Goan Paya /Trotters Curry

 

We just came back from a lovely weekend in New York with a dear friend whose daughters just celebrated their First Holy Communion.  One of the dishes he served up was Paya, a dish I had long forgotten about and came back with the resolve to cook this Goan delicacy in my own kitchen.  Paya is traditionally made from pig's feet in Goa, but I used lamb since it was the only kind I could find.  Paya was brought to South Asia originally by the Persians and is a dish made from Goat, lamb, buffalo or pork trotters.  The secret to good paya is slow cooking for many hours, hence I pulled out my slow cooker...the perfect appliance for this dish.
  This will be the first time for me making Paya, and I am dedicating this blog to James Jude, Jillian and Alyse ( my two beautiful and loving God children) and Mabel the dog.  We enjoyed this dish with a nice Feni cocktail!
Note:  Please don't say "eeew" when you hear goat feet as an ingredient  -   once eaten it will quickly become your favorite too!  Oh and forget the knife and fork, your fingers will do just fine!

Please feel free to add a comment below if you have visited this blog. I look forward to your visiting remarks.

Ingredients

3.5 lbs goat/lamb or pig's feet ( get your butcher to cut into bite-size pieces if you can)
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
10 peppercorns
8 cloves
juice of one small lime
2 bay leaves

Masala paste spices

1 heaped teaspoon chilly powder (reduce depending on tolerance for heat)
2 heaped teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon jeera or cumin powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon each turmeric, pepper, clove and cinnamon powders
1/8 teaspoon mustard powder
1/4 -1/2 can of tomato paste
Red wine vinegar

Fresh ingredients

1-2 medium onions roughly chopped
2 teaspoons each fresh garlic and ginger minced (chopped finely)

Method

Spray a large slow cooker with cooking oil.  Wash the trotters and put in the slow cooker pot.  Add the salt, peppercorns, cloves, bay leaf and lime.  Cover with water (about 8 cups).  Cook on low for about 3 hours.
Remove and strain, reserving the liquid.  Discard the whole spices.

 Mix all the masala spices in a bowl.

  Add enough vinegar and mix to form a paste.  Add the tomato paste and mix well to combine.

In a non-stick pan add 3 tablespoons of oil.  When hot add the onions, garlic and ginger.

 Stir and cook till onion is translucent and cooked.  Add the masala paste and stir on medium heat for a few minutes to cook the spices.

Add the trotters and coat well.  cook for a few minutes.  Now return the trotters to the slow cooker.  Transfer all the masala and drippings to the cooker.

Add the reserved broth less about one cup.  Mix well so that the liquid is well mixed with the masala spices.  Cover and cook on low for 3 more hours.  Check every half to one hour and stir to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom.  Cook the trotters longer if needed.  They should be so soft that the meat falls off the bone.  Check for pungency and sourness, both essential for authentic trotters.  Dish up and serve with rice, naan or bread.