Ratna Chotrani/Hyderabad

This Eid-ul Fitr Chef Zaheer has rounded up several recipes for an extravagant meal at home with your family and friends. Focusing on specials from Hyderabad. Hyderabad is known for specials like subz chilgoze ke kebab, Bagaire wali dal, Paye ki nihari, and other classics like tandoori Raan, Macchi ki rubaiyat among others.

Chef Zaheer, who is passionate about food with history and cultures, began his career with ITC Hotels and he later headed brand restaurants like Dumpukht, K&K & Peshawari. He has received Best Indian MasterChef and won gold medals five times at ITC. He has served food to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, Amitabh Bachchan, and many more celebrities.

 

Chef Zaheer, Corporate Chef, Nestle India

He was a part of the World Economic Forum in Davos Switzerland. Chef Zaheer is currently the Corporate Chef of Nestle India since 2011. Here are a few of his signature dishes recommended for Eid:

Laham Mandi

Ingredients (for Marination): 1.25 kg mutton leg, 1 lemon (juice), 2 tbs mandi spices Mandi Spices blend: cinnamon powder 1 tsp, cloves powder 1 tsp, ginger powder 1, nutmeg powder 1 tsp, Black peppercorn 1tbs, Cardamom 1tbsp, 200g tomatoes and 10 green chillies blend together like purée. 750 g basmati rice, cinnamon stick 2 pieces, bay leaves 2, cloves 6, green cardamom 4, Water 1500ml Saffron 2 pinch, Olive oil 200g, Salt 2tbs as required, coal 1 piece

Method: Soak rice for 20 minutes. Rub the mutton leg with Mandi spice, lemon juice mix well cover, and keep in the fridge for 1/2 hour. Now heat oil add cloves, bay leaves, green cardamom, cinnamon stick fry till light golden on high flame. Add tomatoes, green chilli puree and cook on high flame. now add black pepper, salt, Mandi spice mutton leg, water that leg gets covered then wait for a boil on high flame, now cover and cook for 40 minutes on medium flame to make the stock. then remove mutton leg, now add soak rice to the stock mix well, cover and cook till the stock dries. heat the coal till red hot. Then place the mutton leg on the rice and add the hot coal on foil with 1 tsp of oil cover till the smoke settles. Serve hot

Laham Mandi

Mutton Ishtoo

Ingredients: 500 g bone mutton, 200g onions (rough paste), 30 g chopped garlic, 20g chopped ginger, 6 chopped dry red chilies (deseeded), 30g anardana powder, salt Whole spices: 10g coriander seeds, 1 bay leaf, 10g fennel seeds, 1g fenugreek seeds, 2 pieces of cinnamon sticks, 10g peppercorns, 5 green cardamoms, 5 black cardamoms, 10 cloves, 100g curd, 100g ghee

Method: Marinate meat with onion paste, curd & whole spices leave it for an hour. Now in a handi heat ghee add marinated meat along with chopped ingredients cook, cover wid the lid or pressure cook (if Caracas is above 7 kg pls add 200 ml water) for 30 minutes till meat is tender and until ghee separates. Serve with chopped green chilies, fresh coriander leaves, and with a dash of lemon juice.

Mutton Ishtoo

Badam ke Lauz

Ingredients: 1 cup almond powder, 1 cup Sugar, 1 cup Ghee, 1 cup khoya, 1 cup fresh malai, 1 cup beaten egg white 1 pinch Saffron, 1/2 tsp Cardamom powder Method: Take in a bowl add all the above ingredients and mix well. Then put the mixture in nonstick baking tray up to 1/2 inch layer, bake it on 180 C for 15 minutes until golden brown. Serve room temperature on a bed of custard sauce garnish with nuts. 

Badam ke Lauz

Chicken 65

Ingredients: 500g Chicken boneless cubes 1 egg white, 50g Cornflour, oil for deep frying, 20g ginger-garlic paste, 2 tsp kashmiri chili powder, 200g beaten curd, 2 sprig curry leaves, Salt to taste, 1tbsp garlic chopped’ 5 slit green chilies, 2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves, 1 lemon juice

Method: Marinate chicken with ginger garlic paste, 1/2 kashmir chilli powder (u can add some red food color) salt, corn flour and egg mix well. Heat oil in a kadhai, fry until crisp. Heat a pan with 2tbsp oil, chopped garlic, curry leaves & green chilies saute for 2 minutes, add beaten curd, chili powder & salt. When the mixture starts boiling add fried chicken cook till it absorbs all the moisture & coats the chicken adjust salt, now squeezed a lemon juice sprinkle chopped coriander leaves Serve chicken 65 with sliced onions and lemons.

Chicken 65