Galouti Kebab (Lucknowi Melt-in-Mouth Mutton Patty)

The mince must be ultra-fine — use a food processor to blend the mutton to an almost paste-like consistency (3–4 rounds of processing). Fry onions until deep golden-brown (birista). Blend fried onions with a little water to a smooth paste. Combine mutton paste with raw papaya paste, fried onion paste, ginger-garlic paste, ground chironji, galouti masala, besan, kewra water, and salt. Knead thoroughly.

About 20 min

Tip: The finer the mutton is ground, the more impossibly soft the kebab will be. The raw papaya paste is the tenderising agent — it must be made from UNRIPE papaya (ripe papaya does not contain enough active papain enzyme).

Refrigerate the mixture 2 hours (or overnight). The rest allows the papain to work on the meat fibres and the spices to develop. Wet palms lightly with water. Shape the mince into thin, flat patties — 8cm diameter, 5–6mm thick. The mixture is very soft and slightly sticky.

About 10 min

Tip: Galouti kebabs are intentionally thinner than seekh kebab — the thinness means the centre cooks through in the time it takes the surface to just set. A thick galouti kebab will crisp on the outside before the interior reaches its melt-in-mouth state.

Heat ghee in a heavy non-stick pan on medium. Gently lower patties using a flat spatula — they are fragile. Cook 2 minutes on the first side until just set (they will not look firmly browned — they should be barely golden). Flip carefully once. Cook 90 seconds. Remove. Serve immediately on ulte tawa (upturned griddle) roti or sheermal with fried onion and mint chutney.

About 10 min

Tip: Galouti kebabs continue cooking from residual heat after removal. Remove them while they still look slightly underdone — they firm up perfectly on the plate. Overcooked galouti is a tragedy.