Traditionally a Kashmiri delicacy, Yakhani Pulao is now popular across the country for its taste, flavour and richness.

It’s made in two steps: first the meat is cooked with spices bag and then the stock made from cooking meat is used to to cook long grain fragrant basmati rice.

There are various different types of recipes available for this dish with few slight variations. The one I’m sharing here is my aunt’s recipe which loved by every single person in whole family. Always use mutton with bones as bones add true flavour to the broth. Lots of whole spices are used in making broth and instead of adding directly, a spice bag or ‘potli‘ is made using white muslin cloth which ensures only flavours are added to broth and spices can later be removed from the stock.

I highly recommend using long grain fragrant basmati rice to get real flavour and taste.

RECIPE:

INGREDIENTS:

• Basmati rice: 500gms (approx 2 cups)
• Mutton (with bones): 500gms
• Ghee: 6 tbsp
• Oil for frying onions
• Saffron: few strands
• Green cardamom: 4 pods
• Onion (sliced): 2 large
• Coriander leaves
• Salt to taste
• WHOLE SPICES FOR SPICE BAG:
  • Green cardamom: 3
  • Black cardamom: 1
  • Cloves: 4
  • Black pepper: 8
  • Bay leaf: 1
  • Coriander seeds: 2 tbsp
  • Dried red chillies: 6
  • Cumin seeds: 1 tbsp
  • Mace: 1/4
  • Nutmeg: 1/4
  • Cinnamon stick: 1/2 inch
  • Onion (sliced): 2
  • Garlic: 7
  • Ginger: 1 inch

METHOD:

• Wash and soak basmati rice.
• Heat oil in a pan and fry onions till dark brown and crisp.
• Take a muslin white cloth piece or a spice/ tea bag and put all the whole spices and onion, garlic, ginger etc in it and tie it securely.
• In a big thick bottom pan, heat 4 tbsp ghee.
• When ghee is hot, add 4 green cardamom and clean mutton pieces and sautè the meat for few minutes ( around 5-8 mins) to caramelize nicely.
• Now add 4 cups water and salt to it, cover the pan and let the meat cook.
• When the mutton is cooked almost 80% , add rice to this stock, add more water ( a little at a time) if needed but be sure it’s not too much or the rice will end up overcooked and mushy and that’s the last thing we want here.
• Add 1 tbsp ghee while rice is cooking. Take off the flame once the rice are cooked. Make sure they don’t get over cooked.
• Mix a little with a fork gently to release trapped steam.
• Garnish with fried onions and coriander leaves.
• Serve hot!