Hyderabadi cuisine intricately understands and embellishes the encounter between meat and nuts, a seemingly intense combination but, in reality, a balanced and beautiful flavor profile. In our family Dawats, there is always some such meat delicacy, whether it be Pasanday, Khorma, or Dum ka Gosht. The spices here are minimal and not the highlight, namely red chili powder, garam masala, and a sprinkling of coriander powder. That’s it. The emphasis here is the technique, and the resulting taste is mainly attributed to the smooth nuttiness relayed by a paste made of poppy seeds (Khus Khus), cashews, and almonds and a buttery ghee-smoked finishing touch.
This magical practice of initiating contact between heated coal and clarified butter, known as the Dhungar method, transmits a smoky flavor during the finishing stages of cooking once the meat is tender and all ingredients and spices have integrated into a harmonious handiwork. Essentially covering any pot with a lid transforms the vessel into a smoking chamber and literally perfumes the food with a buttery, almost tandoori aroma. A must-try recipe with tender veal marinated overnight, combined with creamy yogurt, crispy fried onions, a roasted nut mixture, and simply baked in the oven. Delicious!
Hyderabadi Dum ka Gosht
Ingredients
- 5 lbs veal shoulder meat *cut into small pieces
- 3 tsp coriander powder
- ½ tsp red chili powder
- 1 tsp Kashmiri Lal Mirch
- ¾ tsp garam masala
- 1½ tsp Kosher salt
- 2 tsp papaya paste
- 2 tsp fresh garlic paste
- 1 tsp fresh ginger paste
- 5 tbsp lemon juice *freshly squeezed (1 ½ lemons)
Other Ingredients
- 1½ cup plain yogurt
- 1 cup fried onions
- 2 tbsp coconut *toasted and finely ground
- 2 tbsp slivered almonds *toasted and finely ground
- 1 tbsp poppy seeds *toasted
Instructions
Meat Marination
- Rinse veal meat well and pat dry. Add spices (coriander powder, garam masala, Kashmiri Lal Mirch, red chili powder and Kosher salt). Mix spices to combine with meat. Now add freshly squeezed lemon juice, papaya paste and fresh ginger + garlic paste. Mix to combine and massage meat with seasonings for 4-5 minutes. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
- Remove meat from fridge after marination and let rest at room temperature. In a food processor, combine fried onions and yogurt to make a smooth mixture. Add fried onion/yogurt mixture to meat and mix to combine. Massage into meat for 1-2 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Dry roast grated coconut, slivered almonds and poppy seeds (in separate batches) until aromatic, careful not to burn. Add roasted nuts into a grinder and blend into a fine, smooth paste (I added a few tablespoons of water, as needed while grinding). *I pulsed this mixture in grinder/Ninja for at least 2-3 minutes, mixing as needed and pulsing again.
- Add nut paste to marinated meat and mix again to combine all ingredients well (massage meat with all ingredients for another 2-3 minutes). Add ¼ cup Canola oil and mix to combine. *I use the same oil I fried the onions in.
- Decrease oven setting to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place marinated meat in a heavy bottom baking dish/pot, cover to fully seal and bake marinated meat for 60 minutes, stirring 1-2 times in between, as needed.
- After one hour, remove baking dish from oven, uncover and give coal smoke (carefully place heated coal in a tin foil container or aluminum foil and in center of meat, add 2 tsp of ghee and cover dish for 2-3 minutes. Now remove container/foil with coal, add freshly chopped coriander leaves, mint and green chili peppers, increase oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for a final 5-7 minutes until liquid evaporates and oil separates.
- Hyderabadi Dum ka Gosht is now ready to serve alongside toasted naan, or Bagara Khana ('Tempered Rice'), with parathas or even plain Basmati rice. The options here are endless. Enjoy! Nosh Farma'aiye.