I used to not think of myself as a food snob, but I do find myself often referring to my Karachiite roots, whether it’s when I am talking about Biryani or Chaat. Karahi my friends is another dish we feel strongly about, but this is Karachiite is very open to admitting that fantabulous variations of this dish can be found all across Pakistan. In the interest of keeping it positive here I am going to refrain from commenting on the plethora of Karahi restaurants in Canada, but let’s just say they don’t always hit the spot. This recipe does.
Key Features of Karahi Gosht
Getting to the above is relatively straightforward. HOWEVER, it means you have to remember two things. 1.) Meat forward: By this I mean the main flavour in a Karahi gosht, unlike in a Timatar Gosht for example, comes from the meat. The spices exist to enhance the flavour dance between the meat and tomatoes. 2.) Onion free: Ok, okay - hear me out. Once you involve onions in the mix - and I have tested this - two things happen. Firstly, you need to cook the onions before adding the meat so bye bye to the flavor building sear in the beginning because the moisture of the onions prevents it. Second, onions have a little sweetness and that takes away from the sharp flavours of a Karahi. 3.) The Karahi itself: Now, here is the thing. I have to admit here that a Karahi gosht is gasp usually made in a Karahi or Wok. The high heat and wide pan both help with building flavor in the cooking process, but here is where I often deviate from the traditional (more on why below). Now, as said above, there are many iterations of Karahi Gosht, regionality plays a huge part. Here I am sharing the features of Karahi Gosht as I know it and apologize if they offend
Making Karahi Gosht in an Instant Pot/ Pressure Cooker
Whether you are cooking with Goat, Lamb, or Beef, the red meat makes for a delicious Karahi. I do have a boneless chicken iteration just in case you need it. However, it (red meat) also means a lot of time cooking. A LOT. While I am not one to scoff at traditional methods and absolutely value their result, the fact is that on most days I want two things. 1.) A Karahi Gosht that comes together in well under an hour. 2.) One that is so tender that it won’t get chewy on the reheat - IYKYK. Some of us just can’t make fresh food for every meal. Those are the reasons why I make an IP version. For a long time I used to tenderize the meat in the IP and then saute it off stovetop, but then I realized I didn’t actually need to do that and could build remarkable flavour in the Instant Pot. I haven’t looked back since.
Karahi Gosht Meat: How to Cook Goat, Lamb, or Beef
Okay so we all know I am team beef around here. The family also massively prefers boneless to bone in, although I will be the first to admit that bones give a depth and richness to any meat dish.
Here are some quick notes based on meat type:-
Goat: Bone in Goat Karahis are delicious, but given the ratio of meat to bone you will need to increase the quantity to 1.5-2 lbs of meat. Pressure cooking time varies between 18-22 minutes depending on toughness. Lamb: Pressure cooks in 10-12 minutes, has a gamier flavour than beef or goat. Lamb tends to be more ‘meaty’ than Goat so 1.5 lbs or a little less works. Beef: Stewing beef is ideal here, with some fat marbling through it, it is also a relatively inexpensive cut and cooks in the pressure cooker in about 22-24 minutes + 10 minutes of natural release. Veal: Veal cooks faster than beef so aim for an 18 minute time and check on the meat.
What goes in Karahi Gosht
Ingredients are pretty straightforward, and yes someone forgot to put the bowl of julienned ginger in her picture and yes someone doesn’t know how to edit it back in. Someone is incredibly, sometimes unnecessarily honest. This Karahi is great without yoghurt, you get bright clean flavour, etc etc. However, the yoghurt is where I deviate from the traditional because your girl here likes tons of masala and also (as said above) a karahi that reheats well and the yoghurt helps with that. Please feel free to skip it.
3 Tips for Building Flavour
TIP ONE: For the ultimate depth of flavour make sure you really saute your meat with the spices, the meat should darken, the spices should stick a little - that searing activates not only the natural flavour of red meat, but also heightens the richness of the spices. TIP TWO: Never add too much water. Err on the side of caution otherwise your meat will start tasting like it’s been boiled. Tip Three: Bhunnai is everything. If you are unfamiliar with the word then “masala bhoonna” means to saute a masala or your dish until the excess water dries out and the oil rises above the masala. This means your dish is pure flavour. As a word of advice, it is difficult to achieve this without oil, but you can always drain off excess oil later. Not a tip, but a reminder: Always taste, always tweak, when it comes to salt, spice, and that balance everyone has different tastes and that is a wonderful thing!
What else are we cooking?
If you are like me and like to prep a few things at a go, whether it’s because you are hosting or because you like to batch cook, then here are some ideas for dishes you can prep together.
