Yakhni Pulao

This dish belongs to Awadhi cuisine,generated in Lucknow...Awadhi cuisine is very similar to Kashmiri and mughal one...From there 'Yakhni' means mutton stock..so this itself give the fair idea about this dish.Basically its rice cooked in spicy n rich mutton stock.

This Pulao was always in my mystry list during childhood time..but as time passed it kinda slipped from my memory :( ..Suddenly few days back i read this name while reading some celebrity interview..that time itself i become totally restless to try my hand into this..Finally yesterday i was able to made this..and the result ....OMG it was sooooooo gud !! the one n only dish which can stand firm with Biryani ! :P My personal Note : its a must have for any true mutton lover :D

This dish tend to be greasy as its mutton..So i used a trick to get rid of that mutton fat.After straining the stock i simply took a bread slice and slowly slip over the stock..by this way bread soaked all the fat from the surface. B-)

DIRECTIONS

2 Cup Basmati Rice
1/2 Kg Mutton(shoulder pieces with bone)
2 Onion
8 Garlic cloves
1" Ginger
3 Dried Red Chilies
3 Green Chilies
3 Black Cardamoms
4 Green Cardamoms
1tsp Cumin Seeds
1" Cinnamon Stick
10 Black Pepper
8 Cloves
1/8 part of Nutmeg
1/2 Flower of Mace
2 tbsp Ghee

INGREDIENTS

• Soak rice in water for atleast 2 hours.
• Heat 1tbsp ghee in heavy bottom pan/Pressure cooker.Fry mutton pieces till they turn whitish in colour.
• Add all whole spices and 1tsp salt,1 Onion(cut in four pieces),garlic(crushed),ginger(chopped) with 3 Cups of Water.Cook till mutton is cooked but not falling from bone.Now remove from heat and let it cool down a bit.
• Take mutton pieces from gravy carefully.Strain the stock and discard the spices and veggies.

• Now you will get about 2.5 Cup of stock.and cooked mutton pieces.
• Heat remaining 1tbsp ghee in deep heavy bottom pan.Fry cooked mutton pieces on high heat each side for a minute.Remove from pan.
• There will be plenty of oil in pan in that add finely slices onion and let it fry till it turns brown.Mix in soaked and drained rice and fry for another minute.
• Add the mutton stock in pan.Carefully mix in mutton pieces.Close the lid and let it cook for 15 minutes.
• Now switch off the heat remove lid and cover it with cotton cloth and press over the lid again.Let it steam for another 15 minutes.
• Serve hot with curd or gravy.

#You can adjust salt as per your taste buds.
## Steaming with cloth after cooking will give you very light and non sticky pulao.