Healthy mushrooms recipes
Mushrooms are used as food in many parts of the world nowadays. One cannot go wrong with these edible fungi. They are fat-free, low-sodium, low-calorie and cholesterol-free. They are also packed with fibre, minerals, and the only good plant source of vitamin-D, which support the immune system and aid in fighting cancer cells. In Asian and European cuisines, mushrooms are known as the ‘meat’ of the vegetable world because they make a great substitution for meat in dishes.
MUSHROOM-CHICKEN HEBAANG
Hebaang is a traditional process of burnt-baking in mud-stove or steaming marinated meat/fish/egg/vegetable, wrapped with only banana leaf in 'Chakma-Cuisine,' from the Chittagong Hill Tracts. It is a healthy dish that requires less oil, less spices and the process of burnt-baking/steaming with banana leaves imparts a subtle sweet flavour and aroma to the dish.
Ingredients
250gm chicken, cut into cubes
200gm mushroom
1 cup onion chopped
10-15 green chillies
4-5 garlic clove
1 ginger, 1-inch long
½ tsp turmeric powder
1-2 tsp crushed cumin seeds
½ cup coriander leaves
¼ cup oil
½ cup water, for marination
Salt
4/6 large banana leaves
Method
In a traditional hand grinder, put garlic, ginger, green chilli and grind. (No need to make fine paste) and set aside. In a large bowl, put chicken, onion, turmeric, salt, cumin, chilli-garlic-ginger paste, oil, coriander leaves, water, salt, mushrooms and mix well. Marinate and leave it for 20-30 min. In a steamer, place some banana leaves inside the steamer pot, put the marinated chicken-mushroom on those, cover with another banana leaf, and then close the pot's lid. Steam it for 30 minutes on medium-high flame. After 30 minutes, open the steamer pot and place the chicken with all banana leaves in a skillet and sizzle for 5 minutes on high flame. Serve hot with steam/plain rice.
MUSHROOM MUFFIN
Ingredients
200gm mushroom
3 eggs
¼ cup shredded carrot
1-2 green chillies, chopped
1 medium sized onion, chopped
1 tsp seasoning powder
1/3 cup shredded cheese
¼ cup oil
Method
Pre-heat the oven. In a large mixing bowl, mix everything except cheese. Grease the muffin tray and put the batter evenly into the muffin tray. Put shredded cheese on top of each section. Bake at 180° C for 20-30 minutes.
SPICY-SIDOL MUSHROOM-RED AMARANTH (Lal-Shak)
In the Chittagong-Hill-Tracts Bangladesh, shrimp paste is called "sidol" by the indigenous people. It is a salty fermented condiment commonly used as a spice to make vegetable dish not only in the South-eastern part of the country, but also found in Southeast Asian cuisines such as Thailand, Laos, Indonesia and Southern Chinese-cuisines.
Ingredients
250gm mushroom
200gm red amaranth
1 medium sized onion, chopped
1 tsp shrimp paste
1 tsp red chilli powder
¼ tsp turmeric powder
2 tbsp oil
¼ cup water
4-5 green chilli
Method
Heat the frying pan on medium flame. Put chopped onion and sauté until it changes to a slight golden colour. Add red chilli, turmeric powder, shrimp paste, mushroom and red amaranth. Sauté for a few minutes. Add water, green chilli and cook until the water evaporates. Serve hot with steam/plain rice.
GARLIC-MUSHROOM PITA BREAD
Ingredients
250gm button mushroom, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil (2 tbsp for bread dough)
1 tsp seasoning powder
1 cup flour
1 tsp yeast
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp powder milk
½ cup lukewarm water
½ tsp salt
Method
In a large mixing bowl, put flour, salt, yeast, sugar, powder milk, oil, and add small amounts of water at a time, and knead for 5-8 minutes to make a soft dough. Then grease the bowl with oil, put the dough into it and cover the bowl with damp towel. Place it into a dark place/oven for 2 hours or until the dough gets double in size.
Heat a sauté pan on low-medium heat with oil. Sauté chopped garlic till it turns golden. Add chopped mushrooms, seasoning powder and sauté for few minutes. Transfer into a plate to cool down.
Check the dough, if it is double in size, then press the dough to release the air from it and divide into 6-8 parts and make balls. Put 1-2 spoons of sautéed mushrooms into each ball and roll it to make a round thick flat bread. Heat a skillet and place the bread over it and cook it till each side puffs slightly and then turn over.
Photo by Chiangmi Talukder Lena