Aloo Gosht is a family favorite and I strictly follow the recipe from my in-laws while cooking this at home. This is the reason I have specifically mentioned in the title that the recipe I am sharing is the Bengali Muslim version. Needless to say, there are other versions alu gosht available and all are brilliant. Inter-religious marriages have their own perk! We got to learn different recipes from different cultures if not anything.
Mutton and Potato Curry
Well, the combination of Mutton or lamb and potato is dynamic. Those who are Bongs will for sure agree with me. What is better than a bowl full of Aloo diye Mangshor Jhol (Bengali light Mutton curry) on a Sunday afternoon with steamed rice? Aloo Gosht for sure is a strong competitor. Though the basic ingredients are the same: mutton and potato; these two quintessential dishes taste different.
Different versions of Aloo Gosht
Aloo Gosht is cooked differently in different areas; the North Indian version is different from the Pakistani style and the Bengali Muslim style again is different. It is basically the spice blends and cuts of potatoes that differentiate the cooking style. I have had both the North Indian and Pakistani versions and obviously the Bengali Aloo Gosht.
As I have mentioned, I follow my MIL's recipe that calls for big chunks of potato but not potato wedges. Apart from that, the trick is slow cooking and the use of a spice mix prepared from roasted spices. I never have seen her using Coriander leaves while she uses a good portion of coriander powder. She does not like using a pressure cooker and prefers slow cooking and so do I. Not that you can use a pressure cooker. I am sure that the cooking style is similar in all the households in Bengal as well. The Bangladeshi aloo gosht is also a bit different.
Debjani's Aloo Gosht tips for the Bengali Muslim version from West Bengal
- First and foremost, use good quality fresh mutton or lamb. A 10:1 ratio of meat and fat (1 Kg meat with an extra 100g fat) is ideal.
- I prefer a homemade spice blend to cook this. All the spices are dry-roasted before cooking.
- Unlike Mangshor jhol, I do not fry potatoes instead I cook those as it is.
- Slow cooking is the key though you can use a pressure cooker.
- The gravy is Shorba type not thick and some tricks such as not using onion paste or tomato paste are a must.
Recipe Card
Aloo Gosht Recipe (Bengali Muslim style)
Bengali Muslim style Aloo Gosht, a family recipe from the in-laws. Mutton cooked along with potato chunks and a homemade spice blend and the end product is heavenly.
Ingredients
- 1 kg Mutton curry cut with fat
- 100 g Mutton fat
- 3 Onion big
- 1.5 tablespoon Garlic paste
- 1.5 tablespoon Ginger paste
- 1 Tomato big
- 4 Green Chillies
- 5 Big Potatoes
- 150 g plain curd
- 1 tablespoon Ghee
- 4 tablespoon Mustard Oil
- 2 tablespoon Spice Mix check below
- 1 teaspoon turmeric Powder
- 1 teaspoon Red Chili Powder
- 1 tablespoon Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Salt or to taste
Spice Mix
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seed
- 2 teaspoon Coriander seed
- 2 Dry red Chilies
- 1 Black cardamom
- 2 Green Cardamom
- 1 Cinnamon stick
- ¼ Jaiphal
Tempering
- 2 Dry red Chilies
- 2 Green Cardamom
- 1 Cinnamon stick
- 1 Bay leaf
Instructions
Marination
- The mutton and the potatoes are to be marinated for at least 8 hours and hence, plan ahead.
- Wash and patdry mutton chunks and the fat. There should not be any water.
- Cut fat into small pieces.
- Peel the skin of the potatoes and cut them into halves. You may refer to the picture of the potato.
- Now take mutton, fat, and also potatoes in a bowl.
- Add 1 tablespoon each of Ginger and Garlic paste, 1 tablespoon mustard oil, and ½ teaspoon salt, turmeric powder, and ½ teaspoon. Red Chili powder and mix well.
- Cover the pot with a lid and keep the marinated meat and potatoes in the refrigerator for 8 hours.
Spice Blend
- Take a pan and heat it.
- Now add whole Cumin seed, whole coriander seed, Dry red Chilies, Black cardamom, Green Cardamom, Cinnamon stick, and also Jaiphal to the pan.
- Dry roast for 2 minutes until the spices emit a nice aroma.
- Cool the spices and then grind them to make a coarse powder.
- You can store it in an airtight container.
Prep Work
- 2 tablespoon of this mix will be used in the aloo gosht recipe.
Cooking
- Take the mutton out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking.
- Roughly chop the onion.
- Take a grater and grate the tomatoes. Do not make a paste of the tomatoes. This way, the seeds will be there as they are, and the gravy will be smooth like Shorba.
- Take a heavy bottom pan and heat the remaining oil along with the ghee.
Cooking
- Add the remaining turmeric powder and red chili powder, along with the sugar, to the oil directly and stir vigorously.
- Temper with red chili, bay leaf, cardamom, and cinnamon.
- This will enhance the flavor and color.
- Add chopped onion and fry on medium flame till the onion changes color to brown.
- Now add the remaining ginger and garlic paste, and also the grated tomato, followed by ½ teaspoon salt.
- Keep the flame medium and cook till the mixture starts releasing oil from the side.
- This will take around 5 minutes.
- Now add 2 tablespoon of the Spice mix and cook for 3-4 minutes on medium flame.
- Add plain curd after beating it with a spoon so that it is smooth.
- Mix well and cook for 3 minutes more.
- Keep the flame low.
- Now add the marinated mutton along with the potatoes and also the remaining marinade from the pan.
- Mix well and cook on a low flame.
- For the next 15 minutes stirring once in a while.
- You will see the oil floating from the side by this time.
- Meanwhile, boil 500ml of water separately.
- Add the boiling water to the pan containing meat and potatoes and mix well.
- At this point, add green chilies as well after cutting them in half.
- Now, check one spoonful of gravy for the flavors.
- Cover the pan with a lid and keep the flame low.
- Cook on low flame for 1 hour.
- In between the meat will release sufficient moisture.
- Check whether the meat is cooked properly or not. If not, keep cooking for 15 more minutes on the low flame.
- Once done, switch the flame off.
- The gravy will be a bit runny yet rich. It should not be thick.
- The potatoes will be well-cooked yet whole.
- Serve it after giving a rest of 15 minutes with Rice, Roti, Poori, or Pulao.
Notes
- In case you are using a pressure cooker, use it to fry and then cook with the weight on until it releases pressure 5 times (five whistles) on a slow flame.
- I do not add any spice such as garam masala or ghee, at the end of the cooking process while cooking this dish.
Nutrition
Easy mutton recipes
- Bengali Mutton Stew with Veggies in a pressure cooker | Shobji diye Mangshor Jhol
- Nalli Nihari (also known as Mutton Nihari Recipe or Gosht Nihari)
- Joggi Barir Mangsho aka Biyebarir Mutton Curry
- Gota Roshun diye Mangshor Jhol (Bengali Mutton Curry with Garlic Pod)
- Keema Matar (Mutton mincemeat cooked with green peas)
- Bengali Mete Chorchori (also knwon as Mutton Liver side with Potato chunks)
- Mangsha Tarkari (Oriya Mutton Curry)
- Kolkata Mutton Biryani aka Calcutta Biryani
- Posto Mangsho (Bengali Mutton Curry cooked with Poppy Seed Paste)
- Mangshor Jhol (Bengali light Mutton curry) in a Pressure Cooker!
- Gota Moshlar Mangsho (also known as Kata Moshlar Mangsho aka Mutton cooked with whole spices)
- Hyderabadi Haleem (also known as Mutton Haleem)
- Kolkata's Mutton Tikia
- Bengali Keema Curry a.k.a Mutton Mincemeat Curry with Potato Chunks
- Mutton Handi Kebab, a recipe from a small-town Kebab shop in West Bengal
- Mutton Ghee Roast
- Anglo-Indian Mutton Curry
- Kosha Mangsho aka Bengali Mutton Kasha
Have you tried the Bengali Muslim-style Aloo Gosht recipe from Debjanir Rannaghar!
Do let me know how it came out. Also, I would love to see a picture of the same which you can share here on [email protected]. Meanwhile, on Instagram, you can use my hashtag #debjanirrannaghar and in addition, you can tag me at @foodofdebjani.
Here's the Alu Gosht Pin for your Pinterest Board!
About Debjani Chatterjee Alam
I am Debjani Chatterjee Alam. A CSR specialist by profession and a food writer, food blogger, and food photographer as well. I live in Kolkata along with my Husband Mehebub who is an architect by profession, my daughter Pasta, and also my dog daughters Coffee and Luchi.
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