In the quaint villages bordering Kerala and Karnataka, a unique culinary tradition has quietly flourished for over half a century. The dishes prepared from Coprinopsis cinerea, a mushroom variety that naturally grows on areca nut husks, have been a hallmark of the Rajapur Saraswat Brahmin kitchen.
Fifty families in Nellore Kammrajeh collect the mushrooms once a year and cook them, while families in the Sullya region collect the mushrooms four times in two years. They rave about its delectable taste, especially when paired with cucumber rice and neer dosa.
The delicacies and the ingredient caught the attention of the Central Plantation Crops Research Institutions (CPCRI) in Kasaragod following reports about it by farmer-journalist Sreepadre, prompting the institute to embark on a study.
Thava Prakasa Panidan, scientist at plant pathology department, who is part of the research team, says the mushroom has been identified as Coprinopsis cinerea. He says the team discovered that the families in these villages have been growing the mushrooms for five decades with not many outside the area knowing about the practice.
Two teams were formed to study the mushroom and its qualities. They also tasted the recipes made from it. Following confirmation of the authenticity of natural mushrooms and lab-made samples at the Kozhikode research centre, the focus has now shifted to the nutritional aspects and scalability of cultivating these mushrooms. This will potentially benefit the areca nut farmers, Mr. Panidan says.
Explaining the cultivation method of the mushrooms, Vishwas Nayak, a farmer from Sullia, says the community members eagerly wait for the sprouting of the mushrooms once areca nuts are dehusked. The husks are spread on the ground and watered for a week creating a space for the mushrooms to grow on the dehusked nuts.
Harish Rai from Badagannur village uses his mother’s traditional knowledge for better yield of the mishrooms. He says timing is critical; mushrooms must be plucked between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., or they perish by late night. Attention to weather too yields the best mushrooms, which are smaller in size yet are of superior taste.
The ongoing CPCRI study also hints at the potential agricultural opportunities the mushroom cultivation can provide for the local communities.
