Mangsher Ghugni
The well-loved east India snack ghugni (white chickpeas), cooked with chunks of mutton
- Cooking time90 minutes
Calories294kcal
How do you improve upon the perfection that is ghugni? Have you tried adding a goat to it? Bengalis have, and it works splendidly well. Mangsher ghugni also known as pnatha’r ghugni or khasir ghugni (pnatha and khasi are both names for different types of goat) is a hot favourite snack—especially for Bijoya guests.
While we like the regular ghugni made with matar (dried yellow field peas), for mangsher ghugni we prefer kabuli chhola (aka garbanzo aka chickpea) for its meaty flavour, and for just how well it soaks up the good mutton fat and juices. No wonder chickpeas and goatmeat are a classic combination in cuisines all over the world!
Mangsher ghugni can be eaten on its own with a squeeze of lime, some chopped onions, green chillies, a sprinkling of bhaja moshla—mopped up with a toasted bread. It can also be eaten with luchi or porota for breakfast or dinner.
Our version is quite light, perfect for eating by the bowlful.
Books in this recipe
Ingredients
- 300 g kabuli chhola (white chickpeas, soaked overnight)
- 300 g mutton (225 g boneless + 75 g bones with marrow)
- 30 g mustard oil
- 2 dried red chillies
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 cardamom
- 3 cloves
- 1 stick cinnamon
- 150 g onions (finely diced)
- 15 g garlic (ground to paste)
- 35 g tomato
- 30 g ginger (ground to paste)
- ¾ tsp (2 g) cumin powder
- ¾ tsp (2 g) coriander powder
- 1½ tsp (4 g) turmeric
- ¾ tsp (2 g) red chilli powder
- ¾ tsp (2 g) kashmiri red chilli powder
- 20 g salt
- 12 g sugar
- 6 green chillies
- ½ tsp ground pepper
- 525 ml hot water
- bhaja moshla (for garnish)
- lime juice (for garnish)
Method
- Soak kabuli chhola overnight. Strain over a colander and set aside.
- Finely dice the onions. Heat mustard oil in a pan and temper with dried red chillies, bay leaves, cardamom, cinnamon and cloves.
- Add the onions and sweat them on low heat for about 15 minutes.
- Add garlic paste and continue cooking for 10 more minutes before adding diced tomatoes.
- Add about half the salt (10 g) and all the sugar (12 g), and cook until the tomatoes are soft, about 10 minutes.
- Add ginger paste and continue braising. Then add the powdered spices: cumin, coriander, turmeric, red chilli powder and kashmiri red chilli.
- Cook on low heat until the smell of raw spices dissipates (10 minutes or so).
- Add the mutton bones, cook for a few minutes, before adding the boneless mutton chunks.
- Add green chillies and freshly ground black pepper, followed by the soaked kabuli chhola. Mix everything well.
- Now transfer everything to a pressure cooker, add hot water, and cook on full pressure for about 18 minutes (in the model without the whistle).
- Allow the pressure to release on its own before opening the cooker.
- Serve hot with a sprinkle of diced onions, green chillies, bhaja moshla and lime juice on top.
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