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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!