Bhuna Gosht is a hearty, spicy meat preparation and is a favorite among meat lovers. It is deeply rooted in the culinary traditions of India, especially North Indian and Pakistani cuisine.
The key to a good Bhuna Gosht lies in the patience and letting it slow cook so the spices blends, coating on the meat. You will notice how the color of the meat changes from a mild yellow to a rich red color with robust aroma.
What is Bhuna Gosht ?
The name itself is indicative of its preparation style: "bhuna" means "to roast" or "to fry," and "gosht" translates to "meat." This dish, with its roots in the Mughal era, is a testament to the art of slow-cooking, allowing the spices to infuse deeply into the meat, creating an unforgettable culinary experience.
I don't cook mutton on busy weekdays. I always prefer slow cooking it on a stove top, so it is often a weekend meal. While it takes a long time, but the over all prepping and effort is quite minimal.
Ingredients you need for Bhuna Gosht
Mutton - I like to use goat meat, chopped in bite size, with a mix of boneless and bone-in meats. Bone in mutton always adds more flavor, but if you prefer only boneless, that is fine too.
Onion - I always use red onion when I cook meat, as the sweetness of red onion really adds to the dish. Here I have used a lot of onion. Some of which I use while marinating the mutton and rest I use while preparing the bhuna gosht.
Ginger Garlic & Green Chili - Based on your spice level, you can add as much green chili as you want. You can choose to add some slit green chili while preparing the mutton or just blend the garlic, ginger and green chili to a paste. And marinate the mutton with that like how I did in this recipe.
Spices - I used few whole spices while preparing the mutton and few ground spices while marinating the goat meat. The whole spices you need are cinnamon stick, cloves, green cardamoms and black cardamoms. The ground spices you will need are turmeric powder, red chili powder and coriander powder.
As you can see, I didn't use the lot of spices. It's minimal, and sometimes it's not about the spices but also about the cooking method.
Oil - I always use mustard oil when I prepare mutton curry, and it's a personal choice. For this dish you can use regular vegetable oil with a mix of ghee or just regular vegetable oil.
Few other ingredients - Fresh cilantro leaves and fresh lime or lemon juice.
The exact measurement is mentioned in the recipe card below.
Serving Suggestions
Bhuna Gosht is traditionally served with Indian bread such as naan, roti, or paratha. It also pairs beautifully with steamed basmati rice or jeera rice. Accompaniments like beetroot raita or a simple salad can provide a refreshing contrast to the richness of the dish.
Steps to prepare
Although the dish takes a long time to prepare, the steps are quite simple and effortless.
1- In a bowl, add the goat meat and add all the ground spices along with ginger, garlic and green chili paste.
2- While marinating, I add some of the sliced onion to it. The onion softens as it marinates and then when it cooks with the goat meat, it adds a mild sweetness that goes so well in this dish.
3- When you are ready to prepare the dish, heat a heavy bottom pan and add mustard oil. Once the oil heats up, add the whole spices and let it sizzle for a while. Be careful since the whole spices can splatter at times in hot oil.
4- Scatter the remaining sliced onion, season with little salt and cook the onion, until it's softened and mild golden.
5- Add the marinated goat meat and stir it around to sear the meat.
6- Finely chop some of the cilantro stems and add to the meat. Sauté for 7 to 10 minutes, or until the raw aroma of the spices are gone, and you can see oil released from the side.
7- Pour ½ cup of hot water, lower the heat to medium low, cover the pan and let it simmer for 15 minutes.
8- The next 1 and ½, keep adding a little water every 15 minutes, stir it around cover and let it simmer. You will notice the color will get richer and turn into a gorgeous red hue. Once the meat is cooked through, check for salt and add more if needed. If there is still a lot of water, then continue cooking uncovered until it looks like a jammy sauce, coating the meat. Garnish with cilantro leaves and enjoy warm.
FAQs
The most common meat used in Bhuna Gosht is mutton, but lamb, beef, or even chicken can be used as alternatives. The choice of meat affects the cooking time and flavor of the dish.
The total cooking time for Bhuna Gosht can range from 1.5 to 2 hours, depending on the type of meat used and the desired tenderness.
While Bhuna Gosht is traditionally a meat dish, you can create a vegetarian version by using jackfruit or soya chaap
The "bhuna" technique involves cooking the meat with spices on high heat, allowing the meat to sear and the spices to roast. This method intensifies the flavors and helps the meat absorb the rich, aromatic masala.
Bhuna Gosht is more than just a meal; it’s a reflection of the rich culinary heritage of the Indian subcontinent.
Its deep, complex flavors, achieved through meticulous cooking techniques, make it a dish worth savoring. Whether served at a festive gathering or enjoyed as a special family meal, Bhuna Gosht never fails to impress.
More mutton dish to try:
Bhuna Gosht
Ingredients
- 2 Large size Red Onion (About 9 oz, thinly sliced)
- 2 Cinnamon bark
- 10 to 12 Cloves
- 5 to 7 Green cardamoms
- 2 Black Cardamoms
- 2 tablespoon Mustard oil
- Few sprigs of cilantro leaves (Chop the stems separately and the leaves separately. )
- Salt to taste
To marinate the goat meat
- 1.5 Lb Goat meat
- ½ tablespoon Turmeric powder
- 1 tablespoon Kashmiri Red chili powder (If you want spicer taste, then add half of Kashmiri chili powder and half of spicy red chili powder. )
- 1 and ½ tablespoon Coriander powder
- 4 Garlic cloves
- 1 Inch Fresh ginger
- 2 Green chili
- 1 Small Red onion (About 5 oz)
- Salt to taste
- Juice of 1 lime
Instructions
Marinate the Goat meat
- Grind the garlic, ginger and green chili.
- Thinly slice the onion.
- In a mixing bowl, add the meat, 1 teaspoon salt, ground spices mentioned above, sliced onion, ginger garlic paste and juice of the lime. Mix it properly and leave aside for 1 to 2 hours.
Preparing Bhuna Gosht
- In a heavy bottom pan, heat the mustard oil and then add the whole spices. Let it sizzle for a few seconds to release the aroma.
- Scatter the sliced onion and season with little salt. Cook the onion until it's softened and almost a mild brown shade.
- Add the marinated mutton and stir it around to mix with every thing properly. Let it sear for 5 minutes.
- Add the finely chopped cilantro sprigs stems and cook the meat for another 7 minutes or until the raw aroma of the spices are gone. You should see oil releasing from the side of the pan.
- Pour ½ cup hot water, stir it around. Cover the pan and let it simmer in medium low heat for 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, pour ½ cup water again and continue simmering for 15 minutes. Continue doing this step for 1 and ½ or until the meat is cooked through and tender. You will notice that after every 15 minutes, the color of the meat with change to a darker shade and will eventually get this rich red hue once cooked through.
- Taste for salt at the end and add more if needed.
- Garnish with finely chopped cilantro leaves and enjoy warm!
