Ingredients

Step 01

Wash and cut mutton into big pieces and allow to drain. Soak the saffron in 1/4 cup of warm milk.

Step 02

Wash the rice and soak it in sufficient water with a little salt for about 10 minutes, drain and set aside.

Step 03

In a pressure cooker, heat half of the oil (about two tbsp) toss in Hanson's Garlic Ginger Paste and fry a little, reduce the flame and toss in Hanson's Red Chili Paste, peppercorns & garam masala (or powder).

Step 04

Add salt to taste and toss in the mutton pieces and 500ml of water (or enough to cover the mutton pieces). Cook on full flame till the first whistle goes off. Reduce the flame and cook for a further 10-15 minutes (depends on how tender the mutton is – we get good quality tender mutton, so I cook it for not more than 15 minutes on a slow flame). Turn off the flame and wait till the whistle (weight) turns loose enough to be removed. Open and remove the mutton pieces and keep the stock aside.

Step 05

In a large thick bottomed pan, heat the remaining oil and fry the raisins on slow fire – toss them gently; remove before they turn black. They should just turn a little plump but remain golden in colour. Fry the pistas and almonds in the same oil and remove.

Step 06

In the same oil toss in the julienned carrots and fry a little and then spread them in the pan. Layer with half the soaked and drained rice. Next, layer the mutton pieces, pistas & almonds. Layer the remaining rice and lastly add the raisins.

Step 07

Add the mutton stock, saffron milk and sufficient water (room temperature will do) to bring the water level to about 1/2 an inch above the rice and meat layers (if you are new to this – just add water little by little and then check the level). Check salt to taste.

Step 08

Bring the water to a boil and then reduce the flame completely (to sim). Cover the pan with 2 sheets of aluminium foil and then a lid which covers the mouth of the pan completely. Keep a weight if you feel that the steam may escape.