Easy Hyderabadi Marag Recipe That Makes A Delicious Starter

When in Hyderabad, we dine like the Nawabs. One can only imagine the grand feasts the Nawabs of Hyderabad threw. Think of royalty and elegance, and add an endless buffet of food items to that picture, comprising everything from kebabs, soups, and biryani to divine desserts like Khubani-ka-meetha! Needless to say, the land of Hyderabad is famous for its exotic meat dishes and a hit among these is the classic Hyderabadi marag. If you’re a foodie, you must be already drooling at the mention of Marag. 
For the rest, here’s your introduction to the best mutton soup you will ever find. Marag is a quintessential Hyderabadi delicacy loaded with the goodness of spices and herbs. The essence of marag lies in its tender, bone-in mutton, which makes this epic soup truly out of this world! Typically served as a starter in weddings and feasts, ‘Marag’ works up your appetite with its creamy and rich flavours, and can be had just anytime, really. If you’re the health-conscious type, then marag is the good news you’ve been waiting for. Not only is marag a delicious bowl of heaven, but it is also nutritious, with just the right protein content! We know you can’t wait to try this delightful dish, so here’s your step-by-step guide to mastering the art of making authentic Hyderabadi marag.

What is Marag?

The marag dish is a flavourful and thin mutton stew often consumed as a starter with rumali roti or sheermal in traditional Hyderabadi weddings. This marag soup has an irresistible aroma, thanks to the rich variety of spices that go into it. The mutton marag soup originally used to be slow-cooked on a wood fire. Today, you can easily cook it in pressure cookers on gas stoves. This flavourful Hyderabadi soup is best relished with rumali rotis or phulkas.

Nutritious value of marag

Marag soup is not only a festive dish, it can also be had when one is recovering from illness. Thanks to its immunity-boosting properties, the marag dish is often prescribed post-childbirth, or post-surgery to help boost energy levels. The mutton marag soup is rich in iron and helps improve the body’s metabolism along with strengthening immunity.

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Ingredients needed to make marag

Here are the ingredients you need to make the perfect bowl of mutton marag Hyderabadi:

1. 7-8 pieces of mutton, some should be with bone
2. 2 cloves and 1 cardamom for a fresh aroma
3. 1 tsp. of ginger-garlic paste for added flavour
4. 2 finely chopped onions and 2 green chillies (you can reduce or increase the number of chillies based on your spice tolerance)
5. 6-7 cashews, pistachios and grated coconut to bring a creamy texture to the soup
6. 1 tsp. chironji seeds, red chilli powder, pepper, garam masala, coriander powder and jeera powder for seasoning
7. Salt to taste and some fresh mint leaves
8. Curd for enhanced taste
9. Some cream at last for the perfect finishing touch

Hyderabadi marag recipe

Now let us look at the mutton marag recipe that you can easily make at home using the above-listed ingredients:

1. To make the Hyderabadi marag recipe, start by heating some oil in your pressure cooker, and adding the cloves, cardamom, ginger-garlic paste, and chopped onions to it. Sautee everything till the onions are soft.
2. Now add the mutton pieces and cook till the colour changes to light brown. Add water (depending on the quantity of soup you need) and pressure cook the mutton till it becomes tender.
3. While the mutton cooks, work on preparing the seasoning. For this, you need to make a fine paste of your green chillies, cashews, pistachios, coconut, and chironji seeds. Now mix this paste with your curd and pour it all into your boiled mutton stew.
4. Let this flavoured stew boil for 1-2 minutes and now add all your masalas: pepper, red chilli powder, garam masala, coriander powder, jeera powder, salt and mint leaves. Once the stew comes to a boil, add a bit of cream and serve your hot and delicious bowl of marag.

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Tips to make the perfect marag

The Hyderabadi marag recipe is quite easy to replicate at home. The fact that it is not as spicy as other meat dishes of the region makes it ideal for young children and the elderly. One of the best tips to make the perfect marag is to remove the extra fat from the mutton before cooking. It might be best to use a young lamb or goat for reduced fat content. The amount of nuts and spices can be changed as per preference. If you’re cooking for someone with a lower spice tolerance, it might be a good idea to replace chillies with pepper.