benazir's blog

Kooperey Masala

Heys before we dive in to this recipe I am going to tell you about this post at first. This is a dish made with either lamb’s, goat’s or bull’s testicles. They are also called balls or even nuts which is a slang term from the street. However this curry is specifically my own recipe.

The first time I went to Pakistan and one of my brother in laws killed and butchered a sheep. Pathan people do this on the regular. The meat is always fresh. Here in USA we have stores that sells meat and the animals are killed at slaughter houses. Pathan people are also called Pashtuns and killing a lamb for food is always going on. Only on Tuesday and Wednesday no one kills any cows, lamb and goats for food.

The diet is heavy in meat and especially carbs up the wazoo. The carbs part is bad because diabetes is rampent. Plus it is extremely oily because they put more ghee in to the food which is not necessary. One day I went to my one of my brother in law and sister in law’s house and this day a lamb was killed. My brother in law had on a siekh which btw is a big skewer some meat he had just cooked.

He offered me a piece and I ate a piece and I thought it was very yummy. He then turned to my nephew who was really tiny then and told him, “Son, this is very good for you.” I then realized what I ate but I said nothing. I told Mr. Riaz about this and I said, “Oh my God I remember this. I ate this when I was in Pakistan for the first time.” I told him today I am going to write and publish my recipe and he thinks it is not a good idea.

So lets prove the old fart wrong, shall we? Anyway you will need 2 or more lamb’s goat’s or bull’s testicles. There is a membrane that is very easy to come off and they will slip right on out. They membrane was already cut so I stuck my fingers to loosen it. Wash them in cold water.

After this is done then you can dice them which is slicing longways and then cut at the short end until they are diced. In a small pot add 2 cups of water and place the chopped testicles you cut and place it on the stove for 30 minutes on low heat. Add 1 capful of white vinegar. It looks kind of milky when they are boilng then it starts to look clear so do not panic.

In a mortar and pestle add 1 tiny piece of amchur (dried mango skin), either 1 red chili or Kashmiri chili, 2 kabab chinis (false cubeb berries), 1 pinch each of cumin seeds, black cumin, shai zeera (caraway seeds), fenugreek seeds, nustard seeds, black peppercorns, coriander seeds which gets ground in to a coarse powder and set aside.

In a wok add 1/4 cup of olive oil and let it get hot on high heat. Add 1 onion or shallot diced or cut in to half moon slices. Fry until they are brown then add 1 green chili chopped which gets fried too. Add 1 pinch each of red chili powder, paprika, pink salt, turmeric powder if using. You can also use 1 small piece of turmeric root like I did for this recipe.

Add the contents of the mortar and pestle then grind the small piece of turmeric root along with 4 cloves of garlic which gets peeled and chopped to make the chore of grinding in mortar and pestle easy. Also add 1 small piece of ginger and grind and add to the wok with the rest. Add 1 chopped tomato and cook until it is mushy. Sorry this is not an instant pot post because this is all done on stovetop.

Now you can add the kooperery, balls, nuts, testicles or whatever you want to call it to the wok along with the liquid it was boiling in. Do not worry, this is safe to do so. Reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes. Now it is time for the yogurt slurry. Add 3 tbs of yogurt, 2 tbs of cornstarch. and 1/4 cup of water to make a slurry. Stir until it is completely lump free and add to the wok a little at a time and stir like crazy. When it thickens up then you can turn the heat off and garnish it with either 1 pinch of Kasoori methi (fenugreek leaves), cilantro or mint. Cover for 5 minutes then serve with roti.

The verdict is delicious.

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