Paya (Slow-Cooked Trotters)

Name: Paya
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 360 min
Total time: 375 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Indian (Punjab)
Ingredients: Goat trotters (paya): 4 (cleaned, flame-singed); Onion, sliced: 300g; Ginger-garlic paste: 3 tbsp; Paya masala (fennel, coriander, chilli, garam masala): 3 tbsp; Desi ghee: 4 tbsp; Whole spices: black cardamom 2, cloves 5, cinnamon 2 inch, bay leaf 3; Wheat flour: 2 tbsp (dissolved in water); Salt: to taste; Ginger julienne, lemon, green chilli: to serve; The longer paya cooks, the more collagen dissolves — 6 hours produces the best mouthfeel.; Flame-singeing the trotters before cooking removes hair and adds a subtle smokiness.; The wheat flour thickening is traditional — do not use cornstarch.; Paya broth is considered medicinal in Punjab — particularly good for joints and bones.

🍗 Non-veg📊 Medium

Goat or lamb trotters slow-braised for six hours in a fragrant spice broth until the collagen dissolves into a thick, gelatinous soup — a winter dawn tradition eaten with naan.

⏱️15 minPrep

🔥360 minCook

🕒375 minTotal

🍽️4Serves

🧺 Ingredients

👩‍🍳 How to make Paya

Wash trotters thoroughly.
Pressure cook with salt and water for 15–20 whistles.
Trotters should be partially tender with skin becoming gelatinous.
Heat ghee; add whole spices.
Add onions; cook very dark brown, 15 min.
Add ginger-garlic paste; cook 3 min.
Add spice mix; cook 5 min.
Add pressure-cooked trotters with broth.
Simmer on very low flame 3–4 hours.
Add dissolved wheat flour in last 30 min to thicken.
Broth should be thick, dark, and deeply aromatic.
Ladle into bowls; top with ginger, lemon, green chilli.
Serve with kulcha.

📖 Cultural notes

|---|---|---|---|---| | 460 kcal | 38g | 16g | 28g | 1g | Paya is Lahore's and Amritsar's pre-dawn meal — shops open at 4am and close by 8am when the pots are empty. The tradition is associated with the Muslim working class of undivided Punjab, but Hindus and Sikhs also partake enthusiastically. It is considered the ultimate winter fortification — a bowl of paya broth on a January morning is the Punjabi equivalent of chicken soup for the soul. ---

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