Like all good meat dishes the overnight journey of a plateable and palatable shab degh begins with buying the right cut. But here it extends to matching it with the right sized turnips. So when you take half a kg of lean mutton from the leg - with some marrow course, do pick up equally sized turnips. All turnips should be the same size which is the approximate of the mutton pieces. Get half kg minced meat too. This one should be 10 % fat at least.
Wash the turnips and peel if required. Soak in brine while you do the rest. It's also a good idea to poke some holes on the outer surface of each turnip with a fork or a knife.
Now fashion the kofta
1. Grind minced meat to a fine lump. Mix with ginger paste and salt. Keep aside.
2. Shallow fry on a tawa in one tbsp oil slices of two onions, one pod of garlic, whole red chilies and a spoon full each of cumin seeds, corriander seeds, poppy seeds, and mixed whole spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, black cardamom, mace, black pepper). Fry until the aroma emanates. Grind to a fine paste once cooled. Blend with minced meat using your hand.
3. Create the filling of the kofta by mixing a cup of raisins, sunflower seeds, chopped coriander and golden brown deep fried slices of two onions.
4. Fold in one cup of dry roasted besan in the minced meat. Take a flat patty of minced meat on your palm and place half a teaspoon of the filling in the core. Make round meat balls and deep fry.
In the same oil deep fry the turnips too. Before that dab them dry as you take out of the brine. Do not discard the residue.
Prepare the curry
1. Add bay leaves to 250 gms of heated ghee in a large heavy bottom pot and fry 250 gms of sliced onions till golden brown. Remove onions from the pan and add mutton. Keep stirring until all water dries up and oil separates. Now add paste of two raw onions, one pod garlic, 2 inch piece of ginger, coriander and red chilies. On low flame let the water dry and oil separate while stirring regularly. Should take half an hour at least.
2. Grind to a fine paste the fried onions with mixed whole spices as above. Also grind with the same a spoonful of poppy seeds and a 2 inch piece of dried coconut without the outer black peel. Mix it with half a kg of yoghurt and add to the meat. Repeat the above drill to see the water dry up till oil separates. Another half an hour of slavery on the stove.
3. Now its time to put everything together. Turn in the kofta and fried turnips with the residual brine. Adjust the salt to taste. In any meat dish salt goes with the water and never before that so as to keep the meat juices intact. Also there should be enough water to fully drown everything in the pot. Cover with a heavy lid and seal the sides with kneaded wheat flour dough. Let it simmer on lowest flame possible till meat is tender. Remember its an over night casserole by tradition.
Dish out
Garnish with a sprig of chopped dill leaves and serve with sheermal or khameeri roti and matar pulao.
Congratulations! You have just celebrated the north Indian winter in full farmland glory. My suggestion for the dessert would be either rasiyawal or sweet potato cooked in jaggery.
Recipe? First let me enjoy my Sunday. 😀
