There is nothing restrained about this fiery Kolhapuri mutton curry
No write-up on Maharashtrian cuisine is complete without the mention of Matnacha rassa or mutton curry from the state’s southern city of Kolhapur which goes best with Tandoolchi bhakri . The city’s Lavangi mirchi has been a part of culinary lore for centuries. Chef Milind Holankar of Purepur Kolhapur, a restaurant chain in Pune, attributes the fame of these chillies to lyrics in popular Maharashtrian folk songs. “The Lavangi is small in size, bright red and very spicy. Poets often comapre it to an attractive woman and hence the famous phrase — Kolhapurchi lawangi tikhat mirchi,” he says.

Holankar tells us about the basic ingredient in any Kolhapuri cuisine—the kanda-lasun ( onion-garlic) chutney. This is Lavangi chilli powder mixed with 200 gm of finely chopped onion, garlic, coriander, ginger, salt, and goda masala roasted in oil. All ingredients are ground together and this powder can be stored for six months. “This gives Kolhapuri food its signature red hot colour without making it too pungent,” says Holankar. (You can use any other dried red chilli powder.)

For the mutton curry, the chef first boils a kilogram of medium-sized mutton pieces in a deep vessel with a teaspoon of oil and salt till the pieces are soft. “We will use the rest of the water or the stock while cooking,” he says. Once the mutton is tender, he fries chopped onions, bay leaves, star anise and black cardamom in a pan. When the onions turn golden-brown, he adds the chopped tomato pieces and turmeric. To the tender tomato-onion mix, he adds a paste of ginger-garlic-coriander leaves. To this he adds the kanda-lasun chutney which instantly changes the contents in the pan to a rich maroon.

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