Rajasthan is renowned for its lavish vegetarian fare. It is the birthplace of a variety of vegetarian delicacies like Gatte ki sabzi, Dal Baati Choorma
and the famous lehsoon ki chutney. While celebrating its grand vegetarian palette, we often tend to forget the great non-vegetarian legacy that the state boasts of. Be it the laal maas, the Jungli maas or the unique Khargosh ki Mokal, each of these dishes have their own charm. One such decadent treat of the city of royals is the Khad ka pind(or Khad Meat). The meat delicacy is especially worth discussing, not only for its rich and flavoursome taste but its intricate and cumbersome preparation, in pits dug underground!
Rajasthan has managed to retain a major part of its erstwhile glory. Be it through the royal forts, traditional culture or literature andmost importantly through its local food,
Food blogger Kalyan Karmakar in his book ‘Travelling Belly’ talks about ‘Khad Murg’, “in which chicken is cooked underneath the ground, just as the Bedouins use to cook sheep underground in the deserts of Arabia. This was a practice followed by soldiers in Rajasthan at night when out at battle . Cooking in the chicken in pits, dug under the ground would ensure that the soldiers location wouldn’t be given away to the enemy as there was no open fire by which to be spotted.”
The meat used could be anything from chicken and lamb to wild boar and rabbit. Khad Khargosh, for instance, required them to marinate the rabbit, wrap it in a kachha roti, then pack it into a jute gunny bag and bury it in a pit, topped with charcoal fire and mud, and slow cook it for a few hours. For many years soldiers used the preparation as a measure to ensure their safety and even the cooks of the Rajputana hunters prepared their game meat in the same process, while the Royalty crouched over bonfires, concluding the day of a good Shikar in the lap of the wild. But today the dish is slowly evading from the local scenario given its complicated method of preparation. However, there are still some restaurants and hotels that do offer the authentic dish like Mughlai Rasoi and Niros in Jaipur.
Even if you’re not travelling to Rajasthan anytime soon, you can have your share of the Royal delicacy at your home (without digging a chunk off your courtyard) with this delicious recipe by Chef Jitendra Kumar.
Ingredients Of Khad
• 600 gm minced lamb
• 300 gm potatoes
• 120 gm clarified butter
• 350 gm onions
• 100 gm yogurt
• 40 gm ginger-garlic paste
• 20 gm coriander powder
• 5 gm red chilli powder
• 3 gm turmeric powder
• 20 gm coriander
• 4 green chillies
• 15 ml lemon juice
How to Make Khad:
1. Mix the yogurt, mince lamb, ginger-garlic paste, coriander powder, red chilli, turmeric and salt and keep it for 10 minutes.
2. Add the chopped onions to the hot clarified butter, saute till they turn a golden brown.
3. Reduce to low heat and add the mince mixture and saute it for 15 minutes.
4. Add the potatoes and sauté till water evaporates.
5. Add coriander and lemon juice.
6. Divide into 11 equal portions.
7. For finishing, spread the one portion of cooked mince on a phulka.
8. Place the second phulka on the mince and like wise the remaining.
9. Wrap the stack in a greased silver foil.
10. Place on a baking tray and bake for 8-9 minutes in the pre-heated oven.
11. Cut into wedges and serve the mint chutney.
[“source-food.ndtv”]