Fall is the season for hearty stews so I invited my friend Reem at Simply Reem back for a fabulous beef stew recipe.
Nihari is a beef stew popular in the northern region of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.
Nothing tastes better than aromatic and spice-laden beef stew where the meat is so tender it falls off the bone.
If you love spices in your cooking, hop over to Simply Reem for more delicious recipes.
You can also check out her Indian chicken curry recipe.
Thank you Bee, for giving me an opportunity once again to share a recipe on your wonderful blog.
I know you liked this Nihari, or beef shank stew and hopefully the readers on Rasa Malaysia will like it too.
The best way to celebrate and welcome Fall/Winter is with a bowl of hot slow cooked beef stew, comforting and assuring in the chilly evenings or a fleeting sun-kissed fall afternoon.
Although in the current fast-paced lifestyle, slow cooking is not something we look forward to, but fall is the season to enjoy the pleasure of warmth and fill the home with the aromas of wonderful spices.
Today I am sharing with you all a very delicious and traditional slow cooked Beef Shank Stew, also known as Nihari.
Traditionally this beef stew is cooked slowly over night and eaten as breakfast in early chilly mornings but you can enjoy it over lunch or dinner.
This is a spicy stew with wonderful flavors and aromas of different spices, which give the much needed warmth in cold season.
The best part about Nihari is that it is not at all difficult to prepare and makes a perfect cook-ahead item as the flavors develop with time.
You may also choose to make it with lamb, chicken or even other cut of beef; just adjust the cooking time according to your preference.
Try this Nihari recipe and enjoy fall (and soon winter) with a healthy and warming stew on your dinner table.
How Many Calories per Serving?
This recipe is only 254 calories per serving.
What Dishes to Serve with This Recipe?
For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
Indian Beef Stew (Nihari)
Nihari is a beef stew popular in northern India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Nihari is a hearty beef stew that is great for fall/winter months.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. Beef shank or 1 ½ lb. (0.6 kg) boneless beef
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 one-inch cinnamon sticks
- 1 ½ teaspoons ginger paste + 1 ½ teaspoons
- 1 ½ teaspoons garlic paste + 2 teaspoons
- 1 large onion thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder
- 2 1/2 teaspoons Nihari Masala
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons whole-wheat flour
- One 1-inch piece fresh ginger julienned
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
- 1 lemon sliced
Nihari Masala:
- 2 tablespoons fennel seeds
- 2 tablespoons cumin seeds
- 4 green cardamom pods
- 1 black cardamom pods
- 8 cloves
- 15 whole black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg powder
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon powder
- 1 bay leaf
Directions
Preparing Nihari Masala:
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1
Add all the ingredients in a spice grinder and grind to fine powder form. Sift the powder through a fine sieve to remove any rough pieces and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You can keep this for about a month.
Boiling the Shanks:
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1
In a large pot add the beef shanks along with 1 ½ teaspoon of ginger paste, 1 ½ teaspoon of garlic paste, bay leaf, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 teaspoon of salt and 5 cups of water. Boil the shanks on low-medium heat till the meat is tender and well done, about 2-3 hours. (Make sure to add a little more water if the water starts to dry out too fast; there should be enough water in the pot to cover the meat).
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2
Once the meat is done, use a slotted spoon to carefully remove the meat from the liquid and keep aside. Measure the stock (liquid) and add water if needed to make it 4 cups, reserve. Discard the bay leaf and cinnamon. You can do this step up to 2 days in advance. Let the meat and stock stay together while you store them in the refrigerator, remove the meat from the stock just before you start to put the stew together.
Stew (Nihari):
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1
In a non-stick saucepan or a pot, heat oil over medium heat. When the oil gets hot, add the sliced onions and stir-fry constantly until they turn golden-brown in color. Don’t over fry or the onions will burn.
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2
Add the remaining 1½ teaspoon of ginger paste and 2 teaspoons of garlic paste and do a quick stir. Add 1 cup of the reserved stock to the pan, cover the pan and let everything cook on low heat for 5-6 minutes until the liquid starts to dry out, and the onions turn very soft.
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3
Add the beef shanks to the pan along with the chili powder and Nihari Masala. Sauté gently for 2-3 minutes, and try to avoid the meat from breaking down.
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4
Add 3 cups of remaining stock (if the stock is less than 3 cups add water). Give everything a gentle stir and cover the pan. Let it simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.
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5In the meantime, in a small bowl, combine the flour with ½ cup of water. Stir well.
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6
After the stew has simmered for 10 minutes, add the flour mixture to the pan, stirring gently. Cover the pan and let it simmer for another 10-15 minutes on low heat. Check it once or twice to make sure the gravy is not drying out.
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7
Remove the pan from the heat and let it stand for 10 minutes with its lid on before serving. When ready to serve, add salt to taste and garnish the stew with the ginger, cilantro and lemon juice and serve hot with pita, naan or any bread of your choice.
It turned out really good
This recipe is excellent and I’ll make it again many times, just as printed. I’ve tried to make Nihari twice before with different recipes and it didn’t have the taste that I’m used to. Spice was excellent. Also, it’s extremely easy to make.
Thanks.
I clicked on the link and apparently she doesn’t have her site anymore; it was down. That’s too bad!
(The recipe calls for 2 cinnamon sticks, but only asks you to use one when cooking beef. I don’t know what the other is for since the masala mix has 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon.)
Thanks for your trying.
I’m making this for the 3rd time now! It’s very close to what I used to have at an Indian restaurant, this recipe is a keeper! Thanks so much ❤️
Thanks.
Abdul-Aziz,
This is not a “comment”. Actually it is a query.. I just LOVE potatoes, potatoes in everything (almost) that I cook. I have tried at least four different Nihari recipes and now I want to try your recipe, and even before trying it out I am positive it will be yummy with a capital M. BUT, I want to add potatoes to my dish, something I have never tried (or even tasted, for that matter). My question is: is it okay to add potatoes to my Nihari dish? Will it in any way “ruin” the dish? Now that is the last thing I want to happen. Should I go ahead and take the risk?
Lol, I’m actually gonna do this today :D I don’t think it’d ruin the dish but I’d either add lesser flour because of the extra starch of the potatoes(if you’re cooking it together with the meat), or boil the potatoes separately and incorporate them closer to the end of cooking this dish. .
It turned out really good
Awesome thanks!
Can I use rye flour instead of Maida or Atta?
I am not sure.
wow, Nihari is something i can eat daily, and your recipe is so amazing big thumps up i also make nihari and its my mother recipe
I made this yesterday! Was absolutely fantastic! Unfortunately I didn’t have the black cardomom, so it was very slightly lacking in the smokey flavor I’m used to from my favorite restaurant, but I’m going to try again to see if that’s the final touch, but really, it was just about perfect. Not sure I agree with the 25 mins prep time, lol, but maybe with some practice I’ll get there ;) I also swapped out the 2-3 hours stovetop time with a pressure cooker (a Christmas gift) and that worked very well to reduce total cooking time. Very highly recommended. I’ve tried numerous Nihari recipes, and none has come close – this one is just an earthy, warming delight.
Hi Ian, thanks for trying the Indian Beef Stew or Nihari recipe.
nice recipe ………………………..,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,//////////////////////////// THANKS