Gucci/Kani’ghitch, the famous Kashmiri mushroom

Finally managed to get my hands on the famous Kashmiri mushroom, known in Kashmir as ‘kani’ghitch’ and in rest of the world as ‘Gucci’, the one that is believed to be found only on high mountain tops but only by one who is white of heart and/or dark of skin. The morel mushrooms sell at a rate almost at par with Gold. Eating it is almost like eating gold. I tell my father this must be the first time even he has held them. He gives me a ‘You crazy! your magaz dalmit!’ look and says,’You have had them before. When you were a kid, I bought them once from Handwara.’

These he bought from someone in Kistawar. The rate there is relatively less.

A Kilogram of these go for around Rs. 26000 in Jammu

kani ghitch
Smaller in size. These go for around Rs. 15000 a Kilogram in Jammu.

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22 Replies to “Gucci/Kani’ghitch, the famous Kashmiri mushroom”

  1. Gucci and Kanighitchi are different. Gucci is a variety of mushroom while Kanighitchi is a berry like fruit.

  2. Kaniguch are sold at Durga Store, INA Market Delhi. Last time i checked ( some 3 years back) it was around Rs.3000/- 250 gm. I pestered my father to buy some, and got the same answer, though i'm sure with more sarcasm. Besides, having spend a good part of his career in upper reaches of Kashmir/Kashtiwar he was skeptical about them actually being the real thing. Dinesh

  3. I remember having them once at a "Khandar Saal".The guests looked and ate with preplexed looks of course. Not to forget..some guests just had their fill with a platter full of "kane' gutch"

  4. The family that we live next to received kilos of gucci as gift from someone. They had no idea what these wild things were so they threw them all in dustbin.

  5. be gous kani gutch khilidi mea asan az taaam waryaaa gucci labmeth tee maal wormut labnas lagan mazae balie khanas khootah mazaae aseee lagaaan panie lagae tav andaz……………….

  6. wslamm……… ahansa warya manz teeme sat aousus be fifths parannn teee aes sarie class fellow aess nearan 4 bajeee school yeth kani gutch sarneee ….

  7. Sun dried mushrooms according to modern science get very rich in vitamin D. Gucci was prized as a culinary delicacy for this reason. Will the practise of sun drying vegetables will also enhance Vitamin D content ?

  8. Allah talah han chuni dyutmut che hunnar ta me cha tuhaind article waraih pasand tuhanz kaam cha qabli tareef ba heka sirf aakh chiz wanith. Afreen afreen

  9. what are the medical benefits of Gucci (Kanighitchi) please reply me on my mail given below:
    aneesparray[at]gmail.com

  10. Gucci can be found in village Shapore Distt Ganderbal (Kashmir) before Nunar village during the rainy season particularly after thunder in the morning on the banks of small rivers flowing there.
    I have collected a lot during my child hood days when I used to visit my cousin Mr Mohan Lal Tickoo.

  11. An investigation was carried out to know the aboriginal usage of Kani'gitch (Scientific name: Morchella) as an ethnomedicinal food by tribals of Kashmir, an extreme northern state (disputed state between Pakistan and IndiaIndia) for curing of arthritis, osteoporosis, general bone weakness and cure child labour pain and post menopause pain of women. The average long-life expectancy (~ 80 years) and delayed aging ensured the abundant use of M. esculenta L. as the bases of their daily foods as well as their traditional medicine. The antioxidant character of this mushroom was carried out by chemical and electrochemical assays. The chemical assay was done by DPPH, nitric- oxide, super-oxide scavenging and reducing power while as, electrochemical assay was done by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) using multi-wall carbon nanotube paste electrode (MWCNTPE) at 0.02 M acetate buffer (pH 4.5). The phenolic profiling of the mushroom was evaluated through Folin–Ciocalteu reagent using gallic acid/ascorbic acid as standard which were qualified and quantified by HPLC-UV technique, respectively. The IC50 values found were 57.02 µg ml−1, 58.02 µg ml−1 and 40.01 µg ml−1 for DPPH, nitric-oxide and superoxide. The electrochemical results have shown one oxidation potential at 1.12 V and positive potential at 1.119 ± 0.01 V in CV and 1.19 V in DPV. DPV at superoxide radical scavenging level of mushroom at dropping mercury electrode (DME) in 0.1 M KCl, produced a reduction peak potential at − 0.160 V. HPLC-UV have confirmed the presence of eight phenolic compounds namely, p-coumaric acid, tocopherol, catechol, rutin, hyperoside, quercetin, ellagic acid and cinnamic acid with quercetin at highest percentage (169.76%).

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