Pregan Moodley’s Mutton Breyani Recipe

This can be used for mutton or lamb. Just remember that mutton will take longer to cook.

Ingredients

Stage 1: Overnight marinade

• 2 kg mutton or lamb pieces, washed and drained
• 400 ml plain natural yoghurt
• ½ bunch mint leaves, finely chopped
• 2 green chillies, finely chopped (add more to suit your preferred heat)
• 2 tablespoons ginger-and-garlic paste
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 2 tablespoons Kashmiri masala
• 2 tablespoons curry powder (for the marinade)
• 1 teaspoon roasted coriander powder
• ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 tablespoon salt (for the marinade)
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste (for the marinade)
• 2 stems of thyme

Stage 2: Rice

• 3 cups long-grain rice or long-grain basmati rice
• 2 cinnamon sticks (for the rice)
• 2 bay leaves (for the rice)
• 1 teaspoon egg yellow colouring (for the rice)
• Salt to your liking (for the rice)

Stage 3: Potatoes

• 4 potatoes, peeled and halved
• Oil or ghee, for frying the potatoes
• Butter and salt, if oven-roasting the potatoes instead

Stage 4: Bringing it together

• Some of the oil used to fry the potatoes
• 1 onion, chopped or sliced
• 4 bay leaves (for the curry)
• 2 star anise
• 1 teaspoon ginger and garlic
• 2 tablespoons curry powder (for the curry)
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 2 cloves
• 2 cinnamon sticks (for the curry)
• 1 black elachi (black cardamom)
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste (for the curry)
• Canned lentils, to taste
• 1 cup boiling water, if the curry sticks to the pot
• Coarse salt, to taste (when adding the rice and potatoes)
• ½ cup boiling water (when adding the rice and potatoes)
• 1 teaspoon yellow food colouring (optional, for the final cooking stage)
• A few dollops of butter, to finish
• A handful of chopped coriander, to garnish

Method

Stage 1: Marinate overnight

1. Mix all the marinade ingredients together with the mutton or lamb. Marinate overnight in the fridge.

Stage 2: Prepare the rice

1. The next day, rinse the rice. Soak it with the 2 cinnamon sticks, 2 bay leaves, 1 teaspoon egg yellow colouring and salt to your liking for 1 hour.

2. Boil the rice until half-cooked. Drain and set aside.

Stage 3: Prepare the potatoes

1. Peel and halve the 4 potatoes, then steam them.

2. Fry the potato halves in oil or ghee and set aside. Alternatively, rub them in butter and salt, then oven-roast until crisp on the outside. They do not have to be cooked all the way through, as they will cook further with the rice and meat.

Stage 4: Bring it together

1. In a large pot, heat some of the oil used to fry the potatoes over low heat. Add the fennel seeds, star anise, black elachi, cloves, 2 cinnamon sticks, 4 bay leaves, and the ginger and garlic. Fry for about 1 minute, stirring and taking care not to burn the spices.

2. Add the chopped or sliced onion. Fry until it changes colour or becomes translucent. Do not burn the onion.

3. Add the curry powder and fry for about 30 seconds, stirring without burning it. This releases that beautiful spice aroma. Add 1 tablespoon tomato paste, stir it in and cook for another 5 minutes.

4. Add the marinated meat and canned lentils to taste. Cook or braise for at least 60 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently. Add 1 cup boiling water if it is sticking to the pot; this also adds to the gravy. After it has been cooking for a while, you should see the oil on top of the curry.

5. Add the fried or oven-roasted potatoes and the half-cooked rice. Add coarse salt to taste.

6. At the same time, add ½ cup boiling water and, if using, 1 teaspoon yellow food colouring.

7. Seal the pot with foil, then put on the lid. Cook for another 20 to 30 minutes over medium to low heat.

8. Open the lid and stir everything. It should now be cooked properly. If there is excess water or gravy, leave the lid off and continue cooking over low heat until it reaches your preferred consistency.

9. Add a few dollops of butter and a handful of chopped coriander to garnish. Close the lid and switch off the heat.

10. Add more salt if needed. I leave that until it is individually dished, so each person can add salt to their own plate instead of spoiling the whole pot with too much salt.

11. Let it sit for 30–40 minutes before serving.

Pregan’s notes

Three cups of long-grain basmati rice is best and normally serves about 10 people. I use long-grain rice.

I prefer ghee for frying the potatoes.

I don’t like it too dry. I prefer a wet or moist breyani, so I don’t dry it off completely at the last stage.

Durban Curry Recipes · https://www.curryrecipe.co.za/pregan-moodleys-mutton-breyani/