Nihari

About This Recipe

Nihari is one of the great slow-cooked dishes of the world: shanks of beef simmered overnight with bone marrow, an enormous quantity of ground spices and a flour-thickened gravy that turns silky and burnished red. Traditionally a breakfast dish — the name comes from the Arabic 'nahar' meaning daybreak — it was developed in the royal kitchens of Old Delhi and travelled with migration to Karachi, where it became iconic.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 1.2 kgbeef shank(with bones)
• 200 gbone marrow(optional but traditional)
• 2 largeonions(thinly sliced)
• 2 tbspginger-garlic paste
• 3 tbspnihari masala
• 1 tspred chilli powder
• 1 tspturmeric
• 1 tspsalt
• 60 gwholemeal flour(for thickening)
• 150 mlghee
• 2 Lwater
• 1 thumbginger(julienned, to garnish)
• 1 small bunchfresh coriander(chopped)
• 2green chillies(sliced)
• 2 tbsplemon juice

Instructions

1. 1

   Brown onions

   Fry onions in ghee until golden brown. Remove half for garnish, leave the rest in pot.

2. 2

   Brown meat

   Add ginger-garlic paste, then beef shanks and bones. Sear on all sides 8 min.

3. 3

   Spice base

   Add nihari masala, chilli, turmeric, salt. Stir 2 minutes until fragrant.

4. 4

   Slow simmer

   Add water. Bring to boil, then reduce to lowest heat. Cover and cook 3.5–4 hours until meat falls from bone.

5. 5

   Thicken

   Mix flour with 200ml cold water until smooth. Whisk into stew. Simmer 20 min until silky and thickened.

6. 6

   Finish

   Drizzle with hot ghee. Stir in marrow if using. Adjust salt.

7. 7

   Serve

   Serve in shallow bowls topped with ginger, coriander, green chilli, lemon and reserved fried onions. Eat with naan.

Variations

• •

  Use lamb shank instead of beef

• •

  Pressure cook the meat for 60 minutes if short on time

• •

  Add a teaspoon of fennel seeds to the masala for traditional Karachi flavour

Storage

Refrigerate up to 4 days. Flavour deepens overnight. Reheat gently with extra water if needed.

Frequently Asked Questions