Mushrooms are one of my favourite ingredients to cook with and eat. They come in an astounding array of colours, shapes and textures. Just look at my mushroom ‘garden’-slender enoki, meaty shiitake, gorgeous maitake (hen of the woods) and king oyster mushrooms and the cutest of them all – bunashimeji mushrooms.

When we were in South Island, New Zealand last year, we’d spotted many poisonous toadstool mushrooms while we’re out walking in the woods. They weren’t edible but they were so beautiful to admire, including the countless rabbit burrows and cones which were strewn about. There’s something magical about being in the woods in Autumn – the smell of the damp earth after an autumnal downpour, bronzed leaves falling as you’re walking past and the kiss of crisp, fresh air on your cheeks. One of the things we missed out on was to go mushroom gathering with a guide. Maybe next time.

Coming back to my love for cooking and tasting mushrooms… They make an amazing substitute for meat because of their texture. For this dish, I chose to use mushrooms that result in different textures after cooking. I like the ‘crunchy’ textures of bunashimeji and wood ear mushrooms in contrast to the soft basmati rice. However, you can use any mushrooms that you like and are in season. In my first few attempts of recipe testing (as pictured above), I used baby golden oysters, maitake, bunashimeji and wood ear mushrooms and it was lovely.

And last week, I tried the same recipe with shiitake, bunashimeji, enoki, king oyster and maitake. I loved how ‘meaty’ the shiitake was and the overall flavour it imparted but wasn’t particularly won over by the stringy enoki; think they work best in noodle soups. I did try using saffron in my first try but decided against it as I wanted the flavours of the mushroom to shine. Also, I cook this quite often and am not married to a Saffron merchant. But if you’d like to try it and have the means, why not?

And for those of you hardcore biryani fans (yes, you!)… please don’t judge. I know that this isn’t an authentic (if there’s still such a thing) biryani that is cooked with layers of rice and meat and it was’t my intention to make one anyway. This is for a quick, easier, healthier, vegan version that is still cooked and sealed in a pot. If you must judge, then let it be based on how good this tastes despite being meatless and relatively fuss-free to cook. The mushroom masala mixture is cooked on a stove till al dente, transferred to the rice cooker over the basmati rice and cooked together till done. The result- an aromatic, one-pot meal that completes your weekday dinner. All the whole spices, spice powders and beautiful mushrooms create an intensely fragrant yet light dish which tastes even better the following day. Throw in a simple cucumber-yoghurt salad and some crunchy poppadams and you’re all set.

Vegetarian, tasty, easy – just the way I like it after all that Deepavali feasting!