What do I do when I smell something burning in my pot of mutton in gravy? Stirring is the best way to prevent this but what if some charring has already taken place? Wouldn't it be better not to stir to avoid mixing in the charred portion? What is the best way to handle this emergency?
PS: What I'm asking here is quite different from: How do I get the burnt aroma off burnt food?
So with gravy, you are talking about a scorched taste. Once you smell it, it is probably too late to salvage it. If you want to try, the best course of action is to remove it from the heat (obviously) and carefully ladle off as much of the top of the pan as you can, leaving the scorched part on the bottom. Then taste what you ladled off and see if it is really edible. In my experience, people try to convince themselves that the scorched flavor isn't really there, but it is, and once it is, all is lost.
Once it's burnt there's nothing much you can do to salvage the dish. Pray and hope it doesn't affect the taste too much. Next time though, make sure the flame is on low - medium. And since I know it's mutton you've cooked, when you pressure cook it, make sure you add some water to it.
