Nihari Recipe: A Slow-Cooked Delight from the Streets of Lucknow

The regional cuisine of Lucknow is like a Doraemon’s pocket for foodies. You can keep digging in, and there will always be one flavourful dish that you have either not tasted or love to a point that you can go a week without it. For meat lovers, that one dish is nihari, a mutton-based slow-cooked gravy flaunting the warmth of spices and juicy meat. When it is a part of a spread, you know that the meal is going to be lip-smacking, and you are sure to overeat that day.

With roots in the royal Mughal kitchens, nihari is a delicacy that you keep craving, and once you try it, you cannot avoid licking your fingers. The name of the dish is derived from an Arabic word, ‘nahar’, which means something you consume in the morning. Historians credit the refinement of this dish in the royal kitchens of Lucknow, around the 18th century, and since it’s a high-energy recipe, Nawabs used to kickstart their mornings with it. The mutton-based dish is believed to maintain a steady flow of energy inside your body; hence, it was preferred by kings and nobles who had hundreds of courtly duties mentioned on their to-do list.

If you witness an expert preparing nihari, you will realise that it’s a lesson in slow-cooking, especially dum pukht, which is a signature technique of cooking meat-based Awadhi dishes. Much like other delicacies from the same cuisine, the spice powder mix plays a huge role in infusing the meat and other ingredients with irresistible aroma and flavours. The complex blend of mace, fennel seeds, long pepper, nutmeg, and other aromatic spices. The meat is cooked for hours, at least 6-8 hours or overnight, so that it comes out tender and appetising.

The creamy gravy, velvety texture, and rich taste are integral parts of this recipe. The popularity of this dish has transcended boundaries of social strata. What once redefined Mughal opulence is now a part of restaurants and street food landscapes. In the bustling lanes of Old Delhi, people add leftover nihari to the new batch for the depth of flavour. This practice is known as taar, and it is centuries old.

Nihari is served with fresh coriander, julienned ginger, a drizzle of lemon juice, and green chillies. While you can pair it with different kinds of flatbreads, it goes well with sheermal and khameeri roti, not to mention steamed rice that completes the meal. It used to be a winter dish, but now you can relish it throughout the year, and if you are in Lucknow, you can miss ordering it whenever you are at a restaurant known for serving Awadhi dishes.