Fatima's Fabulous Kitchen

I don't eat to live. I live to eat.

Nihari

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Nihari has got to be in the top 5 list of classic desi comfort food. I mean how can it not be? It’s hearty, it’s warm, and it’s an explosion of amazing flavors.

For all you non-desis out there, nihari is basically a meat stew made with caramelized onions and a wide array of lovely and deep aromatic spices and served with hot naan that’s straight out of the tandoor. There’s different variations of nihari, depending on which part of the subcontinent you are from. My parents make a Hyderabadi-style type of nihari which has more of a broth-like consistency. The one I’m making here is thicker, and similar to a Pakistani nihari.

Since this is a meat-centric dish, you’ll want to use good quality meat. I like to use a couple of big lamb shanks which I marinate in some turmeric, chili powder, and ginger-garlic paste.

For the nihari masala, I use just about every spice under the sun. I take several whole spices and tie them up into a cheesecloth (great trick that prevents anyone from biting into anything) – cinnamon sticks, cardamom, cloves, mace, shahzeera, allspice, black peppercorn. For powdered spices, I use fennel, black pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon, garam masala, cumin, coriander.

Like most Indian dishes, caramelized onions act as the base. They add a subtle sweetness that balances out the heaviness of the meat and spices. Since you want the texture and consistency of the nihari to be smooth, I grind up the onions into a paste in a food processor and add it to the nihari once the meat is cooked.

You can cook the shanks in a regular pot or for fast results, toss it all in a pressure cooker with some water, seal it shut with the lid, and come back in a half hour or so.

Once the meat is falling-off-the-bone tender, I add in my powdered spices and my caramelized onions paste. I then turn the broth into a stew by thickening it up with some cornstarch. You can use flour as well (that’s the traditional way of doing it!)

Add in some extra butter or ghee (and when I say extra, I mean at least half a stick), adjust your seasonings, squeeze in some lemon juice and there you have it!

Serve with some thinly sliced ginger, onions, cilantro, lemons, jalapenos, and of course naan!

It’s the perfect dish to make on a cold snowy Saturday afternoon, when you’re craving something authentic and warm!

5 from 1 vote
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Nihari

Servings 6 people

Ingredients

  • 3 lbs beef or lamb shank (or 2 lbs boneless meat)
  • 1.5 large onion (sliced)
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 2.5 tsp ginger-garlic paste
  • 2 tsp chili powder (or to taste)
  • 2 tsp salt (for meat)
  • 2-3 tsp salt (or to taste)
  • 1/3 cup wheat flour or cornstarch (plus 1/3 cup water)
  • 8 tbsp butter (divided, 4 tbsp for onions, rest to put in later)
  • juice of 1/2 lemon or to taste

Dry Spices

  • 1/2 tsp shahzeera seeds
  • 3-4 cinnamon sticks
  • 4-5 bay leaves
  • 6-7 cardamom pods
  • 1/2 star anise
  • 5-6 cloves
  • 4-5 allspice
  • 1-2 mace

Powdered Spices

  • 1 tbsp fennel
  • 1.5 tsp nutmeg
  • 1.5 tbsp garam masala
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp coriander
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp garam masala

Garnish

  • 1 piece ginger (julliened)
  • 1/2 cup cilantro (chopped)
  • 1 small onion (sliced)
  • 1 jalepeno (sliced)
  • 1 lemon (sliced)

Instructions

  1. Add the turmeric, salt, chili powder, and ginger-garlic paste to the beef or lamb. Make sure it is fully coated and let it sit for a least thirty minutes.

  2. In the meantime, tie up all your whole spices into a cheesecloth - cinammon sticks, allspice, black peppercorn, mace, shahzeera, cardamom, cloves.

  3. Add your meat and cheesecloth pouch to the pressure cooker. Cover with about a liter of water or so. Pop on the lid, turn the heat onto high and let it tenderize for about 40 minutes or so (you can leave it in longer or less depending on how tender you want it and how well your pressure cooker works.)

  4. In the meantime, star caramelizing your onions. Turn the heat to medium-high and add in your oil, butte,r and sliced onions to a pan. Allow them to slowly turn dark brown. This will take about 25 minutes or so.

  5. Once the onions are done caramelizing, allow them to slightly cool and grind them in a food processor until they form a smooth paste.

  6. Once your meat is done tenderizing in the pressure cooker, turn the heat off and allow the cooker to cool. DO NOT  attempt to open it right away, you will end up burning yourself!

  7. After the pressure cooker has cooled, open it up. Turn the heat back on to high and add in your onion paste, some salt, and powdered spices - fennel, cumin, coriander, garam masala, black pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon.

     

  8. Now take your flour and roast it in a pan on low heat until it turns slightly browner. Make sure you don't burn the flour. Remove immediately and dissolve it in 1/3 cup of water by stirring it until it becomes a slurry. You may also substitute with corn flour (just directly dissolve it in the water). Add that to the nihari and stir.

  9. Keep stirring the nihari until it becomes the consistency you want. If you want it  thicker, allow water to evaporate. If you want it looser, add in more water.

  10. Add in the rest of your butter.  Taste and adjust for seasonings. Add in a few squeezes of lemon juice.

  11. Serve hot with garnishes!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. 5 stars
    I definitely need to try this one! This along with the halwa puri. Will get back to you on the result 🙂

    Also can you please do more deserts?!

    • Please do and let me know how it goes! And yes of course! We’re in the holiday season so definitely be on the look out for more desserts!