Awadhi Dum Keema Minced Meat

Method

1. 1

   Fry the onions until very dark: Heat 3 tbsp ghee in a heavy pot. Add finely sliced onions. Cook on medium heat stirring every 3 minutes for 15 to 18 minutes until very deeply golden-brown — the onion should be at the point of caramelisation. This dark onion is the foundation of the flavour.

2. 2

   Add whole spices: Add crushed cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and bay leaves. Stir with the onion for 30 seconds.

3. 3

   Add ginger and garlic: Add ginger paste and garlic paste. Stir continuously for 2 minutes until raw smell cooks out.

4. 4

   Add minced mutton: Add the minced mutton. Break apart any clumps with the back of your spoon. Cook on medium-high heat stirring and breaking up the mince for 8 minutes. The mince will release a lot of water — keep cooking until all this water evaporates and the mince starts to fry in the ghee.

5. 5

   Add spice powders: Turn to low heat. Add red chilli powder, coriander powder and cumin powder. Stir 3 minutes on low heat.

6. 6

   Add yogurt: Add beaten yogurt slowly while stirring on low heat. Cook stirring for 5 minutes until the yogurt is fully absorbed.

7. 7

   Taste and season: Add salt. Taste the keema — at this stage it should already have developed good flavour from the onion, whole spices and ghee.

8. 8

   Seal the pot for dum: Cover the pot very tightly. If the lid does not seal well, place a heavy weight on top or wrap with foil. The keema must cook in its own steam.

9. 9

   Cook on dum (lowest possible heat): Reduce to the absolute lowest heat. Cook sealed for 20 minutes. Open once halfway to ensure the bottom is not burning — if it is, add 2 tbsp water and reseal.

10. 10

    Finish and serve: Open the lid. The keema should be nearly dry — fragrant, glossy and deeply flavoured. Add garam masala. Stir. Scatter coriander leaves and crispy fried onion on top. Serve with naan, paratha or steamed rice.

11. 11

    Note: Awadhi Dum Keema is the kind of preparation that defined the refinement of Lucknow's court cooking — taking an ordinary ingredient (minced meat) and transforming it through technique (dum, slow heat, sealed cooking) into something that bears no resemblance to a hurried mince preparation. The Awadhi philosophy of slow cooking in sealed vessels (dum pukht) is what made Lucknow's cuisine famous across the Mughal empire.