KARACHI NIHARI

(THE BEST NIHARI OF PAKISTAN)

My 100th Recipe on this Blog.

INTRODUCTION:

Nihari is a traditional Muslim Dish of Delhi, Bhopal, and Lucknow, but it is now considered to be the National Dish of Pakistan. Muslim Dish means it was started by Muslims.

The word Nihari comes from Urdu Nihaar and Arabic Nahaar, which means early morning or start of the day.

There are a lot of disputes about who invented Nihari and where it originated. Some say its origin is the 18th-century Mughal Era in Delhi, and others claim it was born in the Nawab Wajid Ali Shah's (Nawab of Awadh) period.

Nihari is hard for those who have a weak digestive system. After eating Nihari, one starts feeling drowsy, which is why, during the old days, it was prepared and eaten in the early morning so that a nap could be taken. Nowadays, it is available and eaten 24 hours a day in Karachi Hotels.

I have named it Very Very Karachi Nihari because the people of Karachi have given it a new dimension with great spices, and its 24-hour consumption. I have travelled all over Pakistan, but have never tasted Nihari in its real Nihari flavour except in Karachi. Karachi has become the Mother of Nihari.

In Karachi, Nihari is prepared mostly from Buffalo meat or even Camel meat, but it is also prepared with mutton (not much in Karachi) and Chicken as well. But the real taste lies in the big chunks of Buffalo meat or Camel meat with bone marrow of leg shanks, and also Maghaz (Brain).

Nihari is a slow-cooked curry dish added with leg shank marrow, it is cooked on slow heat for 6-8 hours with the lid over the pot is bound with flour dough so the vapors do not escape out and the meat becomes tender with the absorption of the special spices for such long hours and the marrow is now coming out of the leg shank, which will later be served with the meat or some time it is placed separately. The Maghaz (Brain) of Goat or Buffalo or Cow is also boiled with a few herbs and salt and served with the Nihari Curry. This becomes a special treat for eating Nihari.

Flour is also mixed in the curry to make it thicker, and finally, the Pure Ghee is used as Tarka or Baghar, which makes Nihari a great delicacy. The Baghar or Tarka (Tempering) controls the impact of fiery spices as well. The Pure Ghee or pure butter is heated with rings of Onion in it and poured on the serving plate individually. Its aroma and taste are mouthwatering.

Nihari is also garnished with finely cut green chillies, julienne-cut ginger, Lemon, and sometimes with fried onions as well. It is eaten with freshly baked Naan. (Flatbread baked in earthen ovens)

The secret of NiharI's taste lies not in the meat, but in the spices used, and no one is ready to divulge the secret recipe of the spices used in its preparation.

In addition to that, there is another Special Spice Mix which is sprinkled over the serving dish and enhances the taste manifold.

CHILLI OIL (TARI) FOR TOPPING:

Heat one or half a cup of oil till it steams up, take it off the heat and sprinkle Red Chilli Powder in it and let it rest after mixing. Strain when the temperature is down. The excess powder will remain at the bottom.

PURE GHEE TARKA OR BAGHAR (Tempering)

Baghar is called Tempering in English; it is a cooking technique in which whole spices (and sometimes also other ingredients such as dried chillies, minced root, or sugar) are roasted briefly in oil or ghee to liberate essential oils from cells and thus enhance their flavours, before being poured, together with the oil, into a dish. Baghar or Tarka (Tempering) is also practised by dry roasting whole spices in a pan before grinding the spices.

It is typically done at the beginning of cooking, before adding the other ingredients for a curry or similar dish, or it may be added to a dish at the end of cooking, just before serving (as with Dal, Nihari, or stew).

There are more varieties of Nihari available in restaurants all over Pakistan, especially in Karachi. Nihari with other helping or side dishes like Nali Nihari, Maghaz Nihari, Nali & Maghaz Nihari mix, Nihari Fry and last but not least, Special Nihari. Special Nihari has Baghar or Tarka of Pure Ghee, Maghaz, and Nali all in one dish. Of course, it is a little expensive, but looking at the taste and the ingredients in it, one can afford it.

Somehow got the Very Very Karachi Nihari recipe, and while going through its contents, I felt that this recipe is a real challenge to prepare with so many spices and tidbits in it. How the inventor remembered all the items required. I noted down all the ingredients on an A-3 size lined paper, tried to memorise some but failed, so I discussed it with my wife about the ingredients, and she said that nearly all the spices and tidbits are available at home, and we only have to get the Meat, leg shanks(Nali) and Brain (Maghaz) from the market.

One evening after acquiring all the required things and placing them in front of me and my wife, we crossed checked each and every item listed in the recipe, when satisfied with our inventory, I started to achieve one of the most difficult recipes I have ever tried and thanks to ALLAH when the cooked Nihari was served to my sisters and my youngest brother in law, their reaction was astonishing for me that it has the peculiar taste and flavor as is available in a very famous restaurant from where I got this recipe, which I thought was not possible for a person like me who has no cooking experience or expertise.

I must say to all visitors of this blog to throw away the FEAR OF FAILURE and JUST DO IT. I always keep trying and have never given up until I get the desired result. I would also like to say here that I have never posted any recipe which I have not successfully prepared and enjoyed with family or friends, despite the lack of facilities available at my humble abode.

Here we are going to start preparing our VERY VERY BEST KARACHI NIHARI with the name of ALLAH.

EQUATION:

Mixing and Grinding Spices: 15-20 Minutes.
Preparation of Tarka: 05 Minutes.
Preparation of Chilli Oil: 05 Minutes.
Preparation of Maghaz: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 4 to 6 hours (according to your choice)
Yield: 6-8 Servings
Expenses: Rs. 2,000/00 (12 US Dollars)

THINGS WE NEED:

1 Kg Bhains Ka Gosht big chunks (Buffalo Meat)
1 Kg Nali and bones (Leg Shanks)
2 Maghaz (whole brain)
2-1/2 to 3 Cups Tel (Oil)
Lal Mirch (Red Chili) to taste
Namak (Salt) to taste
2 Tablespoons Kashmiri Mirch (Paprika Powder)
1/2 Teaspoon Haldi (Turmeric Powder)
3 Tablespoons Saunth (Dry Ginger Powder)
4 pieces of Pipli
2 Nos. Badiyan Phool (Star Anise)
1/2 Tablespoon Ajwain (Carom Seeds)
1/4 Teaspoon Jaifal (Nutmeg)
1/4 Teaspoon Jawatari (Mace)
1-1/2 Teaspoons Kali Mirch (Black Pepper)
1-1/2 Teaspoons Kala Zeera (Caraway seeds)
1-1/2 Teaspoon Safaid Zeera (Cumin Seeds)
2 Bari Ilaichi (Black Cardamom)
5 Choti Ilaichi (Green Cardamom)
3 Tablespoons Saunf (Fennel Seeds)
6-8 Laong (Cloves)
2 pieces Dar Chini (Cinnamon)
4 Tablespoons Sabut Dhaniya (Coriander seeds) in a Potly made from a piece of Muslin cloth in which anything is put, and then the cloth is bound together. Here we'll put Coriander seeds in the potly, bind them, and then put the potly in the cooking pot to avoid the seeds mixing in the curry, we only need their flavour.
2 Tezpat (Bay Leaves)
3 Table Spoons Adrak Lahsan Paste (Ginger Garlic)
1/2 cup Atta (Flour)
2 Glass Pani (Water)

SPICE MIX FOR SPRINKLING:

3 pieces of Pipli
2 Tablespoons Sufaid Zeera (Cumin seeds)
1 Tablespoon Kali Mirch (Black Pepper)
1-2 Bari Ilaichi (Black Cardamom)
8 Laongs (Cloves)
1-1/2 piece of Dar Chini (Cinnamon)

Ground the above together in a Grinder and keep in a Jar for sprinkling over the serving plate according to taste.

FOR GARNISHING:

Julian cut Ginger
Finely Cut Green Chillies
Fresh Green Coriander leaves
Lemons
Garam Masala (All Spice Powder)

HOW WE WILL PREPARE / COOK:

Wash the meat, leg shank bones, and Maghaz thoroughly; don't clean any fat.
Heat oil in a large cooking pan, put the Ginger Garlic paste and stir for 4-5 minutes.
Add Lal Mirch, Haldi, and Kashmiri Mirch.
Ground all from Sr. No. 9 to 22 in a grinder and add that powder to the cooking pan, stir and cook for 5-6 minutes.
Add Meat and bones now, and add sufficient water to cover everything in the pot. Water may be 1/2 inch above the meat, etc.
Add Potly of Sabut Dhaniya and Tezpats and turn the heat on high till it starts to boil.
Now cover the pot and leave it to simmer for 3-4 hours on very low heat.
When the meat becomes tender, the water dries, and oil is showing, take the oil out of the pot and set it aside.
Remove Tezpat and potly as well and discard them.
Mix Aata in 2 cups of water and make sure there are no lumps.
When Nihari is well-cooked, and the meat is fully tenderised, mix liquified aata (Whole Wheat Flour) in it and turn the heat on medium.
Again, at the boiling point, turn the heat on low again and cook till the gravy is thickened according to your taste.
Our Nihari is ready now to be served.
Mix the prepared Chili oil in the pot or pour it separately after dishing it out on a serving plate.
Boil Maghaz with Lahsan and Haldi, set it in a bowl.
Remove the bones and take out the marrow from the leg shanks, and put that marrow in a separate bowl with Nihari.
Heat pure ghee with onion rings until they are well fried, and pour it sizzling over the Nihari.
Sprinkle garnish over the dish.
Don't forget to sprinkle the spice mix on your plate.
Serve with Tandoori Naans (baked flatbread)

By the grace of ALLAH, our Nihari is all ready to be consumed, feel free to add Maghaz and Nali to your plate with green chillies, ginger and Lemon juice, and of course the butter Tarka.

Go ahead, fellas!.

How was this experience? Hopefully, a bit exciting and rewarding as well because of words of praise at the dining table from all who have tasted your effort of making the Very Very Best Nihari of Pakistan.

In my dictionary, the word "failure" is missing. We've become prisoners of our own so-called myths and thoughts of what people say. Please leave all these fears away from your conscience and JUST DO IT. Heaven will not fail if your cooking or baking falls short of the standards set by the professionals and the establishments that are running their businesses on the pillars of experienced hands and investments of millions of dollars.

Remember, we at home are not experts or professionals, and we don't possess the state-of-the-art paraphernalia. The failure will push us to DO MORE and DO AGAIN., so just leave aside this FEAR OF FAILURE and do what you can do, no herculean effort and no professional attitude, only a humble effort.

Remember, while we were cooking VERY VERY BEST KARACHI NIHARI, there was NO FEAR OF FAILURE.

Thanks,

Loves to All

thine eternally,

NOVICE

March 3rd, 2017

Sunday, 3 May 2026

KARACHI NIHARI THE BEST NIHARI OF PAKISTAN