Pakistani Beef Stew
Aromatic spices, onions and peppers, cooked in a tangy yogurt sauce create this richly delicious stew.
“It’s the whole spices that make the difference”, was the overriding lesson on Pakistani food or so my Pakistani friend impressed upon me as we prepared this fragrant stew.
She used veal but beef is easier to find and less expensive. The yogurt sauce is authentic but is somewhat tricky to keep from breaking in the final,richly aromatic step, so follow the tips and directions for adding the yogurt to the stew below. To be authentic, serve over “basmati” rice.
Pakistani Beef Stew
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 pounds veal or beef stew meat
1 tablespoon flour
salt and pepper to taste
4 medium onions, finely slivered
8 cloves garlic, minced
1-inch piece ginger, peeled and grated
1-inch piece cinnamon stick
8 green cardamom seeds
10 whole black peppercorns
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
1 bay leaf
6 whole cloves
1/2 teaspoon red cayenne pepper (or to taste)
2 red hot chile peppers, finely slivered (if you like it hot and spicy)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 1/2 cups plain yogurt
1/2 cup cream
dash of salt (to taste)
-Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Dust meat cubes with flour, salt and pepper. Add half the meat to the hot oil at a time and sear over high heat until browned and starting to crisp. Remove from pot and add the other half of the meat and sear until browned. Add the onions and the first batch of the meat and cook over medium-high heat until onions wilt, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.
-Add garlic, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom seeds, peppercorns, cumin seeds, peppercorns, cumin seeds, bay leaf, cloves, red pepper, hot chile peppers and paprika. Stir in 1/2 cup water. Cover pot and cook stew over medium-low heat for 1 hour or until meat is almost tender.
-Mix yogurt and cream and bring to room temperature by heating in the microwave for about 40 seconds. Stir until it is a uniform temperature throughout. Place 1 teaspoon cornstarch into a small bowl and add 2 tablespoons yogurt. Blend it with a whisk and then whisk into the rest of the yogurt mixture. Add a few tablespoons of the hot stock from the stew to the yogurt mixture and stir it in until the yogurt is tempered. Remove the stew from the heat and pour yogurt to rest on the top of the stew for about 5 minutes. Slowly stir the yogurt into the stew until smooth. (These steps help ensure that the yogurt won’t curdle in the stew.
-Continue to cook stew over low heat another 20-30 minutes or until meat is very tender, stirring occasionally. Remove cardamom seeds and cinnamon stick. Serve over steamed Basmati rice. Serves 6 - 8
Dust meat cubes with flour, salt and pepper, sliver onions and chop garlic to prepare for the stew.
Make it spicy hot or not, as you prefer! But the cinnamon stick is a must!
