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Slaughtering and Butchering Goat and Sheep in India

Muslims will only eat meat slaughtered as Halal. Sikhs and Hindus may only eat meat slaughtered as Jhatka
Christians are not particular about method of slaughter. Jews, a very small minority in India eat only Kosher meat. I will describe Halal and Jhatka as it relates to Goat and Sheep.

Halal

What is Halal?
A Muslim swipes a large blade in a continuous motion across the neck of a live goat cutting windpipe food pipe jugular vein, and carotid artery . After the blood has drained off the head is removed.
The goat must be healthy and alive and face Mecca. The slaughterer must utter 'Bismallah, Allahu Akbar' before swiping the blade. All the traces of flowing blood must be removed.

Jhatka

What is Jhatka?
Jhatka is based on old Hindu practice. The head of the animal is tied to a pole, the hind legs are stretched out and tied to another pole on the opposite side. The head is chopped off with a single stroke of a heavy sharp blade. The animal experiences no pain as the death is instantaneous

Cuts of Goat and Sheep meat

In the olden days, the internal organs were removed, the animal was cleaned and hung on hook at the meat shops. There was no refrigeration, but the masses survived. In India, customers normally order the meat from the butcher for specific dishes. I am only going to cover a few cuts.

The animal can be separated in to three major parts

- Forequarter

It consists of neck, shoulder, front legs, ribs up to shoulder blade

- Hindquarter

It consists of rear legs and hip

- Loin

This is the rib section between the forequarter and the hindquarter

Shoulder

Shoulder is used to make Rogan Josh, Dhaba Curry. Shoulder is also minced to make Keema

Shanks

Lamb shanks come from forelegs and hind legs, they include bone. Bone plays an important part in making curries. The bone-in meat is used in Rogan Dhaba Curry. The bones are cut about 1½" to 2" long

Lower half of hind leg including round leg, without sirloin is used to make Nihari.

Shanks are also used to make Yakhni and Shorba.

Leg of Goat

Leg of goat refers to the leg from the hind quarter. The whole leg has Sirloin attached. The Sirloin is also called 'Pasanda' or choice cut of the Goat. It is used to make Mutton Pasanda curry.

The whole bone-in or bone-less leg is roasted in Tandoor to make Peshawar roast

Ribs

Ribs from the forequarter are cut long and narrow. The ribs contain meat and fat layers. In United States these are called riblets. In India these are used to make Burra Kebab, and Tabak Maas.

Internal Organs

The internal organs are harvested, cleaned and packaged separately.

Brain: Maghaz/Bheja
Feet (Trotters): Paya
Head: Sir/Matha
Heart: Dil
Intestines: Vajri
Kidney: Gurda
Liver: Kaleji
Lung: Phaypara
Spleen: Tilli
Stomach: Ojhari, But
Stomach Skin: Bhuri

Testicles: Kapura/Kapoora
Tongue: Zabaan, Jeeb
Udder: Khiri

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