Lahori Mutton Yakhni Pulao
The wedding-table pulao: basmati cooked in a slow-simmered mutton broth fragrant with whole spices and bone marrow. Lahori cuisine's quietest pinnacle, all about the stock.
Overview
Bone-in mutton (or lamb shoulder, preferably with marrow bones) is simmered for two hours with onion, ginger, garlic, a spice pouch (coriander, fennel, cardamom, cinnamon, peppercorns, cumin) and salt, until the meat is fork-tender and the stock has reduced to a deep, fragrant yakhni. The stock is strained and measured. Basmati is soaked and added to a base of fried onion, whole spices, ginger and the cooked meat; the exact volume of yakhni is poured in, and the rice steams under a tight lid. The bone marrow ends up dispersed through the rice; the smell is unmistakable.
Ingredients
Yakhni (mutton stock)
- 1 kg mutton (or lamb shoulder, on the bone; ask the butcher to include 2-3 marrow bones)
- 2 onions (halved)
- 50 g fresh ginger (sliced)
- 8 garlic cloves (whole)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1.8 litres water
Spice pouch (tie in muslin)
- 2 tablespoons coriander seeds
- 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 6 green cardamom pods (lightly crushed)
- 2 black cardamom pods
- 6 cloves
- 1 cinnamon stick (small, broken)
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 blade of mace
Pulao
- 500 g aged basmati rice (rinsed, soaked for 45 minutes)
- 4 tablespoons ghee
- 1 onion (large, finely sliced)
- 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2 green chillies (slit)
- 1 teaspoon salt (to adjust)
- 1 litre of strained yakhni (from above)
To finish
- A handful of fresh coriander (chopped)
- A handful of fresh mint leaves (chopped)
- ½ lemon (juice)
Method
Stage 1 - Build the yakhni
- Place all the spice-pouch ingredients in a small piece of muslin and tie tightly with string.
- Place the mutton, halved onions, sliced ginger, whole garlic, spice pouch, salt and 1.8 litres of water in a large pot.
- Bring to a boil; skim the grey foam off the top thoroughly (this keeps the stock clear).
- Reduce to a low simmer.
- Cover partially and cook for 2 hours, until the mutton is fork-tender.
Stage 2 - Strain
- Lift the mutton out with a slotted spoon and reserve.
- Strain the stock through a fine sieve into a measuring jug; discard the spice pouch, the onions and the aromatics.
- Measure exactly 1 litre of stock; top up with hot water if needed.
Stage 3 - Fry the onion
- Heat the ghee in a wide saucepan with a tight-fitting lid over medium heat.
- Add the sliced onion and a pinch of salt.
- Cook for 10-12 minutes until deep golden brown.
Stage 4 - Build the base
- Add the cumin seeds; sizzle for 15 seconds.
- Stir in the ginger-garlic paste and the slit green chillies; cook for 1 minute.
Stage 5 - Add the mutton
- Tip the cooked mutton into the pan.
- Toss in the onion-spice base.
- Cook for 3-4 minutes for the mutton to absorb the flavour.
Stage 6 - Toast the rice
- Drain the soaked rice well.
- Tip into the pan and stir gently for 2 minutes to coat the grains in the ghee.
- Add the 1 teaspoon of salt.
Stage 7 - Cook
- Pour in the 1 litre of strained yakhni.
- Bring to a boil.
- Reduce to the lowest heat, cover with a tight-fitting lid.
- Cook for 16-18 minutes (don't lift the lid).
- Pull from the heat and rest, still covered, for 15 minutes.
Stage 8 - Serve
- Lift the lid and fluff gently with a fork (the mutton should be soft enough to break apart on the spoon).
- Scatter the coriander and mint over.
- Squeeze the lemon juice across.
- Serve with raita and a fresh tomato-onion salad.
Notes
- Don't skip the spice pouch: Loose whole spices in the stock would have to be picked out one by one. The muslin pouch comes out in a single move.
- The yakhni is the dish: A weak stock gives a flat pulao. A long, slow simmer extracts gelatin, fat and flavour from the bones; the rice tastes of all three.
- Marrow bones are the secret: If your butcher can supply 2-3 small marrow bones, drop them in the yakhni. The marrow dissolves into the stock and gives the pulao its restaurant-level depth.
Storage
- Refrigerate up to 4 days; the flavour deepens overnight.
- Freezes well in portions for 2 months.
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Mutton is marinated overnight in yogurt with browned onion, ginger-garlic, Kashmiri chilli, garam masala and dried plums (aloo bukhara, a Lahori signature). The marinated meat is slow-cooked in its marinade until tender and the masala has reduced to a thick, oil-slicked gravy. Basmati is parboiled in salted water with a sachet of whole spices. The biryani is built in layers: meat, rice, fried onion, saffron milk, mint, repeated; sealed under a tight lid for the dum.
Lahori Mutton Karahi
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Whole chickpeas are soaked overnight and simmered until tender (or pressure-cooked). The chickpea cooking liquor is measured and reserved as part of the rice cooking liquid. A fried-onion base is built in ghee with whole spices, ginger-garlic paste and ground spices, and the cooked chickpeas are folded in. Soaked basmati is toasted in the base, then the measured cooking liquor goes in for the steam. A scatter of fried onion and coriander finishes.
Lahori Chicken Pulao
A chicken yakhni (broth) is built first by simmering chicken pieces with onion, ginger, garlic, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, peppercorns, cardamom and bay until the meat is just tender. The broth is strained and measured; the chicken is reserved. Basmati is soaked, fried briefly with cinnamon, cumin and clove in ghee, then cooked in exactly the right amount of strained yakhni. The chicken is folded back in for the steam. Finished with fried onions and fresh coriander.