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In his highly readable book on Delhi, the noted writer
Shahid Ahmed Dehalvi, recalled that nihari was
concocted by a hakeem sahib in Delhi. It was meant to
be taken at breakfast in winters and was supposed to
act as a deterrent to cold, cough and congestion.
Sadly, now the hakeem sahib must be turning in his
grave for this mouth-watering beef curry is available
almost round the clock at nihari joints in Karachi.
Three years ago when I told a friend one evening in
Delhi that I wanted to try the Jamia Masjid nihari, he
looked at me in utter amazement. He thought I had
gone bonkers. I can take you there tomorrow early in
the morning, he said and then trying to educate me he
commented Nihari means morning.
Nihari is in one way like the English language, which gained
much wider currency since the mid-fifties, almostentirely because
of the Americans and their influence. The poor ahle-zaban British
dont deserve credit for that.
Likewise, the Karachi walas, who frequent the joints which
display the message, subah nihari, dopahair nihari,
sham nihari (morning, noon and night nihari), have made the
finger-licking delicacy popular outside the
subcontinent too.
Incidentally, no one ever heard of nihari in what is now
Pakistan before partition. It was brought to Karachi by two or
three bhatyaras from Delhi after partition. Initially, it was
only available in places like Burnes Road and Eidgah
where the refugees from Delhi had settled in large numbers.
Sabri Nihariwala, on what was once Bunder Road
(now MA Jinnah Road), knew the pulse of the public, for he
reduced the chillies thus making his speciality less hot,
though not less spicy. This worked, his sales went up, and what
is no less he saved money on the extra chillies that
he was putting in the cauldron. Needless to say, his competitors
followed in his footsteps.
Over the years, cooks from other parts of the subcontinent also
started making nihari. A few years ago someone
recommended that nihari served by a restaurant in one of the
bylanes of Tariq Road. There are two eateries, both
displaying cauldrons of nihari, which one belongs to the man
from Delhi? I queried. Just go there, read the
signboards and you will know which is genuine and which is
fake.
On reaching the place I had a quick look, one said Yehan Dilli
ki asli nihari milti hai, while the other claimed Yehan
Dilli ka asli nihari milta hai. The second belonged to a Pathan,
whose man by the cauldron was sitting idle though
his chapli kabab chap was quite active. I hardly need to tell
you how busy was the nihariwala on the other side of
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BY ASIF NOORANI ON SEPTEMBER 24TH, 2011 | COMMENT (1)
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Mexican makes nihari | Blog | DAWN.COM
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8/3/2019 A Mexican Makes Nihari _ Blog _ DAWN
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the street.
For the more health conscious people, who avoid red meat, a new
option has cropped up, they get chicken nihari
made at home. With nihari masala available readily not just in
Pakistan but in Pakistani and Indian stores abroad,
also more people make the dish at home now. They dont add bone
marrow and brain, which the seasoned nihari
buffs prefer to have with their dish.
The lower middle class cant afford this luxury so they opt for
the Spartan version. A single plate of nihari, carrying
a small piece of meat, together with a couple of tandoori nans,
costs Rs 30. Every evening, outside some of thenihari joints, you
find poor men, women and children waiting for the dish to be served
to them by Good Samaritans
who pay for 5, 10 or even 25 people.
Three years ago while visiting Chennai, I went to a
non-vegetarian restaurant. Its menu proudly displayed, in bold
letters, nihari and paya. I ordered nihari happily only to be
disappointed the chef had added coconut milk to
mutton nihari, like adding insult to injury.
A couple of months back I went to Nihari House in Michigan. It
was initially run by a Pakistani, who had married the
investor, who happened to be a Filipino lady. They had employed
a Bangladeshi cook. The woman found her
Pakistani husband a good for nothing guy, so she got rid of him
but retained her chef. The nihari tasted fine, but the
best nihari that I have ever had outside Pakistan was in
Chicago, where a restaurant specialises in the dish. When
I tried to find out if the chef had come from Karachi or Delhi,
I was told he came from a neighbouring country. He
was a Mexican, who had been a Pakistani nihari experts
understudy for a year or so but when his mentor moved to
Dallas on a much higher salary, the Mexican took over.
The man learnt to cook nihari, but never bothered to learn
English. His colleagues in the kitchen, all from the
subcontinent, had to learn Spanish to be able to communicate
with him. Knowing the Mexicans fondness for
spices, I asked him if he took nihari home. The question was
translated into Spanish and the answer that came was
rendered in Urdu. The response, coming as it did from a man who
made highly tasty nihari, was shocking Ye bhi
koi khane ki cheez hai?
The writer, who jointly authored the bestselling Tales of Two
Cities with Kuldip Nayar and more
recently compiled and created Mehdi Hasan: The Man and his Music
writes and lectures on
music, literature and culture. He also reviews books and pens
travelogues and humorous pieces,
and can be contacted [email protected]
The views expressed by this blogger and in the following reader
comments do not necessarily reflect the
views and policies of the Dawn Media Group.
1Responseto"AMexicanmakesnihari"
lover says:Yesterday at 3:54 pm
Lol at the guys response!
Reply
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Mexican makes nihari | Blog | DAWN.COM
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