Buffalo Meat and Potatoes with Gravy (Simple Cooker Recipe)

I made this buffalo meat and potatoes for dinner, and I chose buffalo meat over chicken because I’ve tried chicken and potatoes together before, but the combination didn’t work for me. 

I made that once, then ended up giving the whole thing to the stray dogs outside; that was my worst experiment. 

Buffalo meat makes sense for a dish like this, and if you can get beef, use that instead because the flavor is a bit richer and deeper. 

Since it isn’t available where I live, buffalo is what I work with, and this dish came out exactly the way I wanted it to.

Ingredients

For the Ground Paste

• 2 medium onions
• 7 garlic cloves
• 2 inches of ginger
• 10 dried red chilies
• 3 tbsp dried coriander seeds

Whole Spices

• 2 Indian bay leaves
• 15 black peppercorns
• 7 cloves
• 1 black cardamom
• 1 cinnamon stick (2 inches)

For the Pressure Cooker

• 100g mustard oil
• 500g buffalo meat, washed
• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 50g water

Potatoes and Finish

• 500g potatoes (about 3 to 4 medium), peeled and cut into pieces
• 400g water
• Fresh coriander, chopped

Get the Paste Ground and Everything Else Ready

Firstly, make the paste: take onions, ginger, garlic, dried red chilies, and coriander seeds and put them in a blender and make a paste. 

I used a grindstone for this (it gives a slightly coarser texture than a blender), but either method works, and you’ll get the same result. 

A little texture in the paste is fine here; you don’t need to look for a completely smooth paste.

Add that, cut your potatoes, and put them in a bowl of water while you prep everything else so they don’t go brown. 

Then add the chopped tomatoes and set aside.

Keep all the whole spices like the salt and the turmeric in the same plate so everything is within arm’s reach once the mustard oil is ready. 

Heat the Mustard Oil

Mustard oil needs its own step before you start loading the cooker. You have to pour 100g of oil into the pressure cooker and heat it on medium flame for about 2 minutes, then turn the gas off and let it sit for 1 minute without adding anything. 

After that rest, the sharp raw smell of mustard oil will be removed.

If you skip it and add ingredients while the oil still has that raw edge, the sharpness will stay in the final flavor of the dish. 

So when you turn on the gas after the rest, you’ll have to move quickly and add everything at once.

At this point, I add the washed 500g buffalo meat, ground paste, chopped tomatoes, all the whole spices (bay leaves, peppercorns, cloves, black cardamom, cinnamon), salt, turmeric, and 50g of water. 

I added everything at the same time; after that, I mixed it all together in the cooker, put the lid on, and cooked on medium flame for 4 whistles. 

Adding the paste and whole spices with the meat from the beginning adds depth to the gravy. 

Also, because the meat takes much longer to cook than the potatoes, the first four whistles are just for the meat and spice base to fully develop together. 

After four whistles, the spice base should look thick, and the meat should be cooked through, with oil starting to separate around the edges.

Add Potatoes and Water After the Meat

Let the pressure release naturally before opening the cooker after four whistles. 

Now add potatoes at this stage because they cook much faster than buffalo meat and would be completely falling apart by the time the meat is finished if they’d gone in from the start. 

Plus, adding them after the spice base is ready means the potatoes absorb depth, which you don’t get if they cook from the beginning in plain water and spices.

Add the cut potatoes and 400g of water, which is what becomes the gravy; however much you add here is how much you end up with. 

Put the lid back on and cook for two more whistles. 

From here, your dish will be done; just let the pressure release before opening again, and that’s it.

Add Fresh coriander on top right at the end, with the flame already off. 

In fact, coriander is my favourite finishing touch for a dish like this, and I always add a good handful, because it cuts through the spiced oil richness.

If you want to serve this with rice, you can make yellow rice with potatoes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do the potatoes go in after the meat and not from the beginning?

Potatoes cook much faster than buffalo meat, so if you add them at the start, they’ll be completely soft and fall apart before the meat is done. 

Adding them after the four whistles gives them exactly the two whistles they need to cook through and absorb the spices without losing their texture.

How do I heat mustard oil properly before cooking with it?

Heat 100g of mustard oil in the pressure cooker on medium flame for about 2 minutes, then turn the gas off and let it sit for 1 minute.

By doing so, the strong raw mustard oil smell will be removed, and then the oil will be ready to cook in. 

If you add ingredients before completing this step, it will affect the sharpness in the finished dish.

Can I use beef or mutton instead of buffalo?

Beef from a cow is actually the better option for this dish if you can find it, because the flavor is a bit richer and the texture is more tender. 

That’s just what I’d personally use if it were available where I live. 

Mutton also works well with this spice base, and the pressure cooker timing should be similar. 

How much gravy does this recipe make?

At 400g of water, the gravy comes out medium-bodied and coats the meat and potatoes well. 

If you want more gravy or a slightly thinner consistency, you can go up to 450g to 500g of water when you add the potatoes. 

Adding more water than that will ruin the gravy; it’ll feel too watery instead of properly saucy. 

I kept it at 400g here, and it was exactly where I wanted it.

What if the meat is still tough after four whistles?

Pressure cookers are different too, so if the meat isn’t cooked in 4 whistles, then maybe your cooker is older or a different size. 

If you open the cooker after four whistles and the meat still feels tough when you press it, seal it back up and give it one or two more whistles. 

The rest of the process stays exactly the same.