Haleem

Ingredients

• Beef on the bone1.5 kg
• Whole wheat — soaked overnight300 g
• Pearl barley100 g
• Chana dal150 g
• Red lentils100 g
• Onions5
• Ginger garlic paste3 tbsp
• Garam masala2 tbsp
• Chilli powder1 tbsp
• Turmeric1 tsp
• Ghee250 g
• Ginger — to serve, in matchsticks60 g
• Green chillies6
• Coriander50 g
• Lemons3
• Saltto taste

Salt and spices grow more slowly than the rest: doubling a dish does not double the pepper.

Weight converts to ounces and volume to cups. Grams of flour are not turned into cups, because that depends on how tightly it is packed.

Method

1. 1

   Soak the wheat overnight and the chana dal and barley for four hours, then rinse them.

   15 min

2. 2

   Fry three onions in ghee until deep brown and set half aside for serving.

   25 min

3. 3

   Brown the meat with the remaining onion, the ginger garlic paste and all the spices.

   20 min

4. 4

   Cover with water and braise three hours, until the meat starts falling into threads.

   190 min

5. 5

   Boil the wheat, barley and both dals in a separate pot for three hours, until completely broken down.

   190 min

6. 6

   Remove the bones, combine the two and beat with a wooden masher for forty minutes, until uniform.

   45 min

7. 7

   Serve with the fried onion, ginger, chilli, coriander and lemon scattered on top.

   12 min

About the dish

Doneness is judged by uniformity: neither grain nor meat fibre should be distinguishable. Haleem is brought to that state with a wooden beater rather than a spoon.

The wheat and pulses cook separately from the meat and are combined only once both have collapsed. Together they never both come right: grain and meat run on different clocks.

The serving is half the dish: fried onion, ginger matchsticks, green chilli, coriander and lemon go on top in the bowl. Without them haleem is simply a thick porridge.

Worth knowing

• — You need a pot with a very heavy base. Haleem catches instantly, and the burnt smell runs through the whole mass.
• — A stick blender is easier, but tradition uses a ghotni beater, and the texture comes out less smooth and more correct for it.
• — In Ramadan haleem is cooked for a whole neighbourhood in enormous cauldrons. A household portion for ten is already a small batch.

Nutrition

Per serving at the base yield, calculated from the ingredients rather than measured in a lab.

Calories

680 kcal

Protein

42 g

Fat

32 g

Carbs

58 g

More from Pakistan

• Nihari — Beef shin stewed overnight in a thick spiced gravy with marrow, bound with a wheat-flour slurry.
• Chapli kebab — Flat beef patties with cornmeal, tomato and whole coriander seeds.
• Seekh kebab — Spiced mince moulded onto a skewer and grilled over coals.