Mutton Pulao - Pakistani Style spice infused Mutton Pilaf

Muslims all over the world are getting ready to celebrate Eid this coming week. Every household has its own Eid traditions in Pakistan. Those of us who live away from Pakistan try to continue those traditions to ensure our kids stay connected to our culture. Eid ul Azha or Bari Eid as it is called in Pakistan is centered around food and family. This Eid is a bit more stressful because of the involvement of qurbani or animal sacrifice. Those who are incharge of qurbani at home, understand the preparation needed to buy animals for this ritual and arrange for the help needed for qurbani. Whichever day a household chooses to do qurbani is a chaotic one in the kitchen. The BBQs and the roasted raans – leg of lamb surely follow in the days ahead.

Eid is also the time to include the less fortunate ones in our celebration and remember those who are no longer with us.

I am sharing my favorite recipe of Mutton pulao. This pulao is beautifully flavored and deliciously fragrant. The stock is the key ingredient in this pulao. Stock can be prepared a night before, which can significantly reduce cooking time on a very busy day. Eid Mubarak to everyone! Here is the recipe.

Ingredients for Mutton Stock

Mutton – 1 kilo

Onions – 6 medium – sliced

Bay Leaves – 2-3

Ginger – 2 inch

Garlic – 6 large cloves whole

Cinnamon – 2 inch

Peppercorns – 1 tbsp

Cloves – 12-14

Black Cardamom – 5

Cumin – 1 tbsp

Coriander seeds – 2 tbsp.

Salt – 2 tsp (adjust to taste later while cooking rice)

Oil – 5 tbsp

Water – 6-7 cups

Stock- Procedure :

1. Use a stockpot to make the stock. Heat oil in the pan and fry diced onions till brown.
2. Add ginger garlic and fry for about a minute till they get a bit of color.
3. Add mutton and fry on high heat till it changes color on all sides.
4. Add all the spices and fry for a minute or 2.
5. Add 6-7 cups of water and salt. Once it comes to a boil lower the heat and cover the pan. The stock should simmer on low heat for 55-70 mins or till the meat is cooked perfectly.

Once done, let the stock cool. Strain it and separate the meat. Use the stock as per your requirement and save the rest to use for next matar pulao. I was using all of the cooked meat but the stock was more than what I needed so I froze the rest for later use.

 Ingredients for Pulao/Pilaf

 

Basmati Rice - 1/2 kgs - 2 cups ( will feed 3 people)

Onion - 1 medium - diced

Green Chili – 1

Cinnamon – 1 inch
Cumin – 1tsp
Peppercorn – 12 whole
Black Cardamom - 2
Cloves – 6-8
Mutton Stock (Including the cooked meat)– 2 ½ to 3 cups for 2 cups of soaked rice.
Salt - to taste. Be careful as the stock already has salt.
Oil – 2 tbsp

Pulao/Pilaf - Procedure:

1. Wash and soak the rice for atleast an hour before making the pulao.
2. Add 2 table spoons of oil in a pan and fry the onions till brown.
3. Add all the dry spices and cook for about a minute.
4. Add 2 ½ cups of stock along with the meat and let it boil.
5. Add 2 whole green chilies. I love the fragrance they add to the rice. You can eliminate it if you wish.
6. Drain the rice and add to the hot stock. Let the rice simmer over medium heat for about 5-8 mins. Once 1/4^th of the stock is remaining, put the rice on dum/steaming.
7. I use a hot griddle over the open flame or over electric stove. Seal the pan with aluminum foil and cover tightly with a lid, Put the sealed pan over the hot griddle over low heat. Add a bit of weight on the top to stop the steam from escaping. Use minimum heat setting/low flame for steaming.
8. The rice should be done in about 10-12 mins. Remove from heat and open the pan carefully as it would have tons of seam inside.
9. Mix the rice and fluff them. Let them sit for about 5-7 mins before serving hot.

This pulao serves well with yogurt raita or mint chutney, coupled with shami kebabs or potato cutlets.

Pakistani Shami Kebabs

We Pakistanis love various types of kebabs in our food. Shami Kebabs being one example which is served with almost any main course on Pakistani dinner table. Be it with Daal Chawal, with paratha achaar, as Shami Kebab sandwich, with Peas or chicken Pulao or with afternoon tea. In some way directly or indirectly, Shami Kebabs have been an integral part of our favorite home cooked meals. 

These kebabs used to be part of my school lunchbox for the longest of time and was simply known as shami kebab sandwich.  Now, even when i prefer potato cutlets over shami kebabs any given day, I still love having shami kebabs with specific home cooked meals and there are rare days when my freezer is not stocked with them. My better half is a happy man the day his dinner comprises of a simple pea pulao and shami kebab or a plain old shami kebab sandwich.

Shami Kebabs take us back to our homes and kitchens where we grew up. I do agree these are labor intensive delectables that require a bit of time, but they are deeply satisfying and authentically Pakistani. Follow the pictures and it will be easy peasy!

Ingredients: Phase 1:

Beef Mince – 1 ½ kg

Chickpea lentil – ¾ cup (soaked overnight)

Onions – 2 Large (chopped)

Ginger – 2 Inches chopped

Garlic – 10-12 cloves

Cumin – 1 tsp heaped

Whole Coriander (crush in pastel Mortar) – 1 tsp heaped

Black Cardamom – 3-4

Whole Dry red chilies -6-8

Cinnamon - 4 sticks 1 inch each

Cloves – 10-12

Black Peppercorns – 15-20

Salt – 1 ½ tsp (adjust according to taste)

Water – 500 mil

Ingredients - Phase 2:

Eggs – 4 Large

Mint – 1 cup chopped

Fresh Coriander – 2 cups chopped

Green Chilies – 6-8 whole
Fresh Ginger - 2 inches

Method:

1. In a large sieve/ colander put 3-4 layers of kitchen paper or a layer of Chiffon cloth and place minced beef in it. Put it under running water for 3-4 minutes to clean it up. I cannot cook minced meat without washing it and find it rather bothersome when old aunties and grannies cook minced meat without washing it. Let the mince sit for half an hour so the excess water drains out. The minced beef will have a slightly different color. Now it is ready to be cook. You will also need a food processor for making Shami Kebabs.
2. In a large pan add the minced beef, chickpea lentil(soaked overnight),salt,  all dry spices, chopped onions, ginger, garlic, Whole red chilies along with 500 ml of water.
3. Put it on high heat to boil. Once it boils for the first time, lower the heat to medium. The aim is to cook the lentils which will take about 40 minutes. Once lentils are cooked, increase the heat to dry up the water completely.
4. Let this mixture cool completely in a large mixing bowl.
5. In a food processor add half of the prepared minced meat mixture; add 2 eggs, 3 green chilies, half ginger, half of mint and half of chopped fresh coriander. Mix it till it becomes fine but you can still see small coriander and mint leaves.  Transfer it in to a large mix bowl.
6. Now add the 2^nd batch to the food processor along with 2 eggs, rest of the green chilies, mint, ginger and coriander. Mix it. Remove from the food processor once finely done and add to the rest of the mixture.
7. Mix the two batches thoroughly with your (gloved) hand or spatula. Remove the cinnamon sticks and black cardamoms. They will still be chunky and easier to fish out of the mixture.
8. It’s a good idea to shallow fry one small pattie to check the salt and chilies proportion. Once fried, let the pattie cool down and then taste it. Adjust as per need by adding more salt and red or green chopped chilies.
9. Leave the mixture to sit in the fridge for 5-6 hours so it becomes firm to make kebab patties. 
10. After 6 hours, make kebabs by making small meat balls in your hand. Oil your hands to make the kebabs. Press the meat balls in to the shape of a pattie. Ensure the corners are perfectly round by rolling them on a plate.
11. Put them in a freezer safe box with a lid. Separate layers of kebabs with cling film. It will prevent them from sticking together. Freeze overnight or longer till the kebabs are rock solid. After 24-48 hours, remove the frozen kebabs from the box and put them in to a ziplock plastic bag.
12. Fry them on medium heat as and when required. 1 ½ kg of minced beef will make around 30 shami kebabs.
13. These kebabs don’t need a coat of egg before frying. The eggs and chickpea lentils in the mixture act as the binding agents. 

Matar Pulao - Pea Pulao

While learning how to cook in ammi's kitchen, i was repeatedly told cooking the perfect basmati rice took years of practice as basmati rice happen to have a mind of their own. I was always nervous about cooking pulao rice and biryani. It has taken me nearly 10 years to get my pulao right. Biryani is still far from perfection. But i am trying! 

The fragrance of ammi's pulao would welcome you long before you entered the house. She spent time and energy in getting the stock right which was the prime ingredient in cooking the delectable pulao. I have learnt to do the same which leads to results that almost always exceed expectation. Ammi served this pulao with chicken curry or potato meat curry.

In my house i usually serve it with shami kebab and mint chutney. Here is the recipe.

Ingredients: 

Rice – 1 cup

Chicken Stock – 1 ½ cup - Homemade

Peas (Matar) – 1 cup (Frozen or Fresh - avoid using sweet peas)

Onion – 1 Medium sized (chopped)

Oil – 2 Tblsp

Salt – 1 heaped tsp

Black Cardamoms – 2 (whole)

Cinnamon sticks – 2
Whole peppercorns - 8-10

Cumin – 1 tsp,

Cloves – 4-5

Bay leaves – 2, (whole).

Green Chili – 1 whole

Method:

1. Wash the rice 3 times with cold water and soak it for 30 mins before cooking.
2. Heat the oil in a pan (it should have a lid) and add onions to it. Let it color.
3. Add all dry spices to it and fry till onions are dark brown.
4. Add the green chili as well.
5. Now add stock and bring it to boil on medium heat.
6. Add peas; boil for only a minute more.
7. Now drain water from the rice and add them to the boiling stock. Wait for it to boil again on medium heat.
8. In the mean while put on a tava/ griddle or a heat diffuser on medium flame on another stove. This will be used to steam cook the rice.
9. Once the liquid with rice in it starts boiling, wait for 3/4 of the stock to be evaporated.
10. Now place a piece of aluminum foil on top of the cooking pot and seal the pan with the lid ensuring the steam does not escape. Put it over the hot tava/heat diffuser and reduce the heat to low.
11. Let the rice cook for 12-15 mins on lowest heat on the stove over the griddle. Open the pan after 15 mins. The water should be dried up and the rice should be cooked completely. 
12. Mix the rice with the wooden spoon. Let it sit for 5 mins before serving hot.