Gosht is the transliteration

Transliteration

Transliteration is a subset of the science of hermeneutics. It is a form of translation, and is the practice of converting a text from one script into another...

 for the Persian

Persian language

Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...

 word گوشت, meaning meat

Meat

Meat is animal flesh that is used as food. Most often, this means the skeletal muscle and associated fat and other tissues, but it may also describe other edible tissues such as organs and offal...

 or flesh, which has been adopted by other South Asian languages.

Gosht is an essential part of Pakistani cuisine, which features many meat-based curries. A wide variety of meats are used in Pakistan.

In India, gosht dishes are likely to be made with goat

Goat

The domestic goat is a subspecies of goat domesticated from the wild goat of southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the Bovidae family and is closely related to the sheep as both are in the goat-antelope subfamily Caprinae. There are over three hundred distinct breeds of...

 or mutton. In India the term "mutton" is more likely to mean goat rather than adult sheep, as it does elsewhere in the English-speaking world. As the Hindu

Hindu

Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...

 religion specially prohibits eating beef

Beef

Beef is the culinary name for meat from bovines, especially domestic cattle. Beef can be harvested from cows, bulls, heifers or steers. It is one of the principal meats used in the cuisine of the Middle East , Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Europe and the United States, and is also important in...

, and Islam prohibits the eating of pork

Pork

Pork is the culinary name for meat from the domestic pig , which is eaten in many countries. It is one of the most commonly consumed meats worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BC....

, Indian gosht is not traditionally made with these meats. When Indian dishes

Indian cuisine

Indian cuisine consists of thousands of regional cuisines which date back thousands of years. The dishes of India are characterised by the extensive use of various Indian spices, herbs, vegetables and fruit. Indian cuisine is also known for the widespread practice of vegetarianism in Indian society...

 are translated and adapted for Western audiences, lamb is the meat most often used in the adaptation. This has led to a common misconception that gosht means "lamb".

Variations include bhuna ghosht, kadhai gosht, raan gosht, dal gosht, nihari gosht, rara Gosht, and saag

Saag

Saag or sag is a spinach and/or mustard leaf-based dish eaten in South Asia with bread such as roti or naan, or rice . Saag can be made from spinach, mustard leaves, or other greens, along with added spices and sometimes other ingredients such as paneer...

 gosht, which includes spinach

Spinach

Spinach is an edible flowering plant in the family of Amaranthaceae. It is native to central and southwestern Asia. It is an annual plant , which grows to a height of up to 30 cm. Spinach may survive over winter in temperate regions...

. Karahi

Karahi

A karahi is a type of thick, circular, and deep cooking pot used in Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Nepalese cuisine. Karahi are traditionally made out of cast iron, and look like woks with rounded bottoms...

gosht is cooked in a traditional cooking pot from which it takes its name.