Mutton Yakhni Pulao
مٹن یخنی پلاؤ
This is the pulao served at Punjabi weddings and dawats: light brown rice, every grain separate, with tender pieces of mutton and the scent of fennel and coriander seeds from the . Unlike Kabuli pulao there are no carrots or raisins, and unlike biryani there is no layering. Everything depends on a well-flavoured stock and the right amount of it, so the rice absorbs every drop.
- ⏱ Total: 2 hr 20 min
- Prep: 20 min
- Cook: 2 hr
- Medium
- Serves 6
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Put the mutton, water, whole onion, garlic, ginger, the coriander-fennel bundle and salt in a large . Bring to a boil, skim off the foam, then cover and simmer for 60–75 minutes until the meat is tender.
Lift out the meat. Strain the and discard the onion, garlic, ginger and bundle. Measure it: you need 4½ cups. Boil it down if there's more, or add water if there's less.
Wipe the pot, heat the oil and fry the sliced onions over medium heat for 12–15 minutes until dark golden brown. This colour gives the pulao its light brown tint, so take your time.
Add the cumin, black cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns and bay leaves and fry for 30 seconds. Add the boiled mutton and the ginger-garlic paste and fry for 5 minutes, then stir in the yogurt and fry 3 more minutes until the oil separates.
Pour in the measured yakhni and bring to a full boil. Taste: it should be slightly saltier than soup. Add the drained rice and whole green chilies and boil on high heat, uncovered, for 8–10 minutes until the water has dropped below the rice and small holes appear on the surface.
Sprinkle over the garam masala, seal the lid and put the pot on a hot over the lowest heat for 15–20 minutes of . Don't stir.
Fluff gently with a fork from the sides and serve with raita and salad.
Kitchen notes
Measuring the yakhni is the secret. Sella rice needs about 1½ cups of liquid per cup; regular basmati a little less. Note what works for your rice and use it every time.
Sella (parboiled) rice is used at weddings because it stays firm and separate even in huge pots and after reheating.
The yakhni can be made a day ahead and kept in the fridge. Lift off the fat that sets on top and use it to fry the onions.
The pulao of the shaadi
At a Punjabi wedding the biryani gets the attention, but many guests head for the pulao. It’s subtler: mildly spiced, aromatic and rich with the taste of mutton. It’s also more forgiving to cook for a crowd, which is why caterers and home cooks alike love it.
Everything is in the yakhni
The stock is made by simmering bone-in mutton with onion, garlic, ginger and a muslin bundle of coriander seeds and fennel. This bundle, called the potli, is what gives Punjabi pulao its typical aroma. Neck and rib pieces add gelatine and body.
After straining, the is measured. This is the step that decides whether the pulao turns out fluffy or mushy. Rice absorbs a predictable amount of liquid; give it more and the grains burst, give it less and they stay hard.
Colour from onions
Mutton yakhni pulao should be light brown. That colour comes from frying the onions slowly until they’re dark golden brown before the meat and stock go in. Pale onions mean pale pulao.
Cooking the rice
The rice boils uncovered in the yakhni until the liquid falls below its surface and little steam holes appear. Then it goes on , sealed, on the lowest heat, often with a tawa under the pot, where it finishes cooking in its own steam. Don’t stir it at this stage, or the grains will break.
Serving
Serve with kheera raita, kachumber salad and, for a dawat, a mutton qorma or shami kebabs.
Questions people ask
Why is my pulao white instead of brown?
The onions weren't fried dark enough. Pulao gets its colour from deeply browned onions, not from spices.
Can I make it with chicken?
Yes. That's our [chicken yakhni pulao](/pakistani/yakhni-pulao/), which needs only 30 minutes for the stock.
The rice is still hard after dum. What do I do?
Sprinkle 3–4 tablespoons of hot yakhni or water over the top, seal again and give it 10 more minutes on the lowest heat.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 590
- Protein
- 30 g
- Fat
- 22 g
- Carbs
- 68 g
