream in recepies..can I put full fat yogurt or Greek yogurt instead of coconut cream or full fat cream??

  8. Donna says

    Hi – so I know this will totally ruin the alliteration aspect, but I’m wondering if it’s possible to sub heavy cream (or something a little healthier?) for the coconut cream. I don’t like the taste of coconut but am OK with dairy. I’m about a month into becoming vegetarian and have a bunch of your recipes lined up to try. This and the navratan korma are top of my list. Thanks for any recommendations. Best wishes!

      • Donna says

        5 stars
        WOW! Simply wow. I think this is one of the best things ever to make it out of my kitchen. Even better than the Navratan Korma (which was a huge success) and probably jumped right up as one of my favourite dishes ever. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

  9. Kasey says

    Hello! I just stumbled onto your site looking for some paleo dishes that were also vegetarian. This looks delicious!

    I have a question, though: I’m awful with spicy food –would it be possible to leave out the cayenne pepper?

    • My Heart Beets says

      Hi Kasey! Yes, you can definitely leave out the cayenne! If you are near an Indian grocery store, try buying “Kashmiri chili” – it’s similar to paprika but with a tiny bit of heat – that may be a good substitute for ya. Let me know how this turns out for you 🙂

  10. Hannah Pomales says

    5 stars
    Amazing recipe. So easy, healthy and not to mention affordable to make! Will be another staple in our home thanks to you!

  11. Emily says

    5 stars
    Hand on my heart, I think this is the best dish I have ever made. I love cooking and baking, and I have made innumerable vegetarian, vegan, and more recently paleo recipes for myself and my family over the years, many of which we have loved. But only a handful of times have I thought: I just cannot believe something THIS amazing came out of my kitchen. I have made this dish three times, and I’ve had that very thought each time! Totally worth the drive to the Indian market to get kasoori methi. Thank you Ashley!

  12. Cheryl says

    I am guessing that since the kasoori methi is an important ingredient since it is in the name, I was surprised that I had the garam masala in my spice cupboard, can’t remember why. But can you give me an idea of what the taste of it is like?

    • My Heart Beets says

      Hi Cheryl, kasoori methi or dried fenugreek leaves have a distinct flavor… they’re kind of similar to fennel but slightly bitter (not as bitter as actual fenugreek seeds though).

  13. Melissa Price says

    5 stars
    This dish was absolutely delicious. I made it for a dinner party and everyone raved. I was able to track down the Kasuri Methi at an Indian grocery store, so ingredients weren’t an issue (though I see Ashley has a link to Amazon to buy this ingredient, but I didn’t have time to do that because I decided to make this last minute). Really really great dish – can’t wait to make again (and try other recipes!!)

  14. Virginia says

    4 stars
    I made this tonight! Delicious. I didn’t think the recipe would make much but it sure did make enough for two meals.

  15. paleo_tomek says

    5 stars
    I am so making this tomorrow Ash. But as always putting my spin on it. Will tag you on instagram again. So far I have not met a single one of your dishes that I did not just love. Thank you. I hope you come out with an Android app for your cookbook.

  16. PersisentDesiCook says

    Looks absolutely divine. Where can you find coconut cream? Is that different than coconut milk? Another other veggies that would go good with this gravy?

    • My Heart Beets says

      Thanks! You can get canned coconut cream at Trader Joe’s – or you can buy any canned full-fat coconut milk and after a night in the fridge, the cream will solidify at the top. Just scoop it out and use that 🙂 Also, I’m pretty sure any veggie would taste good in this curry. Hope that helps and hope you love it!

paneer lababdar

Ashley's Secrets

INDIAN FOOD

MADE EASY

Favorite tips & tricks to

easy & delicious Indian cooking

FREE EMAIL BONUS