Kathmandu Valley (Newar) · 45 min · Meat · Starter · For confident cooks
Haku Chhwela
In German: Ueber Strohfeuer geraeuchertes mariniertes Fleisch
For 4 servings · US units
Flame-grilled buffalo with Sichuan pepper (timur) and smoking mustard oil
Haku Chhwela is a Newar dish from the Kathmandu Valley where the smoke of an open fire counts for as much as the spices: the meat is grilled dark all over, cut into strips, then doused with hot mustard oil in which fenugreek seeds have toasted almost black. That pouring-over is the Newar seasoning technique that pulls the whole bowl together. It belongs with chiura, the flattened beaten rice — that's what turns a bowl of meat into the meal people eat at festivals.
Ingredients
- 1⅛ lbbuffalo meatin whole pieces, alternatively beef, chicken or pork; grilled over open flame
- 2 tbspOilheated to smoking and poured over
- 1 tspFenugreek seedstoasted dark in the hot oil
- 3 clovesGarlicfinely chopped
- 2 tbspGingerjulienned or as paste
- 1 tspcoarsely crushedDried husks of a citrus-family shrub, not a true pepper. Lemony and floral, with a tingling, numbing effect on the tongue.Substitute: Timur and Sichuan pepper stand in for each other well. Black pepper with a little grated lemon zest roughly matches the aroma, but the tingling and numbing are lost entirely.Read more
- 1 tspTurmeric
- 1 tspChili powderadjust to desired heat
- 1½ tspSalt
- 3Spring onionsliced; one source uses green garlic leaves
- 1 bunchCorianderroughly chopped, to garnish
- 2Tomatogrilled alongside and chopped into the mix (optional)
- 7 ozBeaten rice (chiura)to serve, puffed rice as alternative
Method
- Cut the buffalo meat from the whole piece into large chunks about a finger thick — that way it stays juicy inside on the grill.
- Grill the pieces over an open flame or hot coals until dark all over, about 4–5 minutes per side; the centre should stay juicy. If you like, lay the tomatoes on the coals alongside.
- Let the grilled meat rest briefly under a cover so it doesn't dry out.
- Slice the meat across the grain into thin strips or bite-sized pieces. Roughly chop the grilled tomatoes.
- Put the meat in a wide bowl and mix it with salt, turmeric, chilli powder, coarsely crushed Sichuan pepper, ginger, chopped garlic and the sliced spring onions; fold in the chopped tomatoes now.
- Heat the mustard oil in a small pan until it smokes, add the fenugreek seeds and let them go dark — deeply browned, but not burnt.
- Pour the sizzling hot oil over the meat mixture and toss everything through quickly.
- Leave the Haku Chhwela to sit for about 10 minutes, scatter with coriander and serve warm to room temperature with beaten rice.
Tips and variations
Instead of buffalo, the dish works just as well with pork, beef or chicken thighs. If you grill the tomatoes along with the meat, it's worth adding a little neutral oil to the mustard oil for tempering the fenugreek. Some cooks season with curry powder on top of the turmeric and chilli. To serve, put chiura (beaten rice) or puffed rice in the middle of the table with the warm meat beside it — everyone helps themselves to a bit of each in turn.
Allergens
Contains: Mustard
These notes follow from this recipe's ingredient list. Ready-made products and brands may contain further allergens — please check the packaging yourself.
Something not right?
This recipe was put together from independent sources and checked before publishing. Even so, a mistake can slip through — an amount that does not add up, a step that does not work as written. If you spot something, write to us: we will look into it and put it right.
