Masterclass – Mutton Shanks (Nalli) Chettinad Fry

Shanks or Nalli is one of my favourite parts of both the lamb or goat.  Though I prefer goat more often than sheep since it renders better.  In Bengaluru, traditionally sheep meat is more commonly used than goat.  It could be because of the fat which is more in sheep. The Bannur Lamb variety is the most famous in Bengaluru with the carnivores singing peons on the tender meat and the layers of fat that is used as grease. Most military hotels prefer the use of sheep meat over goat meat though the price is similar.

Anyways coming back to the nalli.  The sheer pleasure of a fall of the bone meat and sucking the marrow of a well made shank can make me go into a poetic mode.    . With Covid changing the entire landscape of how we buy things, I have almost completely gone online for meat. It doesn’t help that my local butcher shut shop too. My favourite place to buy mutton now is www.chopchop.in . The quality is top notch and the meat is completely cleaned and gristle free.

The Chettinad nalli fry is something I have perfected down to a formula and it never goes wrong.. One of the easiest dishes to make, the meat quality plays a very important role so ensure you have good meat for the experience. Shanks or Nalli is one of my favourite parts of both the lamb or goat.  Chettinad cuisine is know for its hit of raw spices and pepper and their use of curry leaves which imparts a beautiful spicy flavor to the dish.

Lets begin shall we…..

Ingredients for Mutton Nalli Fry

Mutton – Half kg shanks (you can scale up).

Garlic – Peeled garlic pods, about 8-9 (the more the merrier but 15 is good)

Green Chillies – About 10, slit, again the more the merrier.  I like it HOT

Curry Leaves – A forest of it works.. We need a lot.  Put the twigs in too, thats where the real flavor is

Mutton fat or regular oil – Fat enhances the flavor better of course.. About 3 tbps

Coarsely Crushed pepper corns – The more the merrier. The whole dish is dependent on the heat of the pepper corns. About 5-6 tablespoons

Onions – One finely sliced

Lets Begin

1. Take a 2 litre pressure cooker and add about 2 cups of water.  Put the mutton shanks in, add a little salt and blast it for about 7-8 whistles on high and 2-3 in low.  I retain the broth for other uses or simply add some pepper and salt and have it as a soup shot.
2. Separate the pieces from the liquid slowly. Those pieces are almost falling apart.
3. Take a kadai (a chinese wok works best though) and put in the mutton fat pieces and render it till you get about 3 tablespoons of oil. You can remove and reuse the rest.  If you already have rendered fat then use 3 tbs
4. Heat it and then add the garlic pods, onions, green chillies and the curry leaves. Add pepper and salt as suited and fry it till you get this rich aromas of the mixed ingredients. Add the mutton shanks and slowly start incorporating it in this mixture. The meat is so tender, the marrow bone is literally separate from the meat at this stage so do it slowly with patience. Now gradually add about 1 cup of the stock into this, all the while stirring.  The stock intensifies the flavor to another level, much like in pullao.  Keep stirring till it has almost dried out. If you feel it is burning out too fast, lower flame and add more stock till. You will get this gooyey sticky layer on the mutton pieces thats just mind blowing with the intensified flavors of all the ingredients.   Give it one last stir and transfer it on to a serving bowl. Done and dusted !!

P S – Don’t be scared to use the stock. It doesn’t matter if you use it more, just cook it a little longer and dry it out.  The effort is worth it.

The Opos mutton chettinad using Opos (one pot one shot) also comes out great and can be made under 15 minutes.  Read it here