SAOJI MUTTON CURRY

The Savjis or Saoji community has it's origin in the Malwa region of India. They claim themselves to be the descendants of king Sahastrarjuna and Haihaya dynasty. They lived in the north-central part of India during the 6th-13th century till the advent of the Islam in the northern part of India. After that the community gradually dispersed to the different parts of India. [WIKI]

The Saoji community is known for it's hot and spicy non-vegetarian delicacies prepared with it's special Saoji masala. This community is mainly non-vegetarian. Mutton, Chicken and Fish are an integral part of the Saoji cuisine along with other vegetarian dishes. Saoji Bhojanalayas[eateries] are quite popular in the places like Hubli, Bangalore, Belgaum, Nagpur, Solapur. [WIKI]

One of the master chefs of India Sanjeev Kapoor once featured Saoji mutton in his show which says it all about the popularity of the dish. In our family, weekends are for mutton and chicken. This week, I picked up this Saoji mutton curry to cook following the master chef Sanjeev Kapoor's recipe. I made few changes like skipping the poppyseed as it is banned here, added mace and nutmeg to add of more flavour to the dish. Also some sources for the Saoji spices mention about the use of nutmeg and mace. I changed the amount of the spices according to our taste buds. Let us proceed with the recipe.

INGREDIENTS :

Mutton : 1kg
Ginger Paste : 1tsp
Garlic Paste : 1tbsp
Onion : 2medium
Coriander Seeds : 1/2tsp
Caraway Seeds : 1/2tsp[shahi jeera]
Cloves : 3-4
Black Peppercorns : 12-15
Green Cardamoms : 3-4
Black Cardamom : 1
Cinnamon : 1inch
Dry Coconut : 1tsp
Mace : 1[javitri]
Nutneg : 1[jaifal]
Bay leaves : 2-3
Dry Red Chillies : 5-7[or as per your taste]
Poppyseed : 2tsp [skip if you are in Singapore or Dubai]
Stone Flower : 1 [I did not have, so skipped]
Turmeric Powder : 1tsp
Salt : As Required
Lemon Juice : 2-3 tbsp
Oil : 5-6 tbsp

METHOD :

Wash the mutton thoroughly and marinate with salt, lemon juice and half of the turmeric powder. Keep aside for 3-4 hours or keeping it over night is the best. Take out the mutton 1hour before cooking.

Peel, wash and slice the onions. Heat the oil in a pan. Fry the onion slices until brown. Cool and blend them to a paste.

Break the nutmeg into smaller pieces. Fry the coriander seeds, caraway seeds, cloves, peppercorns, green and black cardamoms, cinnamon, dry coconut, mace, nutmeg, bayleaves, dry red chillies, poppyseed [if using] and the stone flower in the same oil.

Take out the mix from the oil, cool and blend to a paste adding some water. 

Add the ginger and garlic paste to the hot oil. Fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the onion paste. Fry for 2 minutes. Now add the spice paste, rest of the turmeric and the required amount of salt. Stir and add the mutton without the marinade.

Fold in well and fry at high heat for 3-5 minutes stirring constantly. Lower the heat to the minimum. Add the marinade, stir and cover. 

Remove the cover and stir every 3-4 minutes. It will take about 45-50 minutes for the released water to dry up.

Now add 1 big cup of warm water to the wok. Stir and cover cook for another 12-15 minutes at minimum heat. It is done.