Taher & Gucchi Olu

After drooling at Anita's post and it being a weekend was I going to stop at just that!

Taher & Gucchi Olu for me and Tava Gobhi for Dad.
I did not touch the Gobi but he did taste from my bowl.

Anita I went all out and did exactly the sausage thing.
I am hooked lady.

Take a closer look. The baby potatoes and mushrooms is an enticing combo with the Kashmiri spicing.
Yum! sounds childish is there an adult word for that expression?

I used Milky Mushrooms for the Gucchi Olu

I was smitten by the pictures in that post. Yesterday I started cooking at 12.00 noon and was done at 12.30 with this absolutely fragrant, spicy and out of the world experience of true Kashmiri Cuisine.

I had bought the Milky mushrooms for a french style stir fry as per plan on Friday. Good I used them in this way.

The things that I did differently purely because of the unavailability of the ingredients and as this is a veg version:

1. Milky mushrooms to substitute. These are not Kashmiri Gucchi or Morel mushrooms but I guess Gucchi is a generic term for mushrooms.

2. I used baby potatoes as that is what I had. I was out of stock of the regular ones. I am on an use up-clean up before I go home to Mumbai. The baby potatoes and mushrooms were so tender that I think it made the dish very Non vegetarian yet vegetarian! Must make it for P Bhauji a diehard NV!

3. I used fresh ginger garlic paste as I did not have sonth/ ginger powder. I had made the ginger garlic paste for Dad's Tava Gobhi.

The things that I did exactly as adviced

1. I was no chicken I did use smoking mustard oil for the tempering. It gives the necessary dimension of flavor and fragrance to the otherwise simple yellow rice. The heating of the mustard oil to smoking point makes it a little milder is smell.

2. I mixed the Gucchi Olu well with rice and made sausages to pop in. The mixing itself sends those wonderful signals of anticipatory bliss to the brain.

Go over to Anita's and check out the amazing post if you haven't yet with the Kashmiri traditions elaborately digitized.

Taher and Gucchi Olu is a classy combo. Looks simple, easy to make yet will engrave the tastes of Kashmir on your mind forever. I am simply overwhelmed by this meal and am not hiding it!

God Bless Anita for sharing her traditions and recipes with the world :) !

Updated: 6th Sep 2013

I have made this recipe many times when I craved for it and each time I go back to Anita's for the recipe. So today after enjoying a completely religious experience I am finally noting down the adaptation of the recipe for me and for my other vegetarian friends.

Ingredients

For Gucchi Olu

1 pack of Gucchi/ mushrooms Morel or button, chopped
6 baby potatoes/ Olu, deskinned
2 cloves
1 tejpatta/ Indian bay leaf
4 cloves of garlic pounded
1 teaspoon Kashmiri chili powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon dried ginger powder
2 teaspoon fennel powder
1/4 teaspoon garam masala
2 tablespoon mustard oil
salt to taste

In a kadhai, heat the mustard oil to smoking point. Add the tej patta and cloves to it. Once its fragrant add the pounded garlic and fry till golden. Now let in the baby potatoes. Mix well to coat with oil. Cover and cook for 5 mins. Then add the chopped mushrooms.

Now in a cup put all the powders together, chili, turmeric, ginger, fennel, garam masala and salt. Make a paste with water. Pour it over the Gucchi and Olu. Cover and cook till potato is completely done.

This is a dry dish with just a coat of masala on the Gucchi Olu.

For Taher

1 cup rice
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
salt
1 tablespoon mustard oil

Pressure cook rice with 1.5 cup of water, turmeric powder and salt.

Cool and fluff up the rice.

Heat Mustard oil till smoking point and drizzle over the yellow rice.

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And this time round I got the perfect Pindi Chole! Check out the picture I've added at the end of the post.