Mutton Pulao: North Indian Rice Recipe

Monday, March 12, 2012, 14:05

Mutton pulao must be one your festive dishes if you hail from the northern states of India. Mind it, this mutton recipe is a combination of rice and meat but it is not a biryani. Pulao recipes are totally different from biryani recipes. The ingredients for this mutton recipe might look similar to that of mutton biryani but the cooking process is completely different.

Pulao recipes are cooked by frying the rice and meat together with all the seasonings while biryani be it a mutton recipe or any other meat is cooked in layers. To cook mutton pulao in the most authentic way you need at least 1 hour. But if you are making it small scale and quick then you can wrap it up in half hour.

Ingredients For Mutton Pulao:

1. Mutton 300 grams
2. Basmati rice 500 grams
3. Onions 2 (sliced)
4. Ginger 2 inch piece (grind)
5. Garlic 5-7 cloves (grind)
6. Cumin seeds 1 teaspoon
7. Cinnamon sticks 1 inch
8. Cardamom 4
9. Cloves 5-6
10. Bay leaves 2
11. Pepper 5-6 cloves
12. Red chillies 2-4
13. Green chillies 3 (chopped)
14. Turmeric powder 1 teaspoon
15. Red chilli powder 1 teaspoon
16. Curd 1 bowl (beaten)
17. Oil 2 tablespoon
18. Salt as per taste

Procedure For Mutton Pulao:

Marinate the mutton with turmeric powder and salt while you prepare the other ingredients.
Roast all the dry spices except bay leaves on a pan, leave them for a while to cool down and them grind them to form a powder.
Heat oil in a pressure cooker and season it with bay leaves. Saute the onions in it. When the onions start smelling good at the green chillies and saute till they are golden.
Add the minced ginger and garlic to this and cook on low flame for 2 minutes.
Now add the marinated mutton and let it cook for 5-7 minutes on low flame. When it looks fried add the powder you have made and stir.
Let it cook for another 5 minutes until oil starts leaving the sides of the meat. Then add the rice to the cooker.
The basic premise of this recipe is that the rice has to be fried with the meat so cook for another 3-4 minutes before you add the beaten curd.
You can cook it for 2 to 3 minutes (not more) after this. Add salt and 4 cups of water to it. Cook it for the duration of 3 whistles.

Serve mutton pulao with raita. You can garnish it with dry fruits but it is not mandatory.