#1000Kitchens Recipe Drop: Rampuri Yakhni Pulao

The Nawab of Rampur, Kazim Ali Khan, doesn’t cook often so when he does, it is an occasion.

Kazim’s Rampuri Yakhni Pulao is a very special dish that is usually reserved for special occasions. “It is made with mutton stock, called yakhni, and a few whole spices. I learned to make it from my father. He was quite fond of cooking and this was his favourite recipe. Incidentally it is also the only form of rice I eat,” he says.

This is a #100Kitchens feature. Read the full story here.

KAZIM ALI’s RECIPE FOR RAMPURI YAKHNI PULAO

Ingredients

For the stock:
1 kilo mutton on bone (gol boti, lamb shank), from the leg 
800 grams (and 100 gram for garnish) onions, sliced roughly
250 g (+ 100 g for layering) ghee 
500 g yoghurt
15-18 strands saffron infused in half a cup milk
100 g freshly made ginger paste
100 g freshly made garlic paste
100 g coriander leaves
100 g mint leaves
5-6 green chillies slit from the center
Juice of 2-3 lemons
5-6 green cardamom
2 sticks cinnamon
3-4 bay leaf
6-7 cloves
Salt, to taste

For the rice:
800 grams long grain Basmati rice
2 sticks cinnamon
3-4 bay leaves
6-7 clove
Salt, to taste

Method

In a thick wide bottomed pan add the ghee and let it smoke.
Next, add the sliced onions and stir, as the onions start to change colour, add in the whole spices stir until the onion turns pink and spices are nicely fried.
Then, add the ginger garlic paste and slit green chilli, some salt and cook until the masala starts to turn brown.
Add the yoghurt and a few spoons of mint and coriander and stir nicely so the yoghurt does not split. Once the oil separates from the masala, put in the washed and cleaned mutton some more salt and stir to coat all pieces.
You now have to cook this mix for about 8-10 minutes until the pieces are sealed and coated well in the masala paste.
Add enough water to cover the meat and cover to cook. This can take about 40 minutes. You have to constantly keep checking on it and stirring the meat so it does not stick to the bottom. Add more water if needed.
While the mutton cooks, wash the rice and keep aside.
In another large pan add about 3 litres of water with the dry spices and salt (about 2-3 teaspoon) and bring to a rolling boil.
As the water begins to bubble, gently add the rice and let it simmer for about 5 minutes or until its al dente, almost half done. The time can change as per the quality of water and rice so it is a good idea to check the rice at regular intervals. Once done, drain the water and cover the rice.
By now the mutton should be almost ready, check and cook further if needed.
When done, remove about 3/4th of the mutton and masala in another vessel and leave 1the rest in the same pan.
To layer, take one-third of the rice and spread over the mutton, top it with a handful of greens and some saffron milk, lemon juice and ghee; next add another layer of the yakhni, spread the rice and  saffron, greens and ghee. Repeat the process to create three such layers.
When done, spread the leftover ghee on top and cover firmly. You have to let it cook for about 35-40 minutes on lowest flame.
While the rice cooks, fry about 3-4 sliced onions in ghee until nicely golden and keep aside for garnish.
Turn the flame off after 35 minutes and let the pulao rest for five minutes before opening the pan. Garnish with fried onions, and serve hot. 
Note: The rice needs to cook in dum, its own steam, so the lid should be forced down with something heavy — a mortar pestle or even a grinding stone.

Words by Anubhuti Krishna. Images by Sanskriti Bist. Art by Parmita Mukherjee.
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