Mutton Keema Kofta Biryani

There was a time when Biryani for me was the most tedious dish to cook and was only a weekend treat to be eaten outside. With my husband being a great Biryani fan, how could I stay away from not trying out this flavoursome dish at home. My first biryani was almost a year back and it was an instant hit. Although there was room for improvement, it was a good beginning nonetheless. With each passing attempt, my Biryani just kept getting better and better and better. Now I have reached a stage where I have developed my own Biryani recipe from scratch and have included a very interesting twist to it, Koftas!! The idea was originally shared by a fellow foodie on a food group and I developed it from there. The husband was licking his fingers (literally) and the guests (who had to mantain their courtesy being Germans) swiped off the entire bowl squeaky clean. 

Now, I look forward to cooking my next Biryani!! 

Ingredients 

For the koftas

500 gms minced mutton

1 tbsp grated ginger

1 tbsp grated garlic 

5-6 mint leaves chopped 

1-2 green chillies chopped (optional)

1 sprig coriander chopped 

1 tbsp besan/gram flour

1/2 tsp red chilli powder 

1/2 tsp garam masala powder 

1/2 tsp cumin powder 

1/2 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp Salt (approximately) to taste (do not add a lot as the koftas will also absorb masalas from the biryani sauce later on)

2 tsp oil plus extra for frying

For the Biryani Masala

1/2 tbsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tbsp fennel seeds 

4-5 whole red chillies

3 green cardamoms 

1 black cardamom 

3-4 cloves 

1" piece cinnamon 

1/2 star anise 

1/2 nutmeg

1 mace

1 bay leaf

6-7 black peppercorns 

Dry roast all of the above and make a fine powder. 

For the Biryani Sauce

2 medium onions chopped 

3 medium tomatoes chopped 

1 tbsp ginger paste 

1 tbsp garlic paste 

1 tsp caraway seeds/shahjeera 

2-3 tbsp grated paneer

1/2 tsp turmeric powder 

Biryani masala prepared above

Salt to taste

1 tbsp oil

For the rice

2 1/2-3 cups of Basmati rice, washed and soaked for 20 minutes 

1 medium onion finely sliced 

1/2" piece ginger, finely chopped 

2 tbsp fresh coriander chopped 

1/2 tsp cumin seeds 

2 green cardamom, 3 cloves, 1/2" cinnamon, 1 mace, 4-5 black peppercorns 

1 tsp saffron soaked in 1 tbsp cold milk

Salt to taste but not exceeding 1 tsp

2 tbsp ghee (for maximum taste and fragrance)

For the assembly 

Fried onions and finely chopped fresh coriander 

Direction 

The first step will be to prepare the keema koftas. 

Wash and drain the keema and put in a food processor. Pulse until a smooth lump is formed. To this add all the remaining ingredients including 2 tsp oil and pulse till a smooth lump is formed and there are no solid bits. Remove from the food processor and take it out in a plate. Now while you heat oil in a wok for deep frying, start forming the balls with your hands. Do not make oversized balls as they might not cook very well then. 

 When the oil is hot, reduce the flame to medium and start frying the balls, 3-4 at a time on medium heat until golden on all sides. Do not fry on high flame as the balls may get browned too soon leaving a raw inside. Drain the excess oil on paper towels. 

Once you are done frying all the balls, start preparing the sauce. For that, heat oil in a pan and splutter the caraway seeds. Now add the onions and fry till golden. Add the ginger garlic paste and fry for another 2-3 minutes till the raw smell disappears. Now add the tomatoes and fry on high till the tomatoes get soft and mushy. Add the grated paneer and the biryani masala and the other dry spices and salt and fry for another 1-2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup warm water and bring it to a boil. Now add the fried koftas, stir to mix and coat everything well and cover and cook on medium low flame for 10-15 minutes.  This is to ensure that the koftas absorb maximum flavors and masala from the sauce which will ensure that they are soft and juicy once assembled. Also, if any of the koftas are not completely cooked, this step will make sure it does. Be very careful while stirring the sauce in between as you may break the koftas. Once the gravy reduces to about 1/4th with mostly the masalas remaining and minimum water, turn off the gas and keep the pan covered as you move on to the next step. 

 

 Time to cook the rice now. Heat ghee in a pan. Add cumin seeds and the whole garam masala and let it release the fragrance. Now add the onions and fry till translucent followed by the ginger. Add the soaked and drained rice and fry till the rice becomes transparent sonewhat. Add the chopped coriander and stir. Add salt and now if you are using the electric rice cooker, transfer the rice to the cooker and add 5-1/2 cups of water for 3 cups of rice and cook till done. If preparing the rice on gas stove, you can add water directly to the pan and cook the rice covered till just done (about 90%). Do not overcook. 

Once the rice is done, sprinkle the soaked saffron over the rice and stir and let it remain for 10-12 minutes. 

Now the final and most easy step. Take an ovensafe bowl or, a deep bottom vessel (if preparing on gas stove) and put one layer of the rice. If you do not have an oven, you can also do it in the microwave. Now add the biryani sauce along with the koftas. Sprinkle some fresh coriander and fried onions and cover up with the remaining rice.

 

Sprinkle some more coriander and fried onions on top and optionally a dollop of ghee. Cover tightly with an aluminium foil (if using the oven), a clinwrap (if using the microwave) or a tight lid sealed with atta dough (if using the gas). Cook on low heat for 20-30 minutes, if using the gas, with an iron skillet at the bottom to avoid the rice getting burnt. If using the microwave, cook for 7-8 minutes at high. If using the oven, like I did, cook in a pre heated oven at 175 degree celsius for 20 minutes. Keep covered until served hot with raita!

 

Matka Gosht -- Mutton in an Earthen Pot

Mutton for me always meant a lot of work starting from overnight marination to a never ending task of frying the meat on medium flame till oil starts separating from the spices. The procedure no doubt makes the dish truly delicious but it leaves the maker really exhausted. With the kind of short cut dishes that I have been cooking these days without any compromise on taste, I had to have a short cut for a delicious mutton curry as well. The recipe  is similar to the popular Kashmiri Makhni Gosht but with my personal additions. While I cooked the mutton in the pressure cooker, I transferred the curry to an earthen pot to reduce and to infuse earthy flavors and that indeed did the trick for s super yummy mutton gravy. 

Ingredients 

500 gms mutton 

1 large onion chopped 

1 tbsp ginger julienned plus extra for garnish 

1/2 cup yogurt whipped

1 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp shahjeera

3 green cardamoms, 3 cloves, 1" piece cinnamon, 8-10 black peppercorns 

1 tsp fennel seeds 

6-7 whole kashmiri red chilli roasted and crushed 

1 tsp kashmiri chilly powder (to make it spicy you can use spicy chilli powder)

2 tsp meat tenderizer or 2 tbsp grated raw papaya

1/2 tsp turmeric powder 

1 tsp good quality garam masala powder 

1 tsp ginger powder 

Salt to taste

1-2 tbsp butter

Oil as required 

Fresh coriander for garnish 

Direction 

Wash and clean the meat. Smear the meat with salt, chilli powder, meat tenderizer or grated papaya and mix well. Cover and keep aside for at least 2-3 hours. I did this early in the morning even before my morning tea so that my meat is ready to be cooked by mid morning. 

Heat oil in a pressure cooker and splutter the cumin seeds and shahjeera. I used the pressure cooker only for cooking while I did the frying in a pan as I find it difficult to do the same in my cooker. Add the fennel seeds and the whole garam masala. Now add the onions and fry till golden followed by the ginger juliennes. Add the crushed kashmiri chillies, ginger powder, turmeric powder and whipped yogurt. Fry till oil starts appearing as droplets on top. 

Now add the mutton along with any juices from the marinade and fry on a high heat till the meat changes colour. Now transfer the contents of the pan (if using) to a pressure cooker (if not already using) and add 1/2 cup of water and pressure cook till done. 

Let the pressure release on its own and then transfer the meat along with the gravy to an earthen pot and put the pot on a low flame. We now need to reduce the gravy as per our requirement and infuse some earthy flavors. You can already see a lot of oil and fat floating on top which indicates that the meat is well cooked. Now add the garam masala powder and butter and cover and cook on a low flame till the gravy reaches your desired consistency. Check for seasoning and serve hot garnished with fresh coriander leaves. If you do not have earthen pot, you can reduce the water added to 1/4 cup and then reduce the gravy as required in the cooker itself. You can also put inside a piece of burnt charcoal in an aluminium foil bowl to infuse smoky flavors. 

Mutton Curry with Paratha

Frankly, I was quite confused as to what should be the name of this dish. There was no specific recipe that I followed or any particular technique to prepare it. The procedure was almost spontaneous and whatever spices caught my attention while standing in the kitchen, I just added all of them. Since it was prepared especially to be served with parathas, Parathewaali Mutton Curry seemed to be most apt. I did not have time to marinate the meat but I would highly recommend overnight marination to reduce the overall cooking time. Most important of all, please do enjoy this dish with some fresh out of the stove hot parathas, with a dollop of desi ghee!!! Your ticket to heavenly bliss!! 😋😋

Ingredients 

500 gms mutton on the bone

2 big onions thinly sliced

1 tbsp ginger paste

2 tbsp garlic paste

2 medium potatoes cut into halves 

Mustard oil as required 

Fresh coriander leaves and ginger juliennes for garnishing 

For marination 

1/4 cup yogurt

2 tsp meat tenderizer (can be substituted with 2 tbsp grated raw papaya)

Spice powder (as listed below)

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp turmeric powder 

For spice powder 

8-10 whole kashmiri red chillies 

3 green cardamom 

1 black cardamom 

3 cloves 

1/2 star anise 

1/2" cinnamon 

1 tsp fennel seeds/saunf

1/2 tsp shahjeera/caraway seeds 

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp coriander seeds 

2 bay leaves

6-7 black peppercorns

Dry roast all the ingredients and grind to a fine powder. 

Direction 

Start with the marination first. If you have time, I would recommend overnight marination but if pressed for time, a minimum of 1 hour marination is a must. 

Wash and clean the meat thoroughly and apply little salt and keep aside for 10 minutes. Now wash the meat again and drain off excess water. Now mix all ingredients listed under marination and coat the meat well. Cover and keep aside till you prepare the rest of the ingredients. If you are marinating overnight, bring the mutton to room temperature before starting to cook. 

Heat a little oil in a deep frying pan and fry the sliced onions till crispy golden. Remove from heat and drain on paper towels. Now in the same pan, fry the potato halves till golden and keep aside. Strain out bits of onions from the pan, if any, and add the remaining oil to another pan where you will be preparing the mutton. 

I did not add any additional oil to the second pan as the mutton will itself release a lot of fat. However you can add if you feel the oil is not adequate. 

Now add the marinated mutton along with the marinade and fry on a high till the water evaporates and the mutton changes color. Now reduce the flame and continue stirring at regular intervals till the oil separates and the spices no longer smell raw. Now add the ginger garlic paste and fry 2-3 minutes more. Add the potatoes and give a stir. Add half the fried onions and stir. Now add 1/2 cup water and mix. Cover and cook the mutton on a medium low flame till done. Keep checking and stirring in between to ensure it doesn't burn. Add little bit more water if required to cook the mutton. You can also do this in the pressure cooker if you are running short of time or if the mutton is taking too long to cook. 

Once done, reduce the gravy, if any, to minimum and add the remaining fried onions. Adjust the seasoning and stir. Let the mutton cook for another 10 minutes on a low flame. Garnish with coriander leaves and ginger juliennes and serve hot with parathas!!

Mutton Keema Masala

Mutton or red meat was not quite easily available in my neighborhood until recently when a new shop opened up on the way to my baby's school. My husband was so happy with this new find , he immediately grabbed a pack of minced mutton and a request was put forward to prepare some Mutton Keema Masala for the weekend meal. I love keema too and so the request was happily accepted and attended to. The keema turned out super delicious and so yummy that a good friend of ours came over for dinner after seeing my FB post about the same!! It was a fun evening spent with friends over lots of chit chat, booze, and of course, a bowl full of yummy Mutton Keema Masala! 

Ingredients

For Marination

250 gms minced mutton, washed and drained

1/2 cup yogurt

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tbsp fresh garlic paste (or minced)

For the spice paste

1/2 tbsp mustard oil (preferably)

1 tsp cumin seeds

1" piece cinammon

3 pieces of cardamom

1 black cardamom

3 cloves

5-6 black peppercorns

2 medium onions chopped

Rest of the ingredients

1 tbsp ghee

2 medium onions chopped

1" piece ginger chopped

1-2 green chillies chopped (optional)

1 medium red bell pepper deseeded and chopped

1 large tomato chopped

1 tsp kashmiri chilli powder (non spicy)

2 tsp coriander powder

Salt to taste

Fresh coriander leaves and ginger juliennes for garnishing

Direction

Start with the marination. Take the washed and drained minced mutton and add all other ingredients listed under marination. Mix well and keep aside at least for 2 hours or overnight. 

Now heat oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds. Now add the whole garam masala listed under spice paste and let it splutter and release the aroma. Now add the chopped onions and fry till golden. Take care not to burn them and so keep stirring constantly for about 3-5 minutes until golden. Remove from heat and let it cool. Once cooled, grind this in a blender to a smooth paste and keep aside. 

In the same pan where you prepared for the spice paste, heat the ghee and fry the chopped onions till translucent. Add the ginger, green chilli and tomatoes and fry till the tomatoes soften. Now add the red bell pepper, coriander powder, and red chilli powder and fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the marinated mutton with any redidual water that the meat or the yogurt may have released. Mix well and fry on a medium heat till the meat changes color. Cover and cook on a low flame till cooked  through and oil starts floating on top. No need to add any water as the meat and the yogurt will be releasing enough juices and fat. Once the mutton is cooked through, remove the cover and increase the flame to medium and add the prepared spice paste. Mix well. If there is still a lot of gravy, continue stirring  at a medium high flame till the gravy dries up. Check for seasoning and adjust accordingly. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and ginger juliennes and serve hot with roti, naan, or parathas. 

Mutton Dum Biryani

I have recently started cooking something special on weekends, especially on Sundays, and this has started mainly because of my strict diet during the week. Even the body needs some motivation to continue with the healthy diet and lifestyle and a weekend indulgent meal fits the bill perfectly. So here is my this week's weekend indulgence, a sinful delicious melt-in-the-mouth Mutton Dum Biryani and served with some chilled Boondi Raita! 

Ingredients (Serves 4)

For the Biryani Masala 

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tbsp cumin seeds

2-3 pieces of green cardamom

1 black cardamom

4-5 cloves 

2 small sticks cinnamon

1/2 piece nutmeg (javitri)

2 pieces mace

5-6 dry red chillies (as per taste)

Other Ingredients

3 cups basmati rice, washed and dried in a colander

500 gms mutton, washed and cut (I used 300 gms boneless and 200 gms with bones)

1 cup yogurt, whipped

1 tbsp ginger, grated

1 tbsp garlic, minced

1 sprig mint leaves, finely chopped

1 sprig coriander leaves, finely chopped

2 each of cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and star anise

5 medium onions, finely sliced and deep fried until crisp and golden brown (drain on paper towels to remove excess oil)

2-3 tbsp ghee (this is to be used while layering the rice and mutton; use as per requirement)

2 medium potatoes, halved and fried till golden brown

1 big potato, thinly sliced (for layering at the bottom of the vessel to prevent burning)

3 boiled eggs halved

A pinch of saffron, soaked in 2 tbsp cold milk (optional)

1+1 tbsp salt

2 tsp meat tenderizer (you can also 2 tbsp grated raw papaya)

1 tsp red food color

1 tsp yellow food color (you may skip to use the food colors and prepare with single colored rice. I just wanted to experiment)

2 tsp kewra essence

Aata dough for lining the lid of the vessel

Direction

Marinate the mutton pieces with 1 tbsp salt and keep aside for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in a pan, dry roast all the ingredients given under Biryani masala and let it cool. Then grind to a fine powder and keep aside.

Wash the marinated mutton pieces with water and drain any excess liquid. Now add the yogurt, biryani masala, ginger, garlic, 1 tbsp salt, meat tenderizer/raw papaya, and half of the fried onions. Mix everything well and cover with a cling wrap. This has to be marinated for a minimum of 2 hours. For best results, marinate overnight and keep it in the refrigerator. I marinated it overnight. 

In the morning (if marinated overnight) take the meat out and keep it on the kitchen counter and bring it to room temperature. Now start to prepare the rice. 

If you are using food color, soak a fistful of rice in one bowl with the red color and another fistful in a bowl with yellow color. Soak the rest of the rice in another bowl for 30 minutes. Start with the red rice and cook till just 60% done. Drain and spread it out on a plate. Now prepare the yellow rice and again cook for 60% doneness and spread it out in the same plate as the red rice. Now cook the rest of the rice. 

While making the rice, add the cardamoms, cinnamon, cloves, and star anise for extra flavor. You can also add 1 tsp of ghee. Within 5-7 minutes of putting the rice on stove top (about 30% done), remove 1/4th of the rice. Drain and keep in a separate plate. This rice forms the base of your biryani. Now cook the rest of the rice till just 60% done. Once the rice is done, drain the excess liquid completely and spread out the rice on the same plate as the colored rice. Mix well and keep aside. 

Meanwhile, fry the potato halves and keep them ready as well as the other ingredients for the assembly. 

Now its time to prepare for the assembling. Heat a heavy iron griddle/tawa. Take the vessel where you will be putting the biryani on dum. Grease the base and the sides of the vessel with a little ghee on your palm. Now line the botttom of the vessel with the sliced potatoes evenly ensuring minimum gaps. If your vessel is too big, you can use extra potato pieces. Use as per requirement. This is a crucial step as this will ensure that the biryani does not stick to the bottom. I always do this step but for today I miscalculated and was short of potatoes. So I greased the bottom with some extra ghee and that served the purpose as well. 

Now, put the first layer of rice that you had kept separately and sprinkle some mint and coriander leaves. 

Now cover the rice with the marinated mutton and sprinkle some more chopped coriander and mint leaves followed by half of the remaining fried onions, fried potato halves, boiled egg halves, and about 1 tbsp of ghee and 1 tsp kewra essence.

Now cover up the meat with the mix of colored and plain rice followed by a last round of coriander, mint, remaining fried onions, 1 tsp kewra essence and ghee. 

Now sprinkle the kesar/saffron milk (if using) on top and tightly seal the vessel with the atta dough that you had prepared and close the lid. 

Ensure that there are no gaps in the lid through which the steam can escape. Keep the vessel on the hot tawa/griddle and keep the flame at the minimum. 

Cook the biryani on dum for about 1- 1.5 hours. You will know that the biryani and most importantly, the meat is cooked when you start getting a lovely aroma from the mini gaps of the lid that will start opening up towards the end. 

Continue cooking on the tawa with the flame off until the tawa is warm enough to touch. Serve hot with raita and enjoy this delicious treat with your friends and family.

 

Bengali Mutton Curry

Weekends are special in every household and so is mine. However, it is not about food always in my household. In fact, I hardly cook on weekends unless I have guests for dinner. For me weekends are more of spending time with family, go shopping, and spend some me time. This weekend was special, however, as I had to clear my pantry before going on a werkend holiday to Cambodia next week. So with mutton being on the cards and husband requesting for some authentic Bengali Mutton Curry, I had to do some homework before I could get on with it. After going through a lot of recipes, this recipe from Bong Mom's CookBook seemed really convincing, though a bit elaborate. As it was weekend and husband was there to take care of the baby, I decided to go for it. The end result was stupendous and this recipe turned out quite a stunner, with some minor changes at my end. If you love mutton and love the Bengal style of cooking, you cannot stay away from this recipe.

Ingredients

For the marination

1 kg mutton washed and cleaned

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tbsp mustard oil

2 tsp ginger paste

2 tsp garlic paste

2 tbsp grated raw papaya

2 tsp kashmiri chilli powder

2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tbsp salt

For the special paste

2 tsp cumin seeds

2 tsp coriander seeds

2 tsp fennel seeds

15 black peppercorns

8 dry red chillies

8 fat cloves garlic

2" piece ginger

1 tsp mustard oil

1 tsp kashmiri chilli powder

1 tsp sugar

Dash of water

For the gravy

2 large onions finely sliced 

1 tbsp ginger paste

1 tbsp garlic paste

2 large tomatoes pureed

2 large potatoes quartered

6 green cardamoms

2 black cardamoms

8 cloves

3 bay leaves

3 whole red chillies

1 mace

1 tsp good quality garam masala

3-4 green chillies slit

Salt to taste

2 tbsp mustard oil

Direction

The preparation time is quite time consuming for this recipe and so I shall share with you the process step wise, like I did, to ease the entire cooking procedure. 

Step 1

Marinate. Wash and rinse the mutton and keep it in a vessel with a proper lid. Add all the ingredients listed under marination and mix well. Cover and marinade overnight. 

Step 2

Make the paste. Dry roast the cumin, coriander, fennel seeds, and whole red chillies. Cool and make a fine paste with the rest of the ingredients. Keep aside. Traditionally, it will be best if you can do this paste on a silbatta (mortar and pestle) as the older generation used to do. Gives the optimum results. Trust me!

Step 3

Prepare for the gravy. Slice the onions and keep aside. Puree the tomatoes and keep aside. If using fresh ginger garlic paste, prepare and keep aside. Cut the potatoes and heat the oil in a big wok. Remember, you will be using the same wok for the rest of the procedure. So choose accordingly. Fry the potatoes till golden. Keep aside. 

Step 4

Now it's time to start cooking. Take the same pan where you fried the potatoes and add thevwhole garam masala listed under gravy. I did not add any additional oil apart from 2 tbsp oil added while frying the potatoes. When fragrant, add the sliced onions and fry with a pinch of sugar till browned and caramalized but not burnt. Next add the puree and fry till the excess water evaporates and the raw smell disappears. Put the mutton along with the marinade and fry on high heat for 5 minutes till the mutton turns brown. Now reduce the flame and continue stirring intermittently till oil droplets start appearing on top. This will take a good 20-25 minutes. A point to note here. I have not made this curry in the pressure cooker as the raw papaya added during marination tenderizes the meat sufficiently and cooks perfectly even in the pan. In fact, the mutton started coming off the bones while frying!

You will know that the mutton has been fried well when you see droplets of oil floating on top. Now add the spice paste and rinse the blender with a dash of water and continue frying the mutton along with the spice paste for another 5-10 minutes till everything is well mixed. Add the fried potatoes and give a gentle stir. Add salt and 1.5 cups of water. Cover and reduce the flame to minimum once the gravy comes to the first boil. Stir in between and keep covered until you see oil floating on top.

If you want reduced gravy, remove the cover and cook on high flame till the gravy reduces to desired consistency. Now add the garam masala and check the seasoning. Add some fresh slit green chillies for an awesome taste. Remove from heat and serve hot with steamed rice. 

Kacchi Mutton Biryani-The Bengali Way

As a homemaker, when it comes to gift something special to your loved ones on their birthdays and special occasions, it is food through which you can show your love more appropriately rather than buying them a gift with their money. The dishes that you cook out of love and of their interest makes them even happier than buying an expensive gift from the store. Mutton was what my husband wished to eat for his birthday and I travelled by bus, then train, then walked to buy the best mutton in Singapore and again rushed back via the same route to be just in time to pick up my baby from school. The love and effort that went into the making of this biryani definitely showed in the end result. Husband was glad and conpletely enjoyed his birthday meal. My gift was well accepted and ackowledged!

Ingredients

For the Marinade

500 gms boneless mutton (you can use with bones too)

1/2 tbsp salt plus more to taste

1/2 cup fried onions (thinly slice the onions and let it dry on a paper towel for 1/2 hour. Fry till crisp and brown, but not burnt)

1 tbsp fresh ginger paste

1 tbsp fresh garlic paste

3/4 cup yogurt

1/2 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp ghee

2 tbsp raw papaya paste (for tenderizing the meat)

To be ground for the spice mix

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp coriander seeds

6 green cardamoms

6 cloves

2" piece cinnamon

2 black cardamoms

1 tsp black peppercorns

2 mace

1/2 javitri or nutmeg

2 bay leaves

2-3 whole red chillies

For the Biryani Rice

2 1/2 cups long grain basmati

2 each of green cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, and bay leaf

4 cups of water

1/2 tbsp salt

For the assembly

2 medium potatoes cut into halves

1 medium potato sliced into medium thickness roundels for lining the bottom of the biryani pot

1/2 cup fried onions (prepared as per the procedure detailed above)

2 tbsp ghee , divided

1 tbsp kewra essence, divided

A big pinch of saffron soaked in cold milk

1 cup milk

1/4 cup raisins

1/4 cup aaloobukhara or dried pitted prunes (optional; I did not have it)

3/4 slit green chillies, if you like it

Oil for frying the potatoes

1/2 cup aata or wholewheat flour made into a dough for sealing the edges

Direction

Step 1

The first step towards making this biryani starts one day ahead. Take the mutton pieces and wash properly. Rinse well and apply salt and keep aside for 20 minutes. 

Meanwhile, dry roast all the ingredients listed under powder and let it cool. Now grind to a not-so-fine yet not-so-coarse powder and keep it handy. 

Wash and rinse the mutton again after 20 minutes and take it in a clean vessel with a lid. Drain out as much water as possible. To this add the yogurt, sugar, ghee, fried onions, papaya, salt to taste, ground spices and mix well. Add salt keeping in mind that this is how your biryani will taste along with the rice (which will also be cooked in salty water). Cover the vessel and keep aside the mutton for marination for atleast 4-5 hours or overnight. The more the better. 

Step 2

Wash and soak the rice for 30 minutes. Boil water with salt and add the whole spices. Add the soaked and drained rice and bring to a boil, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and drain the water. The rice should be just 30-40% cooked. Keep the rice in a colander until used. 

Heat oil in a pan and fry the potato halves until golden on all sides. Remove from heat and drain excess oil on paper towels. 

Step 3

If you have marinated the mutton overnight, ensure that you bring it to room temperature before starting the procedure. The best way is to take it out of the refrigerator first thing in the morning and let it remain for 2-3 hours before cooking. 

Now grease the bottom of your biryani pot. Ensure that it has a tight lid. Meanwhile, put a thick iron skillet/ tawa on the stove top and let it heat up. Arrange the sliced potatoes in a single layer with minimum gaps in between. You can use more sliced potatoes if you need. 

Now spead out about 1/3 of the rice in an even layer. Sprinkle 1/2 of the fried onions, 1/2 of the ghee, 1/2 of the kewra essence, and 1/2 of the raisins and prunes (if using). Now spread the mutton and the marinade over the rice and fill out any open gaps. Add the fired potato halves and slit green chillies if you like it spicy. Top it up with the remaining rice and spread evenly. Add the remaining ghee, kewra essence, raisins and prunes, and  fried onions. Sprinkle the saffron milk on the rice followed by 1 cup of milk. Roll the atta dough into an elongated rope and fix it along the rim of the vessel. Seal it with the lid tightly placed on top and ensuring there are no gaps in between for the steam to escape. 

Put the vessel on the hot tawa and reduce the gas to minimum and forget about it for the next 1-1.5 hours or until you start getting the biryani fragrance. Switch off the flame and let the vessel remain on the hot tawa for 1/2 hour. Remove the lid now, mix the biryani with a spoon and serve hot with your favorite raita and green chutney. 

Kosha Mangsho (Mutton in a Spicy Gravy Bengali Style)

It has been a through and through Bengali weekend for me starting with Matar Ghugni on friday, Bangladeshi Chicken Curry on Saturday, and now Kosha Mangsho to bring this lovely weekend to an end. It was quite a relaxed time at home as well. A bit of swimming, some shopping, and some couple time refreshed us for the week to come. This is the second time I have attempted Kosha Mangsho and as they say, it only gets better. This time the gravy was so delicious and the marination was so perfect, we just kept on licking our fingers. Scrumptious!! 

Ingredients

For the marination

500 gms mutton (I had used boneless mutton, but strongly recommend with bones as it tastes much better. I had no option)

1 medium onion, chopped

1 tbsp garlic chopped

1 tbsp ginger chopped

2-3 green chillies

1/2 cup yogurt

1 tbsp coriander powder

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp salt

2 tsp mustard oil

Other ingredients

2 big onions, finely sliced

1 medium tomato, chopped

2 medium potatoes, cut into four cubes

1 bay leaf

2 cloves

2 cardamom

1 inch cinnamon

1 tbsp cumin powder

1 tsp hot chilli powder

2 tsp kashmiri chilli powder

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp garam masala powder

1 tbsp ghee

1 tbsp mustard oil

Salt to taste

Direction

Start with marinating the mutton overnight. Make a paste with the onions, ginger, and garlic and marinate the mutton with this paste and the rest of the ingredients. Cover and keep in the refrigerator overnight. If you are short of time, you can also marinate for 2-3 hours or even less. However, the longer the marination period, the better the mutton will taste and cook. You may skip the marination if your mutton is really fresh and tender and put all the ingredients used in marination while cooking it directly as well. 

In a pan, heat the oil. Rub a little turmeric on the potato halves and fry in the oil till golden brown. Remove from oil and drain excess oil on paper towels. In the same oil, add the bay leaf, cloves, cinnamon, and cardamoms. Let it crackle. Now add the sliced onions and fry till pink and translucent. Reduce the flame to medium and fry further till slightly golden, stirring frequently. Now add the chopped tomatoes and the dry spices. Keep stirring till tomatoes are mushy and oil starts appearing on the sides. It is important to properly fry the masalas at this point as this step ensures the perfect color for your gravy. Now add the marinated mutton (it is important to take out the mutton from the refrigerator about 1-2 hours before cooking so that it comes down to room temperature). The mutton will have a lot of water in the marinade. Do not discard. Add salt as per requirement keeping in mind that you have already added during marination. Keep frying on a high flame till the masalas and the mutton are mixed well. Now reduce the flame to medium low and continue stirring intermittently ensuring that it does not stick at the bottom. We need to dry up the excess water before transferring the mutton to the pressure cooker for the final cooking. However, if your mutton is tender enough and you can already see that it is cooked, you may skip using the cooker. Replace the pan with the cooker on the stove and transfer the contents. Pressure cook for 6-7 whistles as you deem necessary depending on the extent to which your mutton is cooked in the pan. Please note that I have not added any water as I wanted a thick gravy. The mutton will anyway release a lot of far while in the cooker ensuring that it does not get burnt. Remove from heat and let the pressure release completely on its own. Now add the fried potatoes, ghee, and garam masala. Also check how well the mutton is cooked. Now close the lid and pressure cook for 1 whistle (if mutton completely cooked) or more as you deem necessary. Remove from heat and let the pressure release completely. Serve hot with plain rice.