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Flavorful, filling and easy to prepare, bhuna gosht (beef with yogurt) is a one-pot winner.
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About This Recipe
An old friend from college, Anita, shared this bhuna gosht recipe with me close to 10 years ago. I used to make it all the time when I lived in colder climates, especially during the holiday season, when we would host my siblings from New York, and cook up a storm. Bhuna gosht is exactly the type of dish that is best enjoyed during such a time: you have your sweats on, your family and friends are visiting, and you can let the richly spiced meat bubble in the background while you watch a movie and catch up.
I felt the recent urge to recreate it in Manila since it had been some time since we enjoyed a hearty and delicious beef dish that didn’t require a ton of work. Similar to the dahi chicken (chicken with yogurt) recipe I shared a couple of weeks ago, all you need to do is let the meat sit in a spicy yogurt marinade for a couple of hours, and then, slow cook it until it is tender. Serve it as a weeknight dish or a more formal dinner spread, this slow-cooked bhuna gosht recipe is a winner.
What Makes Bhuna Gosht Special
What I love about this recipe is that you cannot really go wrong with it. It’s a great dish for cooks that are either beginners or new to South Asian cooking. It doesn’t require any obscure spices that you need to source from the specialty South Asian store or you to employ a great deal of cooking intuition. You simply need to occasionally check in on the beef to make sure it’s not sticking to the pot, and adding a small amount of (preferably hot) water a bit at a time to keep it cooking.
Ingredients
Full-fat yogurt: Use full-fat yogurt for the marinade. Greek yogurt works well here but okay to use regular yogurt as well.
Crushed garlic: You can buy this at the store or just crush it yourself using a food processor or mortar and pestle.
Crushed ginger: You can again, buy this at the store or make it at home. Peel roughly 1-inch piece of fresh ginger, and mince it in a food processor.
Salt: I use ground Himalayan rock salt but you can use any variety. Just adjust based on taste.
Kashmiri Red Chili Powder: I always like to use Kashmiri red chili powder because of its beautiful color but if you don’t have any on hand, you can substitute it with cayenne red pepper. Just remember to adjust for heat.
Garam Masala Powder: It infuses the beef with a slightly tangy and smoky flavor.
Cumin Powder
Vegetable Oil: Any neutral oil with a high smoke point (such as canola or sunflower) will work.
Yellow Onion: I prefer to use yellow onion here but if you don’t have any on hand, white or red onion will work okay too.
Roma or Vine Tomatoes (crushed): I prefer to crush the fresh tomatoes in a food processor but you can also use crushed tomatoes from a can.
Boneless Beef Chuck: Please do not use a high-quality cut of beef for this recipe. I like to use boneless beef chuck but beef stewing cubes work too.
Cilantro (for garnish): Just to give the dish some freshness and color.
Make Ahead
You can marinade the beef about 8 hours in advance, which makes bhuna gosht an easy addition to your dinner party spread. As mentioned earlier, it also requires fairly minimal cooking supervision so you can turn your attention to other dishes while this bubbles in the background.
What to Serve it With
Due to the rich and concentrated flavors of this dish, I like to prepare it a milder, vegetarian side:
Bhuna Gosht (Slow-Cooked Beef with Yogurt)
Equipment
- 1 Heavy-bottomed pot
Ingredients
- ¾ cup full-fat yogurt lightly whisked
- 1 ½ teaspoon crushed garlic
- 1 ½ teaspoon crushed ginger
- 1 ¼ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon garam masala powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1 pound and 1 ounce (500 grams) boneless beef chuck, cut into 1 to 1 ½-inch pieces
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 1 medium-sized yellow onion halved and thinly sliced
- 2 to 3 Roma or Vine tomatoes crushed
- 2 tablespoon chopped cilantro (for garnish, optional)
Instructions
- Combine the yogurt, crushed garlic and ginger, salt, red chili, garam masala, and cumin powder in a large bowl. Add the chopped beef and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour and up to 8 hours. Once you are ready to cook, remove from the fridge and ideally, let it come to room temperature before cooking it.
- Heat oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-low heat until it begins to shimmer. Add the chopped onion and fry until they soften and brown at the edges, about 7 to 10 minutes.
- Increase heat to medium-high, and add the beef with the yogurt marinade. Fry until evenly brown, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the crushed tomatoes, and 1 cup of water. Cover and bring to boil.
- Lower to a gentle simmer. Let the beef cook, with the lid still on, on low heat for 2 to 2 ½ hours until tender. Stir and add small amounts of water (no more than ¼ cup at a time), occasionally, to prevent it from sticking to the pot.
- Once soft, bring heat to medium-high, and briefly stir until the oil begins to separate, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add 1 to 2 tablespoon of water if necessary. Remove from heat and transfer to serving bowl. Garnish with chopped cilantro (optional).
Anna says
Looks so delicious! How much yogurt do you add?
Maryam Jillani says
Thanks so much for flagging the omission Anna - it's one cup yogurt!
Dennis Yannakos says
Look so tasty! Thanks for the recipe!
Utensils for Cool Kitchen