The long-lost recipe of forgotten Mughal delicacy – Gosht Ka Halwa – Times of India

Have you heard of the term sweetmeat? Well, it literally means sweetmeat and yes, we are talking about none other than ‘Gosht Ka Halwa’. A Mughal delicacy that has been there for generations, and yet many people don’t know about it. One can find the mention of this sweetmeat during popular Muslim festivals like Eid and Shab-e-Barat. This is one of the ‘lost recipes’ of Mughal cuisine, which may soon lose its charm as there are very few people who actually know about its real recipe. Most of the recipes of Gosht Halwa that we can find are based on hearsay or based on the memory of taste that people had in their childhood or youth. So, we asked Celebrity Chef Nishant Choubey about the delicacy, and he shared some interesting facts about it.


What is Gosht Ka Halwa

With its roots in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, this rich and royal Gosht ka Halwa is made with very finely pounded lamb meat, milk, ghee, sugar, green cardamom and mawa. To make it thicker, nuts are added into it while varq is added for a regal touch. If you happen to take a bite of this halwa, you would not be able to guess that it’s made using meat. It’s a rare treat for anyone who wants to eat protein but with lots of carbs. This halwa is for all the brave hearts and is something that one should have in their lifetime.

This ancient recipe of the Rampuri cuisine is something that the Mughal kings enjoyed in their lunch. To those wondering how this dish can be sweet and delicious as gosht has its own smell, would be surprised to know that it doesn’t have any smell as such. The minced/pound lamb meat is cooked in milk slowly or boiled, which removes the chances of any smell as such and makes it soft as well. This softened meat is then cooked in ghee until you get a nice brown colour of the meat. Then, it is cooked with saffron, green cardamom and sugar. Some chefs also use rose water in it to improve the aroma. Finally, mawa is added to it and cooked well. Once the ghee starts to leave the sides, the gosht ka halwa is ready to be served. For a regal touch, varq is applied to the halwa and it is enjoyed hot.

Here is the recipe of
Gosht Ka Halwa that you can try at home.

Image courtesy: Instagram/@arthmumbai

Ingredients

1 kg, Mutton (Pounded)

3 tbsp, Ghee

3 litre, Milk

200, gms Khoya (Mawa)

100, gms Sugar

1 tsp, Green Cardamom (powdered)

2 tsp, Assorted Nuts

1 pinch, Saffron

1 tsp, Rose Water

Silver varq, as required

Method

1. To make this recipe, wash the mutton meat under running water 8 to 10 times to get rid of any impurities and the meat smell.
2. Put a deep-bottomed pan on medium flame and 1 litre of milk in it. Add 1/2 tsp cardamom powder and mix well. Next, add the pounded meat in it. Mix very well and let it boil until half the milk is remaining.
3. Afterwards, add saffron in the boiling meat in the milk. Mix well and keep aside. Cook until another half of milk remains. Next, make sure that you strain the meat through a fine sieve.
4. Now, put a kadhai on medium flame and heat desi ghee in it. Add this strained meat in the kadhai and stir until it turns light brown in colour. Make sure that you stir in between so that the meat doesn’t burn.
5. Once done, add the remaining cardamom powder, rose water and sugar in it. Stir once again and let it simmer while stirring in between. Finally, add the khoya in the kadhai along with assorted nuts. Cook until you see the ghee oozing out from all the sides of the kadhai.
6. Turn off the flame and transfer in a bowl. Apply silver varq and enjoy this royal delicacy.

(Recipe by: Chef Nishant Choubey, Co-founder Street Stoyss Bangalore, and Consulting Chef for Michelin-plated Indus Bangkok)