The Offal Truth: Insider Guide To Best Meat You've Never Tried

Before we start, a little bit on 'offal' meats.

There are some people who believe it’s no coincidence that the word offal sounds a lot like 'awful'. Those people have no sense of adventure. The etymology of offal can be traced to the words ‘off’ and ‘fall’, as the term refers to the parts of the animal that fall off the butcher’s block. Offal has always been a feature of Indian Muslim cuisine, said Mumbai-based food historian Kurush Dalal. So in a sense, the consumption of the brain, liver and kidney of the goat or buffalo (cow meat is off the menu owing to the beef ban) are examples of nose-to-tail cooking long before it became trendy. There is however a hierarchy even among offal. Organs such as the heart, lungs, stomach, intestines and eyes aren’t commonly consumed because they don’t quite have the same appeal.

Now's the right time to try this stuff out!

This long Eid weekend, which includes the last three days of Ramzan when Iftar-serving food stalls across Mumbai are at the buzziest, we suggest you expand your culinary horizons and add some offal to your kebab and tikka trail. Like they say, you never know how good something is until you try it. Please note, though: Some establishments might be closed on Eid, which is likely to be celebrated on Monday, June 26.

Bheja Fry

Bheja or brain, which is a part of several Indian cuisines and now even features on the menus of upscale restaurants and bars, is among the most easily available types of offal. Eaten in a variety of ways, the mushy item is typically served as a semi-dry fried preparation or a gravy masala dish and occasionally in the form of a cutlet. Many of the stalls in Mohammed Ali Road, Bohri Mohalla, Kurla and Jogeshwari offer bheja dishes during Iftar. If you’re looking for a more gentle introduction to the delicacy, then visit sandwich shop Pack-a-Pav, which is serving a limited edition bheja masala pao at its Bandra outpost just this weekend as a Ramzan special.

Where to eat it: Pack-a-Pav, Shop No.2, St. Andrew’s Road, near New India General Store, Pali Hill, Bandra (West). Tel 99202 30240.

Gurda and Kaleji

Though they’re frequently cooked together, gurda or kidney and kaleji or liver are fairly different in texture. The former tends to be soft and the latter, if made right, is pleasantly chewy. We vouch for Sahara Hotel in Kurla where they sell tawa-fried toss-ups of kaleji and gurda, both individually and as a mash-up called katakat. Dalal recommends the gurda and kaleji at India Hotel in Bohri Mohalla. The folks at Colaba home-based catering service The Bohri Kitchen make a kaleji-gurda masala with dhania, jeera, mirchi and haldi, but for their Eid spillover pop-up next weekend (the one this Sunday is already sold out), they will serve malida and kaleji. The dish combines the festive sweet treat of malida with pieces of liver prepared with ginger, garlic and chilli powder. See here for details.

Where to eat it: India Hotel, Shops No.1 and 2, Ground Floor, Abed Manzil, Khara Tank Road, Bohri Mohalla. Tel: 98190 47255. Open all year. Sahara Hotel, near Kamran Kalpana Theatre, LBS Marg, Kurla. Tel 022 2504 1973. Open all year.

Khiri

An acquired taste, khiri or udder is a “texture food”, says Dalal. “Cooked right, it’s the most delicious meat,” he said. Widely regarded as the best purveyor of the stuff, Haji Tikka in Bohri Mohala makes a grilled khiri tikka that we’ve found to be both soft and crunchy.

Where to eat it: Haji Tikka, 76 Raudat Tahera Street, Khara Tank Road, Bohri Mohalla. Tel: 90226 93840. Open all year.

Paya and pichota

The Mughals introduced paya or goat trotters to Indian cuisine and subsequently communities in different regions adapted recipes for the dish across the country. It’s usually prepared as a rich broth known as paya shorba. More rare is pichota or buffalo rump. A great way to sample both paya and pichota in a single meal is by heading to Surti Bara Handi in Bhendi Bazaar where you can order an array of goat and buff dishes, which have been slow-cooked for eight hours in wheat and dal. You can call for them individually or as a mix called ‘bhel’.

Where to eat: Surti Bara Handi, 64/66 Vahanwati Chawl, Saifee Jubilee Street, Bhendi Bazar. Open all year.

Curated by The Daily Pao, a website that nourishes your daily need for intelligent journalism about food, nightlife, culture and shopping in Mumbai.