Asma Khan's Sirka Gosht
The vinegar used for this dish in Calcutta was made with jamun (black plum), and the distinctive, fruity, tart flavour of the fruit is still etched in Asma's memory. During the summer holidays, they would eat the berries sitting under the shade of the tree in their garden. If you can find a fruity vinegar to add to this dish, it will make a difference to the flavour.
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Indian Recipes
Ingredients
Method
- In a heavy-based pan that has a lid, heat the oil over a medium-high heat. Add the cassia bark, cloves, cardamom pods, bay leaf, and dried red chile. Stir until the spices and the chile have darkened in color. Using a slotted spoon, remove the whole spices and chile from the pan to a plate and set aside.
- In the same pan, fry the meat in the chile-infused oil until brown on all sides. Do not allow the meat to cook through; the aim is just to brown the meat. Remove the meat from the pan to the plate with the fried spices and set aside, leaving as much of the oil in the pan as possible.
- Add the onion, and garlic and ginger pastes to the pan (take care as the pastes will sputter in the hot oil), along with the green chile. Next, add the ground spices, then add the diced tomato and fry for 2 minutes before returning the fried whole spices, dried chile, and browned meat to the pan.
- Add the salt, measured water, and vinegar, bring to a boil, then cover the pan with the lid and reduce to a low simmer. It is always better to cover the pan while it is boiling and then lower it to simmer, as this traps more of the heat in. Simmer for 11⁄2 hours.
- Once the meat is cooked, remove the lid, and reduce any remaining liquid until the oil seeps to the edges of the pan. Usually, I add some extra vinegar at this stage, too-it depends on whether the vinegar aroma was lost in the cooking process. Taste and adjust to your liking. Serve with bread or rice.
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