Sunday Special! Traditional Mutton Offal Curry – Bokryache Kaleez/Talvyechi Kadi

Today’s recipe is a typical Mangalorean delicacy loved by Catholics – the offal curry. I quote my friend Michelle of (Food Football and a Baby) who rightly said that we Mangaloreans are a thrifty and frugal lot when it comes to our meat. We use up all the parts (well almost!) of the sheep (mutton) or pig (pork) and the offal or boti as it’s called is very popular amongst those who have eaten it. And it is not just us who love offal so much, there are a whole bunch of people and communities across the globe that eat all kinds of odd things. Well, one man’s food is another man’s poison!This preparation however makes use of just the heart, lungs, windpipe and liver of the sheep – one needs to book it in advance as R did when he went to buy other meat. He had to go again the next day – early in the morning to pick up the best stuff. The preparation time was not as much as I thought, infact, it was easier than making the Botyechi Kadi (Mutton Tripe Curry). My mum used to make excellent offal curry and it was always made during some occasion such as a feast or a birthday. Since I totally love coconut milk based curries, this one has always been one of my favourites.

Mutton Offal Curry (Kaleez/Talvyechi Kadi)
Serves: 5-6
Recipe Source: My mum


You Need:

• 1 Sheep offal (only heart, lungs, windpipe and liver)
• 3 medium size potatoes cut into small cubes
• 1-1/2 coconuts (or about 4 cups freshly grated coconut) or 1 cup thick milk and 2 cups thin milk

To be pre-cooked with the meat

• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 2″ ginger minced
• 4 green chillies slit
• 1″ cinnamon
• 2 cloves
• salt to taste

For the masala (to grind)

• 8 long dry red chillies (Kumti/Bedgi or Kashmiri)
• 10 peppercorns
• 1/4 tsp jeera/cumin
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 2 tsp coriander seeds
• 1-1/2″ cinnamon
• 6-7 cloves
• 6 cloves of garlic (Indian) with skin
• 1 large onion roughly chopped
• 1 level tsp tamarind paste or 2 marble size balls

For the shindaap (cuttings to be fried)

• 2 large onions finely sliced
• 12-13 flakes of garlic minced
• 1 big tomato finely chopped

For seasoning/tempering

• 1 medium onion sliced
• ghee or oil

Method:
1. Wash the offal well (about 3 times) in clean water . Ensure that blood clots if any are removed (*see note#1). Allow to drain on a colander for at least 20 minutes
2. Cut into large chunks (about half a palm size) and put in a pressure cooker along with all the ingredients mentioned in the ‘To be pre-cooked with the meat’ section and sprinkle a little water. Close the pressure cooker and place the weight (whistle) and pressure cook on full flame till the first whistle goes off and reduce the flame to sim and continue to cook for a further 15minutes. Turn off the flame, open the cooker, mix well and keep aside till it is cool enough to be handled. Cut the meat into small cubes and keep aside.
3. Grind all the ingredients mentioned in the ‘For the masala’ section – to a fine paste. Retain the masala water from the mixer jar.
4. Prepare the coconut milk (*see note#2) – In a mixer jar, add the grated coconut and 1 cup warm water and grind it for a few seconds – not to a paste, but to a coarse consistency. Remove the contents onto a thin muslin or bairas cloth and squeeze out the thick milk. Keep aside. Add some more warm water to the coarse coconut and extract twice more to obtain thin milk.
5. In a large thick bottomed pan heat some ghee or oil and fry the shindaap – onions and garlic (mentioned in the ‘For the shindaap’ section). Allow the onions to turn translucent (pinkish and limp) – fry them on slow flame, take care not to burn them. Add the ground masala and fry for half a minute. Toss in the chopped tomatoes and add a little salt to help the tomatoes turn to paste soon. Fry this mixture on slow flame. Add the masala water from the mixer grinder.
6. Add the cubed offal/meat and mix well. Pour the thick milk milk and cook on slow flame – do not cover the pan (*see note#3). Add the potatoes and cook further. Finally add the thin coconut milk as required (as thick/thin as you need the gravy to be). Cook on medium flame till the curry comes to a full boil. Check salt to taste. Add a little tamarind juice if required.
7. For seasoning/tempering heat some ghee/oil in a small pan and when it is smoking hot toss in the sliced onions and fry till they turn golden brown (do not burn them) – Add this mixture to the gravy and close the cover immediately
8. Serve hot with rice (steamed white or brown/boiled)

Notes: