Mutton and Potatoes in a Pressure Cooker (with fresh coriander leaves)

I don't seem to have time to do commentary on the world happenings these days. Not that there is nothing going on in the world, just that there has been too much going on in my life that there is not enough time to comment :) You can count laziness in that list. With the Presidential race heating up and all kinds of weirdos coming out of the wood work just following their antics will make our summer go faster and with much entertainment as long as you are not too invested in one candidate. Well I have come to the happy realization that i am in neither the right or the left aisle and that gives me a ring side view of all hilarity that goes on on all sides.

One thing I have been very proud of this summer is DD's cooking skills as she went off to spend the summer by herself. All the trouble of putting fresh cooked food on the table every day seems to have paid off. Don't think this is in any way altruistic done for the sake of children. I like to eat fresh cooked food as well ;) She prefers to cook on her own, need I say Indian style food fresh everyday so much so that she turned down the offer from my cousin's wife to cook food for her for a week. My cousin told me that DD told him that she likes cooking daily and eating fresh. Besides teaching how to make an omelet, cook noodles and occasionally cook rice I was not able to teach her much else. But osmosis seems to have worked were direct teaching failed. This blog also helped and of course there is telephone, skype and myriad other technologies to aid in the long distance cooking help department. One thing I am extremely happy about is for packing along a pressure cooker.

Speaking of pressure cookers I am of the firm opinion any cook starting to try Indian recipes should be armed with a pressure cooker for sure. A pressure cooker makes this recipe a quick meal and the taste will make everybody think that you had slaved over the stove for hours. The truth is, the pressure cooker makes the cooking a breeze and the fresh coriander gives that special taste and you will be very happy that you added that to the mix of spices. The addition of the potatoes thicken the gravy naturally.

Saute the ingredients for the paste and set aside. In a pressure cooker add oil and saute the seasonings followed by the mutton.
Add in the potatoes followed by the masala powders.
Add the blended paste,salt and water, cover and let for 3 whistles.
Open the lid once the steam subsides, give a good mix and add more salt if needed.

Mutton and Potatoes in a Pressure Cooker (with fresh coriander leaves)
Preparation Time:15 minutes
Cooking Time:30 minutes
Ingredients

1. 1 lb of mutton cut into bite sized cubes
2. 3 tsp of turmeric powder
3. 2 medium sized potatoes peeled and cut into chunks or fairly big cubes
4. 1/4 cup of chopped onions
5. 1-2 tomatoes chopped
6. Whole spices - 1/4 inch piece cinnamon, few cloves, marathi moggu, star anise,curry leaves, fennel seeds
7. 1 tbsp kuzhambu thool or any masala powder
8. 1/2 tbsp of red chili powder (or as per taste)
9. salt to taste
10. 2-3 tsp of oil
For the Paste
11. 1/2 cup of chopped red onions
12. 4-6 garlic cloves
13. 2 inch piece of ginger peeled and chopped
14. 6-8 red chilies
15. a big bunch of coriander leaves (about 2 cups loosely packed)

Method

1. Wash the mutton with turmeric powder and set it aside.
2. For the paste, in a saute pan heat a tsp of oil and when hot add the chopped onions, garlic and ginger and saute for 6-8 minutes till the onions start to turn brown, add the red chilies and saute for a couple of minutes. Add the coriander leaves and saute for 30 seconds or so and turn off the heat.
3. Let cool and blend to a paste.
4. In a pressure cooker heat oil, add the whole spices (or if preferred use 1/2 tsp of garam masala instead) and finally the curry leaves.
5. Add in the mutton pieces and saute for about 4-5 minutes. Add in the tomatoes and saute for another 3-4 minutes till the tomatoes disintegrate and get mushy.
6. Add in the chopped potatoes and saute for another couple of minutes. Add the powders chili and masala powder. Mix.
7. Add the blended paste ,salt, give it a good mix and add about 1 cup of water (depending on how thick or thin you want it to be).
8. Close the lid and let cook for 5 whistles. Let the pressure subside on its own.
Serve with rice or parathas/

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