Haleem is a very healthy and a one dish meal eaten by many in the arab countries and in Hyderabad India. The arab version is mild while the other versions are much spicier. I was very fortunate to make this dish in my friends home in Dubai. My version of this dish has much less ghee than the original version and i shall give you the options where more ghee can be added. This is such a delicacy and seems difficult to make but i shall guide you through it in the simplest way possible. I am sure many make haleem in different ways… and id love to hear of your versions but for those who want to learn a simple and yet delicious haleem i am sure you will love my recipe. By the way this is made with mutton but can be also made with lamb or chicken or beef.
INGREDIENTS:
500 grams boneless mutton, or lamb or beef
1/2 cup of broken wheat(burgul), soaked overnight
1/4  cup each of yellow split lentils(channa dal), red lentils(masoor dal) and tuvar dal (split yello pigeon peas), soaked overnight
PLEASE NOTE IF YOU CANT GET THESE LENTILS YOU CAN USE EITHER
3 tablespoons of ginger paste
3 tablespoons of garlic paste
12 cloves
12 cardamoms
3 pices of cinnamon of 1 inch each appox.
green chillies to taste
red chilli powder to taste
1.5 teaspoons of turmeric powder
6 tablespoons of ghee (the recipe asks for 3 times as much but i just used this much)
salt to taste
coriander and mint leaves chopped fine
EXTRAS:
1-2 tablespoons of haleem spice powder or garam masala
fried onions and chopped nuts for garnish
1/2 cup of whole milk
METHOD:
STEP ONE
pressure cook the meat with 1 tablespoon of ginger paste, 1 tablespoon of garlic paste, 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric powder and 4 cloves, 4 cardamoms and 1 pieces of cinnamon and salt to taste for 3 whistles without any water. open the pressure cooker when you can and shred the meat and keep aside the liquid which remains.
STEP TWO:
pressure cook the wheat and the lentils with 1 tablespoon of ginger paste, 1 tablespoon of garlic paste, 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric powder and 4 cloves, 4 cardamoms and 1 piece of cinnamon and salt to taste with 2 cups of water for 3 whistles. Mash the whole mixture well (you can even puree it in the blender but i didnt have to…it was quite mashed when i iopened the cooker).
STEP THREE:
Heat the ghee in a casserole dish and add the remaining ginger garlic paste and the whole spices and then add the shredded meat and stir for a while. Add salt and red chilli powder and then add the lentil wheat mixture and let it mix well. Add the stock from the meat and taste seasoning , if its too bland you can add some haleem spice powder or garam masala. Add the milk and let it boil. Haleem is supposed to be quite mushy so you can add more water if you wish. At this stage you are supposed to add some ghee which i did not. Serve it with fried onions, chopped nuts and the chopped coriander and mint leaves. I sprinkled some garam masala and served it.
MY COMMENTS:
i have never tasted haleem before let alone cook it. I have heard about it being amazing, rich and a real dish for feasts but honestly i found it just Ok… My friend liked it very much and so did her husband so id love to have feedback from all of you who try this out…