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Friday, May 9, 2014

Mutton Rezala - A Recipe to Comfort the Soul .



If you are born in Kolkata and have been a mutton fan, this recipe is sure to be a favorite . There are very few people in the world who don't like mutton rezala. If you have have Muslim friends ( I have some who are brilliant cooks ) you have always eaten this at their parties as this is a sure shot hit .

Although very nawabi , the white rezala in a native to Bengal itself and the rezala i have had in Hyderabad is brown

A rezala, essentially means REAL . and the beauty of this dish is that every recipe claims to be authentic, whereas most aren't.  few pointers of a good rezala are as follows:

  • A rezala should not be too thick, 
  • must have distinct flavor of yogurt,
  • the yogurt should never curdle or get gritty 
  • there must be a meaty flavor 
  • the kewra or rose should be only an afterthought 
  • should be cooked in ghee 
  • the should not fall off the bone
  • should not be over cooked 

I am sharing my version of the recipe . Most rezala recipes will call for nut pastes or poppy seed paste, I don't like using it .

Here Goes


Recipe 

Mutton 500g 
onion 3 large 
ginger 1 cm piece 
green chilies 3 nos 
ghee 1/2 cup 
cream 3 tbsp 
curd 3/4 cup 
cinnamon 2 sticks 
cardamom 5 nos 
whole black peppers 1/2 tsp 
bay leaves 2 nos 
dry red chili 1 nos 
rose water 1/2 tsp 
kewra water 1/2 tsp 
cardamom powder 1/2 tsp 
salt to taste 
pepper 1 tsp 
coriander powder 1 tbsp 
garam masala 1 pinch 
sugar 1 tbsp 


  • heat ghee and temper with bay leaf, cardamom, cinnamon, dry chili and pepper corn 
  • blend onion ginger and green chili in to a fine paste and add to the ghee 
  • make sure it is a heavy bottom pan 
  • add the mutton pieces and sear the meat 
  • add some sugar and cook till it starts to give out a caramel smell 
  • add the dry spices and seasoning and cook for a few seconds 
  • add the cream and a little water a cook till oil leaves the sides 
  • switch off the gas and add yogurt , let it stay untouched for a few mins ... 
  • as the yogurt adjusts to the temperature stir it in gently
  • then rest again for few minutes 
  • pressure cook or cook covered till the meat is tender 
  • finish with rose water and cardamom powder 
If cooked properly, a rezala speaks to you and talks to you , 




3 comments:

  1. My most favourite mutton preparation at last awesome recipe !!! the yogurt part is interesting...definitely my next mutton preparation though I have done it before but will follow your version next. Thinking of slow cooking in my oven at 180c do you think it is going to work Rahul? thanks for this awesome recipe.

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  2. Nice blog!! Looks delicious, feel like grabbing the roll right away. Thank you Mutton Roll

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