Mutton Meatball Xacuti

 25 August

From past two days there is not even a single rain cloud to be seen in the sky. Instead it is replaced by fluffy white clouds, autumn like azure skies with air like cider. It seems too early for autumn to arrive but still the atmosphere feels like its Dura Pooja already. 

The weather outside really influences my mood. With such a bright an chirpy day, I went into a home cleaning mode even in the mid of a work week. I reorganized a few to do things, got a few pending items out of the way, had an extended workout session and I am feeling cheery even without a specific reason. And now it is a challenge to focus on the office work, because this weather makes me feel like its the holidays and I need to spend the entire day reading some good book lying on my bed. Well only two more day to weekend and this time I promised myself I am going to just lie there doing absolutely nothing the whole weekend ( I know it sounds practically impossible but I will still try to convince myself). 

In the meantime, I am again feeling the Blahs for Instagram. This time I could at least keep the tempo for 3 continuous weeks. I hurdled to post at least 3 posts each week with countless engagements on peoples post but now I feel like not even logging in to see what's happening in the Instagram world. Seriously it becomes so tiring at times, I don't know how people keep up with the momentum of posting every single day! So after a 5 day break I am again trying to get back on the grind. 

The recipe I am posting today was first made on a very experimental basis just like many of my dishes. But it turned out really well. So I tried it a few more times with minor variations and every time it was just amazing. 

Xacuti (pronounced “Sha-kuti”) is a classic curry which originated in Goa, India, with complex spicing, including roasted white poppy seeds, sliced or grated coconut and large dried red chilies. It is usually prepared with chicken or lamb. It is also known as chacuti in Portuguese. It is always a good idea to prepare the spice mix fresh at home. But the good news is that there are a few brands which makes this spice mix as good as home made. One such brand is El the cook. They bring you this essential paste in a traditional stone ground powder, and best thing is its absolutely preservative free. 

When they sent over this masala, I wanted to make something which was not very standard in the world of Xacuti. Initially I wanted to make it with crabs, as the aroma of roasted coconut pairs wonderfully with coastal seafood. But then got a better idea of making Meatball xacuti. I had been craving for some mutton meatballs for a while and this was the perfect opportunity to get the best of both worlds. 

This is an easy peasy delicious recipe because the readymade masala takes most of the hardwork out of this. Making the meatball is a little work of patience but that's all in it. Check out the recipe below.

Preparation Time: 30  minutes

Cooking Time : 20 minutes

Serves - 4 adults

Ingredients :

For Meatballs:

• Mutton Mince - 500 gm
• Chopped Onions - 1/2 cup
• Chopped green chilies - 2 tsp
• Xacuti Masala - 2 tbsp (heaped)
• Salt as per taste
• Oil - for shaping the balls & frying

For Gravy:

• Onion - 1 big, cut into big pieces and all layers separated
• Dry red chilli - 2
• Coconut - 4 to 5  medium pieces
• Garlic - 4-5 pods
• Ginger - 2 inch, cut into pieces (skin on)
• Xacuti Masala - 3 tbsp
• Warm Water / Mutton stock - 2 cups
• Salt as per taste
• Oil - 2 tbsp

Equipment:

• Flat tawa
• Wok
• Mixing bowl
• Mixer grinder

Method

Recipe Video:

For Meatballs:

1. In a mixing bowl take the mince mutton. Add 2 heaped tea spoons of the xacuti masala.

2. Add salt, chopped onions, chopped green chilies and knead the mince nicely to bring everything together.

3. Now in a mixer grinder, pulse the mince mixture for 30 seconds. The mixture should be coarsely ground.

4. Now take oil in your hands, take small portions from the mixture and shape them into balls. Size can be that of a golf ball.

5. Now heat a kadai and add enough oil to fry the meatballs. When the oil is hot, add the balls in small batches and fry till the surface is little browned. Keep aside.

For Gravy:

1. In a flat non stick tawa, dry roast onions, dried red chilli, ginger pieces, garlic and coconut pieces for about 5 - 8 minutes on medium flame till the onion looks a little wilted and the coconuts emit a nice aroma. Keep stirring every 2 seconds so that they don't burn. A little char is what we want on all the ingredients. Cool it before transferring to a mixer grinder.

Tip: Spread out the onion pieces in a single layer for uniform roasting

2. Now in a mixer grinder, add all the dry roasted ingredients, add 1 tbsp of water and pulse it to a nice thick paste. Keep this aside.

3. In a bowl take 3 heaped tsp of xacuti masala. Add 2 tsp  of warm mutton stock or warm water and create a masala paste.

4. Heat oil in a deep wok. When the oil is hot add the masala prepared in Step 2. Sauté the masala till oil separates.

5. Add the xacuti masala slurry to the wok. Now sauté for about 4-5 minutes.

6. Add about 1.5 cups of warm water or mutton stock and mix well. Adjust the seasoning.

7. Now add the fried meatballs slowly into this gravy. Let it simmer for about 9-10 minutes till the gravy thickens a little. 

Garnish it with fresh coriander leaves and serve hot. This pairs well with Indian flatbreads or pulao.

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