Early morning meat meet

A popular saying says 'no man is an island'. In these politically correct times, neither is a woman, child or furry animal. People and furry animals are social creatures. They need each other to stay alive and sane. Hence, the popularity of Facebook. But social networking sites aren't really 'real' if you know what I mean. As people, we need to be in touch with other people, literally. That's what weekends are for. Plan them right, utilise every waking hour and get in touch with friends, family and even foe. 

In these modern times we all 'do lunch'. We meet up for dinner. But why shun breakfast? It's the perfect time to meet people you love or moderately like (such as most family members). It's the start of a new day, minds are rested and it's a time ripe with possibilities. The best part is that people are in no rush. It's Friday morning, shops open late, offices are closed and as long as you don't turn on the TV, the world is apparently at peace.

Best of all, it is not too hot yet. The mornings are chilly and it feels great to be in bed. But an even better option is to get out of said bed and have something delicious and warm. Enter your Nehari Breakfast Meat-up (pun intended).

For the uninitiated, nehari is a delicious dish that's soup, meat and awesome all in one neat bowl. It's primarily made from cattle legs with generous helpings of meat. The bones are rich in thick tasty marrow. The ingredients are boiled till the bone itself softens a little. The beauty of nehari is that it's an overnight dish. Cook it, leave it, and let it simmer. That way, the bones are juicy and soft and the meat is tender enough to melt in the mouth. When morning comes, heat and serve.

We just passed an Eid a couple of months ago where cattle left the green pastures for the cool comfort of our freezers. Some stocks may still remain. Add some spices to the concoction as you wish and it can be tailored any way you please. Call up friends and family. Meet up as early as possible and it's a meet-up unlike any other. It's a heavy breakfast so leave plenty of time for lunch.

If you don't want to cook it, go to Old Dhaka or try Star Kebab. In the winter, most of the food shops open early and they all pretty much serve the dish. Have it in your car, take a takeaway or better yet, find someone who lives there. Nehari goes perfectly with some naan roti. After serving, lemon squeezed judiciously makes it taste even better. And you can feel slightly at ease knowing the vitamin C in the lemon is somehow offsetting the juicy cholesterol of the red meat. Somehow.

Nihari Recipe

1/2 Kg. beef -ask for Nihari meat (shank)
1½ tsp. salt
½ tsp red chili (Lal Mirch) powder
½ tsp. Kashmiri chili (Lal Mirch) powder
¼ tsp. turmeric (Haldi) powder
1 tbs. coriander (Dhaniya) powder
1½ cup oil
3 tbs. white flour (maida)
1 tsp ginger (Adrak) paste
½ tsp. garlic (Lehsan) paste

For garnishing
1 to 1 ½ inch ginger (Adrak) (Julian)
2 tbs. chopped coriander (Dhaniya) leaves
3 to 4 chopped green chilies
2 Lemon (sliced)

Special Nihari spices
2 tbs. Fennel (Saunf)
½ tsp black pepper (Kali Mirch)
½ tsp. cumin seeds (Zeera)
2 green cardamom (Chhoti Ilaichi) seeds
10 cloves (Laung)
2 black cardamom (Bari Ilaichi)
1 stick of cinnamon (Dalchini)
1 bay leaves (Tezpatta)
¼ tsp. nutmeg (Jaiphal) and mace (Javitri)
2 tbs. coriander (Dhaniya) seeds
1 stick (Piplee)
1 aniseed flower (Badian)

Instructions
Put ½ cup oil in a pot. Add meat and fry it a little.
Add salt, chili powder, Turmeric (Haldi) powder, Coriander Seeds (Dhaniya) powder and Ginger (Adrak) paste. Add a little water and mix well.
Dissolve maida in 1 cup of water and add this to the meat and bring to boil.
Grind all the special Nihari spices, put the grounded mixture of spices in a fine cotton cloth bundle and add to the meat.
Add 5-6 glasses of water, cover and leave to tenderize on very low flame.

News Source: 

The Daily Star