Buffalo tar kari
Enjoy Nepalese street food with this authentic recipe from Choola’s award-winning chefs, as seen on Saturday Kitchen.
Ingredients
- 100ml/3½fl oz vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp fenugreek seeds
- 4 bay leaves
- 1 large cinnamon stick
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 150g/5½oz diced onions
- 50²µ/1¾´Ç³ú garlic paste
- 50²µ/1¾´Ç³ú ginger paste
- 1kg/2lb 4oz buffalo or beef brisket, diced into 1-inch pieces
- 150g/5½oz diced tomatoes
- 1 large stick lemongrass
- 250ml/9fl oz chicken stock
- 1 tsp cornflour (optional)
- salt, to taste
For the ground spices blend
- 1 tbsp ground coriander
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp turmeric
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp ground black cardamom
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ½ tsp mace
- ½ tsp star anise, left whole
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground Sichuan peppercorns
- 1 tbsp salt
To serve
Method
Heat the oil in a large pan or casserole dish over a medium-high heat. Add the cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, bay leaves and chilli flakes and fry until golden, then add the onions and sauté for 5–8 minutes.
Meanwhile, place all the ingredients for the ground spices blend in a small bowl, then add enough water to make a thick paste. Add this to the pan and fry over a medium-low heat for 10–15 minutes.
Add the garlic and ginger paste and fry for 2 mins.
Add the brisket and fry over a medium-high heat until most of the excess water from the meat has evaporated. This will take around 10 minutes.
Add the diced tomatoes, lemongrass and chicken stock. Cover and bring to a simmer. Add hot water if necessary, just enough to cover the meat.
Simmer over a low heat with the lid on for 3–4 hours, stirring occasionally, until the meat is tender.
If needed, add a little cold water to the cornflour, mix together well and add to the curry to thicken the sauce. Simmer for 1–2 minutes to cook the cornflour through.
Add salt to taste. Sprinkle the toasted ground cumin and coriander over the curry and mix. Serve with crispy beaten rice, pickled spiced mooli, chives and sorrel leaves, if you like.
Recipe Tips
This curry is delicious when served with crispy beaten rice. To make, shallow fry beaten rice in hot oil to crispen (only takes around 20 seconds). Add chaat masala, diced red onions and chopped fresh coriander to taste.