Kerala beef fry with rice
Beef ularthiyathu, the dark, dry, peppery beef fry of Kerala's Christian and Muslim homes: beef pressure-cooked with turmeric, chilli, coriander and garam masala, then slow-roasted in coconut oil with crisp coconut slivers (thenga kothu), small onions, ginger, garlic, fennel and curry leaves until deep brown and crusty at the edges. Eaten with Kerala matta rice and often a curry, or with appam, porotta or kappa. Buffalo meat is cooked the same way.
- 1 h 15Time
- 1 hHands-on
- 4Portions
- 47 gprotein per portion
- 870kcal per portion
Ingredients for 4 portions
- 750 gBeef chuck, boneless, in 2 cm cubes
- 3 mlTurmeric
- 2 tspKashmiri chilli powder
- 1 tbspCoriander powder
- 1 tspGaram masala
- 2 tspBlack pepper, freshly crushed
- 1 tbspGinger, crushed, for the beef
- 5 clovesGarlic, crushed, for the beef
- 1 tspVinegar
- to tasteSalt
- ≈ 100 mlWater
- 4 tbspCoconut oil
- 60 gGrated coconut, in thin slivers
- 1 tspFennel seeds
- 20Small onions (shallots), peeled and sliced
- 1 tbspGinger, cut in thin strips
- 5 clovesGarlic, sliced
- 3Green chillies, slit
- 3 sprigsCurry leaves
On the side
- 350 gRice, Kerala matta (red) rice
Method
- Wash the beef and drain it well. Mix it with the turmeric, Kashmiri chilli powder, coriander powder, garam masala, half the crushed pepper, the crushed ginger and garlic, the vinegar and salt.
- Put the beef in the pressure cooker with the water.
- Pressure-cook on medium for 5–6 whistles, about 25 minutes, and let the pressure drop by itself. The beef should be tender.
- Meanwhile, wash the rice and put a large pan of water on to boil for it.
- Boil the matta rice uncovered in the bubbling water until the grains are soft, 30–35 minutes. Drain off the water and keep the rice covered.
- Cut the coconut into thin slivers, peel and slice the small onions, cut the ginger into thin strips, slice the garlic and slit the green chillies.
- Heat the coconut oil in a heavy kadai and fry the coconut slivers on a medium flame until golden brown, about 4 minutes.
- Add the fennel seeds and curry leaves, then the small onions, ginger, garlic and green chillies, and fry until the onions are golden brown, about 8 minutes.
- Add the beef with its stock and stir. Roast on a medium-low flame for 20–25 minutes, stirring often and scraping the bottom, until all the liquid has gone and the beef is dark brown and crisp at the edges.
- Stir in the rest of the crushed pepper and serve hot with the rice.
