Aloo Meat

Ingredients

Preparation

tion in the world of gastronomy, he is a name to reckon with in the national and global hospitality and culinary industry. As the Corporate Chef of ITC, his knowledge and experience comes from over four decades of work in pioneering world-class restaurants curating traditional Indian food. Gill during his tenure at ITC has been responsible for creating iconic brands such as Bukhara – the north-west frontier tandoori cuisine, Dum Pukht – a grand cuisine from Avadh, Dakshin – the specialized cuisine of the four southern states of India, Kabab & Kurry – the best of pan-Indian kebabs and curry dishes, and the most recent Royal Vega – ‘honestly’ vegetarian cuisine based on the philosophy, principles and guidelines of Indian gastronomy (Ayurveda) served in royal style.

From designing the menu to curating the carefully selected Indian fare for world leaders, Gill has had the privilege of serving former American Presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and George Bush, and the French, Canadian, British and German premiers among many. In 1992, Chef Gill had the unforgettable opportunity of being invited to cook for Prince Charles and Lady Diana, at the Palace of the Maharaja of Jaipur.

With his relentless efforts for the last couple of decades, Chef Gill has brought pride on their own food to Indians – both among professionals and society-at-large. The chef’s endeavor is to bring recognition to the Indian philosophy of food which is evolved on two pillars – wellness and sustainability – and to establish India as a culinary superpower with its vast ancient knowledge guidelines on healthy cuisine.

• 500-600 g mutton, mix of chops, puth, leg meat with bone and debone chunk

• 250 g potatoes, about 5-6

• 5-6 tbsps ghee

• ¾ cup onions, finely sliced

• 2 brown cardamom, gently crushed

• 4 green cardamom, gently crushed

• 2 tejpatta

• 1½ tbsp garlic paste

• 1 tbsp ginger paste

• ½ cup curd

• Rock salt

• 1½ tsp coriander powder

• 1 tsp cumin powder

• 1 tsp Kashmiri red chili powder

• ¼ tsp turmeric

• ½ cup fresh Tomato puree

• 1 tsp lemon juice fresh

• ½ tsp garam masala

• Ghee to deep-fry potatoes

• 1 tsp ginger julienne to garnish

• Boil potatoes until just undercooked. Remove from heat, drain well and keep aside to cool.

• Melt ghee in a heavy bottom pan; add brown cardamom, green cardamom and tejpatta. Stir and sauté until it gives out a pleasant fragrance.

• Add sliced onions, stir and sauté until soft and translucent. Add garlic paste and ginger paste, sauté until golden.

Chef Gill was the first Indian bestowed with the exclusive honorary membership of WorldChef. He has had the privilege of serving former American President Barack Obama and Prince Charles and Lady Diana.

• Add mutton, stir and increase heat to medium-low, cover and let it cook for two to three minutes. Remove the cover, stir and reduce heat to low until mutton turns to brown, moisture evaporates and ghee separates. Now add whisked curd with onefourth cup of water, stir to mix and continue stirring until the curd is reduced and ghee starts surfacing.

• Add coriander, cumin, Kashmiri red chilli powder, turmeric, and rock salt, stir to mix well for few seconds. Then add tomato puree, stir to mix and increase the heat to medium. Stir and let it cook for two to three minutes. Add three to four cups of water, bring to boil and reduce heat to low, then cover and let it simmer for 25-30 minutes. Meanwhile remove the skin of potatoes. Poke holes in each potato all over with a toothpick or a skewer. The hole can be half way through and few may be through and through. It’s to absorb flavours and the gravy.

• To fry potatoes, heat ghee in a kadahi on medium high heat. Add poked potatoes, once it starts frying, reduce heat to low medium and continue frying. With a slotted spoon, turn potatoes while frying, fry until crisp golden. Potatoes must have enough space to fry evenly, therefore the number of potatoes, amount of ghee, and size of the kadahi must be in sync. Keep aside on kitchen paper.

• Remove the cover from the mutton, stir and check if the mutton is cooked. If it is almost cooked, add fried potatoes and stir gently. If the gravy is thin, simmer open, if it’s thick, add hot water. Let the potatoes and mutton simmer for five to seven minutes or until the meat is well-cooked and potatoes are filled with gravy. The gravy needs to be semi-thick.

• Finely drizzle lemon juice and sprinkle garam masala and let it simmer for a minute. Move into a bowl and garnish with ginger julienne