Mughlai Mutton Stew

4.65 from 14 votes

Try this Old Delhi-Style Mughlai Mutton Stew, which features mutton cooked with onion, yogurt, and whole spices. Serve it with tandoori roti or naan for a hearty meal.

If you like this recipe, you can also try Kerala Style Mutton Curry, Mutton Rara Curry, Mutton Rogan Josh, and Railway Mutton Curry.

Mughlai mutton stew served in a bowl.
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About Mughlai Mutton Stew

Mughlai Mutton Stew is a delicious curry from the northern part of India. Soft and succulent mutton pieces are cooked with onions, yogurt, and spices. It is one of those curries I crave when I want something rustic with the mutton flavor shining through.

This stew has no dry spices, giving it a unique flavor and differentiating it from other mutton curries.

It is easy to prepare, needs minimal pantry ingredients, is gluten-free, and comes together in less than 60 minutes.

Serve it with Indian bread for a hearty meal.

Ingredients

Mutton – Buy pieces from the leg and shoulder, which are best for making curries.

Whole Spices – This curry is flavored with whole spices such as cloves (laung), black peppercorns (kali mirch), black cardamoms (badi elaichi), green cardamoms (hari elaichi), cinnamon (dalchini), nutmeg (jaiphal), mace (javitri), dry red chilies, and bay leaves (tejpatta).

Fried Onions – The addition of Crispy Fried Onions makes this curry rich in flavor. You can make fried onions at home beforehand and store them, making them handy while making curries or biryani.

Others – You will also need ghee, oil, red onions, plain yogurt (dahi, curd), and salt.

This is a very basic mutton stew recipe. Add 2 tablespoon ginger garlic paste, 1 teaspoon green chili paste, 1 tablespoon coriander powder, and 1 teaspoon roasted cumin powder to make it even more flavorful.

You can also add a tablespoon of mutton masala powder.

How To Make Mughlai Mutton Stew

Add the following ingredients to a mortar and pestle.

  • 6-7 cloves
  • 10-12 black peppercorns
  • 2 black cardamoms
  • 2 green cardamoms
  • 1 inch piece of cinnamon stick
  • 1 mace flower
  • ¼ nutmeg

Gently crush the spices.

Crushed spices in a mortar.

Press the SAUTE button on the instant pot.

When it says HOT, add 2 tablespoon ghee and 2 tablespoon oil.

Add the following ingredients once the ghee is hot, and saute for 4-5 seconds.

  • crushed spices
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 4-5 dry red chilies (broken into small pieces)
Crushed spices and dry red chilies added to hot oil in an instant pot.

Add 250 g red onions (thinly sliced) and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently.

Onions added to the pot.

Add 1 pound (500 g) bone-in goat mutton (cut into 1 and ½ inch pieces) and cook for 6-7 minutes, stirring frequently.

Mutton added to the pot.

Now add the following ingredients and mix well.

  • 1 cup plain yogurt, whisked
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup crispy fried onions
Yogurt, salt and fried onions added to the pot.

Add ¼ cup of water and mix well.

Water added to the pot.

Close the instant pot lid and set the valve to the sealing position.

Lid of the instant pot secured.

Press PRESSURE COOK and set the timer to 25 minutes at high pressure.

Once the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes.

Release the remaining manually and open the lid.

Check for salt and add more if needed. Serve hot.

Note – To cook the curry in a traditional pressure cooker, follow the recipe until water is added on medium-high heat. Pressure cook for 1 while on medium-high heat. Then, reduce the heat to low and cook for 25 minutes. Remove the cooker from heat and let the pressure release naturally. Open the lid and serve.

Ready mughlai mutton stew.

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Try this Old Delhi-Style Mughlai Mutton Stew, which features mutton cooked with onion, yogurt, and whole spices. Serve it with tandoori roti or naan for a hearty meal.
4.65 from 14 votes

Mughlai Mutton Stew Recipe (Old Delhi Style)

Try this Old Delhi-Style Mughlai Mutton Stew, which features mutton cooked with onion, yogurt, and whole spices. Serve it with tandoori roti or naan for a hearty meal.
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 55 minutes
Total: 1 hour
Servings: 4 people

Ingredients 

  • 6-7 cloves (laung)
  • 10-12 black peppercorns (kali mirch)
  • 2 black cardamoms (badi elaichi)
  • 2 green cardamoms (hari elaichi)
  • 1 inch piece of cinnamon stick
  • 1 mace (javitri)
  • ¼ nutmeg (jaiphal)
  • 2 bay leaves (tej patta)
  • 4-5 dry red chilies (broken into small pieces)
  • 2 tablespoons ghee
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 250 grams red onions (thinly sliced)
  • 1 pound bone-in goat mutton (500 g, cut into 1 and ½ inch pieces)
  • 1 cup plain yogurt (dahi, curd) (whisked)
  • 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
  • ½ cup crispy fried onions
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Instructions 

  • Add cloves, black peppercorns, black cardamoms, green cardamoms, cinnamon stick, mace flower, and, nutmeg to a mortar and pestle.
  • Gently crush the spices.
  • Press the SAUTE button on the instant pot.
  • When it says HOT, add ghee and oil.
  • Once the ghee is hot, add crushed spices and dry red chilies, and saute for 4-5 seconds.
  • Add onions and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently.
  • Add mutton and cook for 6-7 minutes, stirring frequently.
  • Now add yogurt, salt, and crispy fried onions and mix well.
  • Add ¼ cup of water and mix well.
  • Close the instant pot lid and set the valve to the sealing position.
  • Press PRESSURE COOK and set the timer to 25 minutes at high pressure.
  • Once the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes.
  • Release the remaining manually and open the lid.
  • Check for salt and add more if needed. Serve hot.
  • Note – To cook the curry in a traditional pressure cooker, follow the recipe until water is added on medium-high heat. Pressure cook for 1 while on medium-high heat. Then, reduce the heat to low and cook for 25 minutes. Remove the cooker from heat and let the pressure release naturally. Open the lid and serve.

Notes

This is a very basic mutton stew recipe. Add 2 tablespoon ginger garlic paste, 1 teaspoon green chili paste, 1 tablespoon coriander powder, and 1 teaspoon roasted cumin powder to make it even more flavorful.
You can also add a tablespoon of mutton masala powder and ½ teaspoon garam masala powder to the recipe.

Nutrition

Calories: 1069kcal, Carbohydrates: 20g, Protein: 47g, Fat: 89g, Saturated Fat: 41g, Cholesterol: 210mg, Sodium: 362mg, Potassium: 889mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 30IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 169mg, Iron: 6mg
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4.65 from 14 votes (11 ratings without comment)

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Recipe Rating




14 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    very easy to make different normal recipes yet very tasty. thanx for the excellent demostration. my family loved it.

  2. It tastes scrumptious . Was finding out for this recipe since long time.
    Only I could not turn the colour in the same way. Please guide

  3. 5 stars
    Love this recipe. I think it’s pretty close to authentic! Let it stew in the crock pot for 5 hours and came out nice and tender. My favorite cuisine in Indian and I’m always looking to learn what I can about it. Made this for Easter dinner.

  4. Dear Neha
    It is amazingly pleasing that someone can authoritatively and authentically write with minutest of details on such cuisines/food items as mutton stew. Apparently, the logical sequential procedures of the recipes detailed by you are well researched and professionally experimented.

    under the underlying circumstances where myriads of websites and blogs have been churning fake and absurd/unauthentic recipes, you are doing a much remarkable effort of introducing to the not-so-connoisseurs, naive foodies.

    Be Blessed – Be Blissed!

    (Note : could you sometime write on Mutton Pasanda. It should not be the pasandas which we get at old Delhi eateries, which are just fake)

    1. Thanks Rakesh for taking out time and writing a feedback. I am glad you like the posts. I have a very traditional Mutton Pasanda recipe which I will try to share soon.

      1. Great!!
        Must be only kayasht dynasty pasanda recipe which your forefathers might have shared with the mughals!
        Will be a great contribution towards reviving the almost dead cuisine!!
        My sincere reverence to you in much advance!

  5. We can not make so much tasty Food even while being mughal. Thank you hopefully you will write similar recipes.muito obrigado.