Kerala Style Beef Ularthiyathu

We are on a mallu food trip here on the blog, and it is now the turn of the Malayalee's pride and joy; the brilliant beef ularthiyuthu. We are not on a roll because we are doing it for the sake of the blog. or because there is a dearth for beef ularthiyu recipes on the internet (it is anything but that). The beef ularthiyathu is ubiquitous to the Malayalee' kitchen. and in his heart. No blog repertoire or Mallu home would be complete sans this star dish, or their own version of it. So we thought it appropriate to share our love for this universal dish, one that binds the parotta lover and the red rice fan, the dish that binds the humble thattukada and kitchens of the fanciest restaurants, the beef ularthiyuthu!

Our version keeps changing every time we try it. but one of the constants is, we are not overly enthusiastic fans of coconut as-is in our food, and hence do not add the classic coconut chunks/slices to our beef. We also make sure our beef ularthiyuthu goes a dark dark brown and that is achieved with the help of pepper and dry roasting the spices with the onions. As it turns out, this particular time, we did not do that. Another lesson learnt: always add the turmeric to the beef when pressure cooking it, and not at the dry-roast-the-spices stage. As the blooming pictures are proof, we got a slightly yellowish brown color as a result of these bloopers, but the taste was pretty bang on.

So without any further ado, here we go!

You will need:

Beef (cut into chunks) - 1 kg

Shallots (thinly sliced) - 10

Onions (thinly sliced) - 2 medium sized

Garlic cloves (chopped) - 6

Ginger (chopped) - 1/2 inch long

Garam Masala - 3 teaspoons

Curry leaves - 2 sprigs

Turmeric Powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Green Chili (thinly sliced) - 4

Black Pepper - 1 teaspoon

Fennel seeds -  1/4 teaspoon

Coriander powder - 2 1/2 teaspoons

Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon

Salt to taste

Vegetable oil to sputter/sauté in (Coconut oil works best for the authentic flavor)

Procedure

-Pressure cook the beef in the turmeric powder, 2 teaspoons of coriander powder and 2 teaspoons of the garam masala till fully cooked.

-Strain the stock and keep aside.

-In a pan, sputter the mustard and curry leaves in coconut oil. Add the thinly sliced onions and sauté till golden brown.

-Add the chopped ginger & garlic and sliced green chilis to the above mix and cook for 5 minutes. Keep aside.

-In the same pan, sauté the shallots and fennel until brown. Tip the beef in and stir and cook for 5 minutes. Add salt.

-Into this, add the remaining garam masala and coriander powder along with the ground pepper. Cook for 5 minutes, or till the masala is cooked.

-To the beef, add the sautéd onion-green chili mix and move it around a bit. This lets the flavors come together. Stir and cook together for another 5 minutes. and Viola! You have your beef ularthiyuthu ready! Garnish with curry leaves.

P.S: Tastes best with hot rotis and a side of thick yogurt or with piping hot rice and moru kachiyathu.

P.P.S: You can use the stock to make a flavored pulao. or even a beef curry.