Here are two yummy recipes from Reshma Aslam’s kitchen diary.

Mutton Nihari

Ingredients

• 1 kg Mutton (It should be cut into big pieces)
• 1 ½ tbsp red chilly powder
• 1 tbsp all spice powder
• 2 tbsp ginger garlic paste
• ½ tbsp turmeric powder
• 1 tbsp cumin powder
• 1 tbsp black pepper powder
• 1 ½ tbsp saunf powder (fennel seeds)
• ½ tbsp green cardamom powder
• One big piece of cinnamon
• ½ tbsp clove powder
• 1 medium sized onion finely chopped
• Few green chillies
• 2 inch piece of ginger
• 2 cups ghee
• ½ cup wheat flour
• 1 lemon
• Salt to taste
• Water

Method

• Cut and clean the mutton pieces and drain them very well.
• Put some ghee in a pressure cooker. Once the ghee is hot, add the mutton pieces and fry well till they turn nice and golden.
• Now add ginger garlic paste and fry it further.
• Add salt and stir. Mix all the powdered masala and sauté it well.
• Pour 4 to 5 glasses of water and close the lid of the cooker. Leave it for around 35 minutes for the meat to become tender.
• Take a separate pan now and put some oil. Fry the onions till they turn golden brown. Remove them once done on a kitchen tissue and crush it to fine powder.
• When the meat becomes totally tender, add the crushed onions and let it simmer for some time.
• Make a paste of the wheat flour and some water. Add this paste to the curry and stir it well. Make sure that the gravy thickens.
• Decorate it with ginger and lemon wedges, and serve it with roti or bread depending on the choice.

Photograph: Maria Alexandra/ Creative Commons

Golden Fried Mutton Chops

Ingredients

• 1 kg Mutton chops
• 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
• ½ tbsp red chilly powder
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tbsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp garam masala powder
• 1 tsp black pepper powder
• 2 to 3 eggs
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• Salt to taste
• Oil for deep frying

 Method

• Wash and drain mutton chops very well.
• Add salt, ginger garlic paste, chilly powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, garam masala powder, black pepper powder and keep it aside for an hour, preferably in the fridge so that the mutton chunks get marinated.
• After an hour, place the mutton chunks in a pressure cooker and cook in low flame, for it to become tender.
• Open the lid of the cooker and check if the chops are tender. If it’s done, then cook it on high flame until all the water evaporates.
• Now keep it aside and let it cool.
• Take two bowls. In one bowl, beat the eggs and in the other spread the breadcrumbs for they will be used for coating.
• Pour some oil in the frying pan. Take out each chopped piece of mutton with a fork, dip it in the beaten egg, and roll it in bread crumbs, and deep fry the pieces in hot oil. Fry it till it turns golden brown.
• Garnish the mutton pieces with lemon and fresh coriander leaves.
• Serve hot.

Photograph: Kalaiselvi Murugesan/Wikimedia Commons

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