Monday, August 07, 2006

Dal Bhuna Gosht -A Pakistani favourite

 














"Yeh Ghost kya hota hey?"....I was lost in thoughts fingering this item in our Asian take away menu."Ghost nahin baba,Gosht,Gosht,Gooooosht!!...."Somebody corrected.Yes, there were more ghosts,sorry...goshts, than I could manage...Aaloo Gosht Kari,Achari Gosht,Bindi Gosht,Balti Gosht,KarahiGosht,Aab Gosht,Chana Dal gosht,Gobi Ghosht,Shalgam GoshtDal BhunaGosht,TorriGosht,UrviGosht,and even Karela Gosht....So many varieties! I was indeed tempted to do a thorough research on the Gosht...

Basically Gosht is a dal/lentil/vegetable-mutton medley which is quite popular in Pakistan and in several states of North India.This preparation is said to have been very much influenced by the Afghan cuisine. Hot rice with Dal Bhuna Gosht with some desi ghee is a hot favourite with many...and now I too dont have a second opinion about it...It is just lip smacking great and very different indeed!Well you cant really compare it with the conventional mutton curry...u cant ask whether it is tastier.....it is different...and it is indeed tasty in its own way.Unfortunately again the restaurants here do not do full justice to the real taste...It will rather misguide you to believe that it is a bland mutton curry, which isnt really true!

I too was a bit apprehensive thinking of mixing dal and mutton....It sounded more like 'mutton sambar' which one brahmin character in a very hit malayalam movie was referring to....where he was feeling delicate to handle chicken and mutton as part of his hotel management studies and was asking whether they could make something less harmless as a mutton/chicken sambar!!Yes this is in a way a different kind of Mutton sambar!!

So here goes the recipe for Dal Gosht...

Ingredients:
Mutton-250g(cut into pieces)
Tur Dal-1 cup(200g)
Ginger-25g(pounded)
Green Chilli-5(pounded)
Garlic-15 pods(8 pounded,7 chopped)
Tomato-1 large(cut into pieces)
Onion-1 large(chopped)
Red Chilli powder-2tsp
Coriander powder-1 tsp
Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp
Butter/Ghee-1 tbsp
Curry leaves-2 sprigs
Salt-as required
Water-as required

Method:
  Posted by Picasa














Pressure cook tur dal(red gram dal),mutton pieces,ginger,garlic(pounded)green chillies,tomato,onion,coriander powder, with enough water(say 2 1/2 cups) for 15-20 minutes on medium fire, or until it is cooked properly.Add salt and mix well.Now heat ghee/butter in a small wok.Prepare the seasoning by roasting chopped garlic(till it becomes brownish) and curry leaves.Now add this seasoning to the cooked dal and mutton and mix everything well and serve it hot with steamed rice or Chappathi.Well you could alternatively cook mutton and dal separately and then finally mix them and add the seasoning.All my apprehensions vanished to thin air when I really tasted it with hot steamed rice!!

  • Here
  • is a slightly different version of the same from another fantastic foodie.

    20 comments:

    Anonymous said...

    I am waiting for the recipe doc. Our pakistani friend will love this. I will send the recipe to him :).

    Ashwini said...

    The said blogger is also not be responsible for provoking excessive drooling due to posting delicious photos and lack of a recipe

    indianadoc said...

    >Thanx shilpa and ashwini...To save all the drooling I have posted the recipe!!I would love to hear shilpa's pakistani friend's feed back definitely.

    Saleem Pothiwala said...

    hey doc good one :-) am happy that you tried it and liked it. My mom adds a bit of tamarind and a small piece of jaggery to it as well so may be you can try it next time...

    indianadoc said...

    >that's indeed a good input daagh...I was searching for DalGhosht and the search results had u too there...and it gave me more confidence to try it cos one fellow blogger was definitely there to fall back upon!!

    Sumitha said...

    Your write up reminded me of a Hindi song "Sor nahin baba Shor Shooooooooor"!ha ha ha....!Dont know which movie but I think it starred Nutan and Sunil Dutt!

    I had also come across a dish called Lamb Dhansak in a cookery book but Shynee I am apprehensive about dal & mutton combo,though both separetly as in mutton curry and parippu thats my favourite combo!!

    Unknown said...

    Oh wow!! Super yummy!!!

    mathew said...

    every day i decide..okay..innu food koraykaam!!!

    But the pics u put in the blog keeps me ever hungry!! :)

    Surya Hith said...

    You are so creative shynee.dal gosht looks so yummy.I have never tried it before.this goes into'must try'list.thanks.

    KA said...

    That's a great recipe Shynee! I myself have wondered several times what a ghost is?? Now I know..
    Hey congrats on your new car, I enjoyed the jamuns too.

    renuramanath said...

    hi, I have been zealously jotting down a lot of info from your site, which will surely help in my research into kerala's food history. meanwhile, i've posted some more history, this time no food ! take a look !

    Shah cooks said...

    gosht kake ghost tho nahin banenge na?
    i love this curry from our local kabab corner. thanks for the recipe.will try it soon.

    Anonymous said...

    Just wanted to say thanks for putting up these recipes - I'm from Kannur and enjoy the same tastes as you do. I bought some dried fish and was just about to call my Mum for the authentic mallu recipe when I came across your website!

    indianadoc said...

    >Sumi,tht ws exactly what I had in my mind too!I too was a lot apprehensive of combining both...and as u said..eating them separately I do enjoy bt...I ws in an experimental mood...went ahead and I found it really lipsmacking...the garlic and mutton smell with the subtlety of dal n ghee ws just great!!I feel u too wd like it...Dhanak I have never tried...have seen it in the Parsi collection..prbly now I am confident to try that too...
    >thanx pushpa
    >Aqua, i doubt whether the same flavour will come with chicken...for mutton has a strong and distinct flavour as compared to chicken generally...but I think u cn give a try and let me know the outcome so that i too cn try!It shdnt be bad I believe!But dont be stingy on garlic and ghee..that makes a lot of difference.
    >Kuzhappamilla Mathew...Ichiri thadichupoyi yennu vechu aarum kuttamonnum parayilla...maryadakku vayku ruchiyullothokkey thinnum kudichum jeevichathey kayyil bakki undakukayulloo!!
    >Surya we should say our predecessors were very creative to have found so many combos...it was indeed a very different taste.
    >thanx K.A...Just give it a try once...I wd say make small qty...just in case it did not suit u...I'm more in an exptl mood to try different varieties from all over the world!!
    >thanx renu for dropping in..i've browsed thro' u'r write up a couple of times...I shall definitely take a look at u'r new write up...
    >Bilkul nahi Shaheen begum...Aap ghabrayeeyega mat!!Yeh tho la jawaab cheez hey... hum log mutton or dal separate khathey hey tho yeh log dono mila diye!!har mulk key thareeke kitney alag or kitney anokhe hotey hey!!
    >thanx anonymous for dropping in and happy to know that u too r a Malabari..and do enjoy the recipes...pl do keep in touch...

    Anonymous said...

    you know one time i saw on tv about bhuna ghost. Just cooking mutton in a manhcatti sealed well without any oil and i even made it one time and it tasted so heavenly..do u have that recipe?

    indianadoc said...

    >Inji, I think u r referring to the Parsi mutton dhansak, if I am not mistaken where lamb,dal and all the masala are added and the vessel is sealed..I have tasted dhansak in the Indian restaurants but have never tried...but I do know the recipe.May be some day!!

    Anonymous said...

    Hey

    I am a Pakistani recently relocated to the US. I tried your recipe today and believe me, everyone living here, loved the food. We are a bunch of Pakistani and Indian guys living together here in New York. I wanted to say thank you to you. You rock!!

    Thanks indeed

    Regards,

    SS

    indianadoc said...

    thanx SS for dropping in and happy that you enjoyed the meal!

    Unknown said...
    This comment has been removed by the author.
    Unknown said...

    haiiiii......

    will somebody tell me a replacement of Brandy in recepies like pie,cake etc .. we are forbidden from using such things......i really wanted t try the apple pie...pls help