Degchi
Hyderabadi Haleem
Serves 6 · Total 150 min · Prep 30 min · Cook 120 min
Photo: Halt123halt / CC BY-SA 4.0
Wheat, lentils and mutton pounded together for hours into a thick, meaty porridge, finished with fried onions, mint and a squeeze of lemon. A Ramadan favourite in Hyderabad, rich enough to be a full meal on its own.
Quick answer: 150 min in total · serves 6 · main ingredients: Mutton, Wheat flour, Red lentils, Split mung beans · amounts in metric and US
Ingredients
- 500 g 1.1 lb Mutton, bone-in, cut into pieces
- 150 g 5.3 oz Wheat flour, cracked wheat or broken wheat
- 50 g 1.8 oz Red lentils
- 50 g 1.8 oz Split mung beans
- 50 g 1.8 oz Split chickpeas
- 2 pc 2 pc Onion, sliced and deep-fried
- 1 tbsp 1 tbsp Ginger, paste
- 1 tbsp 1 tbsp Garlic, paste
- 4 tbsp 4 tbsp Clarified butter
- 1 tbsp 1 tbsp Red chilli powder
- 1 tsp 1 tsp Garam masala
- 2 tsp 2 tsp Salt, to taste
- 100 ml 0.4 cup Milk (Optional)
- 1 pc 1 pc Lemon, cut into wedges, to serve (Optional)
Steps
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- Soak the wheat and all three lentils together for 2 hours, then drain.⏱ Soaking grains · 120 min
- Pressure-cook the mutton with ginger-garlic paste, salt and 4 cups water until very tender, about 30 minutes.⏱ Cooking mutton · 30 min
- Separately boil the soaked wheat and lentils in water until completely soft and mushy, about 40 minutes.⏱ Cooking wheat and lentils · 40 min
- Shred the cooked mutton off the bone and mash the wheat-lentil mixture with a hand blender.
- Combine the shredded meat with the mashed wheat-lentil base and cook together on low heat for 20 minutes, stirring and pounding so they blend into a thick porridge.⏱ Pounding into haleem · 20 min
- Heat ghee with red chilli powder and garam masala; pour over the haleem and mix in.
- Serve hot topped with fried onions, mint and a squeeze of lemon.
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Frequently asked questions
How long does Hyderabadi Haleem take?
150 minutes in total: about 30 minutes of prep and 120 minutes of cooking.
Is Hyderabadi Haleem hard to make?
Degchi rates it hard. The method has 7 steps, and 4 of them have a timer you can start on this page.
How many people does Hyderabadi Haleem serve?
This recipe serves 6. Use the toggle above the ingredient list to see the amounts in metric or US measures. For more or fewer portions, scale every amount in the same proportion, or use the servings control in the Degchi app.
Is Hyderabadi Haleem halal, vegetarian or eggless?
It is marked halal in our recipe data. It is not vegetarian. It has no egg. It has no beef. Check the labels on any packaged ingredients for your own needs.
What will I probably need to buy for Hyderabadi Haleem?
Everyday staples that Degchi counts as pantry basics: red chilli powder, salt. Spice-box items: garam masala. Fresh items you will probably need to buy: mutton, onion, ginger, garlic, clarified butter. Lentils, grains and other dry goods: wheat flour, red lentils, split mung beans, split chickpeas.
Any tips for making Hyderabadi Haleem?
The longer you pound and stir the meat and grains together, the smoother and more porridge-like the haleem becomes.
Notes and questions
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