This recipe for bhuna gorur mangsho produces a dish that is rich and intense in character from the caramelisation of the onions and the frying of the spices. The meat cooks in its own juices, adding to the deep flavour. It is a classic Bengali dish.
The term bhuna means to fry or to brown. You cook the beef with spices and a little water, requiring constant stirring to prevent the spices or meat from sticking to the bottom of the pan. You actually cook the meat in its own fat that has rendered out.
You need something to stand up to long cooking and with a reasonably high fat content. The cooking technique will render out the fat, adding to the flavour. Chuck steak, cut into big chunks, say 5cm (2 inches) each, would be ideal. The size will help stop it from breaking down and the fat content is about right.
Cooking this recipe is time-consuming, but the result is delicious.
The deep taste of the beef bhuna depends on how long you cook it. The Bengalis call this process of frying and turning, adding a little water as required, koshano. In their mind, you cannot have too much koshano.
In my grandmother’s notes there are several versions of this recipe. This is the second last, because the last, while similar, has an interesting side note. She came to dislike this dish, because she said she had to spend a lot of time in the kitchen supervising the cook when making this dish. She stated that unless she was there, the cook was too lazy to do enough koshano. Apparently one of the previous cooks was a Bengali, native to the then Calcutta, and understood the required technique and its importance to the finished product. His method became her definitive approach to this recipe, and all other subsequent cooks had to conform.
This was one of the family’s favourite beef curries, second only to the beef with tamarind and ginger.
Her notes also included lamb and chicken variations on this recipe, with a similar technique, but subtly different spices. I will post these in due course.
This is not a set and forget recipe. You need contant attention during the browning phase – koshano – or you will burn the dish.
Serve with bengali fried rice, or some roti.
the recipe
about
equipment
equipment
- small frypan
- large bowl
- wide pan with lid
ingredients
ingredients
- 1 kg chuck steak - cut into large pieces
for the marinade
- 6 dried Kashmiri chillies
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 3 green cardamom pods
- ½ stick cassia
- ½ tsp black peppercorn
- 8 cloves
- 1 blade mace
- 1 red onion
- 20 g ginger
- 6 cloves garlic
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
for cooking
- 2 tbsp mustard oil
- 1 white onion - sliced
- 1 tsp salt
- 250 ml water - hot
for serving
- 1 tbsp coriander stalks - finely chopped
- ½ lemon - juiced
- ½ tsp garam masala
instructions
instructions
- Place a small frypan on medium heat and add the dried Kashmiri chillies, cumin, coriander and fennel seeds, the cardamom pods, cassia stick, peppercorns, cloves, and mace. Toast the spices until they become aromatic then remove them from the heat. When cool enough to handle grind to a fine powder. Set aside.6 dried Kashmiri chillies, 1 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp coriander seeds, 1 tsp fennel seeds, 3 green cardamom pods, ½ stick cassia, ½ tsp black peppercorn, 8 cloves, 1 blade mace
- Make a smooth paste of the onion, ginger, and garlic, adding as little water as possible.1 red onion, 20 g ginger, 6 cloves garlic
- Place the meat in a bowl, then add the ground spices, the paste, and the turmeric. Mix well, massaging the marinade into the meat. Cover and allow to marinate overnight.½ tsp ground turmeric, 1 kg chuck steak – cut into large pieces
to cook
- Heat the oil over medium heat in a wide pan. Add the sliced onion, sprinkle with the salt and fry for about ten minutes, or until the onions turn a golden brown. Be careful not to burn the onions.2 tbsp mustard oil, 1 white onion – sliced, 1 tsp salt
- Add the meat with the marinade and any juices to the pan. Mix well and fry for five minutes or until meat is browned all over.
- Add the hot water, mix well, and cover the pan. Cook on low heat for 20 minutes.250 ml water – hot
- Remove the lid, increase heat to medium and start to fry the meat, stirring frequently. To avoid burning as it dries, add 2 tablespoons of water, if needed, and mix well. Fry the meat, stirring often, for 30 minutes, or until well-cooked and browned. Add more water, in small amounts, as required, without making the dish too liquid. The dish should look dark and be quite dry by this stage.
- Add enough water to the pot to just cover the meat. Replace the lid and cook for 30 minutes, or until the meat is tender and the gravy comes to desired consistency.
to serve
- Reduce heat to low and add the coriander stalks and lemon juice. Mix well, but carefully so that you do not break up the meat. Turn off the heat, sprinkle with garam masala and serve.1 tbsp coriander stalks – finely chopped, ½ lemon – juiced, ½ tsp garam masala
notes
notes
- Make sure the beef is in big pieces. We suggest 5cm (2 inch) pieces. You need something large enough to stand up to long cooking.
private notes
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