Large, soft balls of mutton pounded smooth with fat, simmered in a spiced yoghurt gravy — traditionally the last meat course of the wazwan.
What makes it gushtaba
Mutton pounded, not minced, with fat until springy.
Big balls, poached and then simmered in yoghurt.
Fennel, cardamom and dried mint.
Where it comes from
The wazwan ends with gushtaba, and a feast is often said to be finished once it's served. The meat is pounded by hand on a stone until it's almost a paste, worked with fat, and rolled into big balls that are poached in broth and then finished in yoghurt.
Its red sibling, rista, uses the same pounded meat in smaller balls in a chilli-red gravy, and comes earlier in the meal.
How it varies
Rista
Smaller balls of the same meat, in a red gravy with Kashmiri chilli.