Zaiqa

Weekends are usually grocery shopping days. I love the sight of fresh fruits and vegetables. This week I had bought a few taro root and decided to prepare this ambrosial curry using them.

Arvi Ka Khatta Salan – Colocasia (or) Potatoes and Lamb Stew

Khatta Salan means ‘soured stew’. The sourness from the tomatoes, a slight heat from red chilli powder and the subtle sweetness from  caramelized onions along with the roasted spices impart an aromatic and delectable flavor to this Taro stew. This same base is used in many other versions of the khatta shorba, which are Bhendi Ka Khatta, Karele ka khatta, Aloo-Gosht ka Khatta etc.

The consistency of this curry is slightly thin and not like a thick gravy. Replace potatoes with colocasia to make it ‘Aloo aur Gosht ka Khatta Salan – Potatoes and Meat in a tangy sauce’.

Arvi aur Gosht Ka Khatta Salan – Colocasia (or) Potatoes and Lamb meat Stew

Ingredients:

Colocasia/Taro root/Arvi –  4-5, large sized, peeled, and cut into 1.5 cm cubes (or) Potatoes – 5, large sized, peeled, and cut into 1.5 cm cubes
Lamb meat with bones – 600 gms, cubed into bite size pieces
Curry leaves – 2 sprigs, fresh
Ginger garlic paste – 1 1/2 tsp
Yellow Onions – 3, large, sliced
Tomatoes – 5, large, diced finely
Salt – 2 1/2 tsp
Turmeric – 1/4 tsp
Red chilli powder – 1 tbsp
Roasted Cumin seed powder – 1/2 tsp
Roasted Coriander seed powder – 1/2 tsp
Tamarind concentrate/Lemon or Lime juice – 2 tbsp
Cilantro/Kothmir – 3 tbsp, chopped finely
Oil – 8 tbsp

Method:

• Take a pressure cooker and put it on medium heat and add oil. As soon as it heats up, add onions and fry until they are light brown in color. Add ginger-garlic paste and fry for a minute. Add the meat, curry leaves, red chilli powder, salt and turmeric powder, cumin and coriander seed powder and cook until meat is no longer pink. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook along for a furthur 3-5 minutes until the tomatoes are soft and oil starts to leave. Now pour in water to cover and pressure-cook till the meat is tender.
• Later, open the lid of the cooker and add the colocasia/potatoes and stir well. Also add the tamarind paste/lemon or lime juice and around 4 cups of water. Half cover the lid and let it cook on simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the tuber has become soft. You can test it by piercing one cubed colocasia/potato with a fork. It should be soft. If it isnt, let it simmer for a little more time. Garnish with cilantro and serve immediately along with rice or parathas.

Note: You can replace colocasia with peeled and quartered turnips to make it ‘Shalgam aur Gosht Ka Khatta Salan’ – Turnip and Lamb meat in a Tangy Sauce.

Luv,
Mona