Cook in a Curry

10 months on and I’m loving it even more! Welcome to the new avatar of Cook in Curry. For the last couple of months, I have been looking forward and been super excited to make the changes and put it out there for you to read, try the recipes and share my joy of cooking. I hope you continue to stay with me through this journey of delectable food one dish at a time.

End of last year I wanted a medium where I could put my thoughts, ideas, recipes and share memories from childhood. Cook in a Curry took shape. I cooked, ate, prepped, wrote and cooked some more all from my kitchen which I still do and can’t think of a more satisfying experience or platform than to put together every dish step by step. Revelling in every outcome (the good and the not so good too!). When the idea of moving onto new software came up a few months ago, it also gave me some time to redo a few features on the blog and like me it will continue to evolve. I’m sure there will always be things that I will look to add and take away. All the recipes from the start are still there and I can’t wait to get things going again with lots more recipes, ideas, updates and regional Indian food.

To mark the new Cook in a Curry I wanted to do a post which reflected part of my all time favourite foods & desserts.  Meat Masala is something that I make very often. Its a recipe I acquired from my mother and the best part is that apart from turmeric there aren’t any other spiced powders used. For the flavour and heat whole spices are ground down to a fine powder. I am a carnivore through and through. As a young girl though we ate our fair share of vegetarian food on offer, meat & fish were always a staple in my household. It’s almost like I felt this emptiness if I missed my intake of meat for the day. That also had a lot to do with the quality of mutton (goat meat) in India which is absolutely fab. I would highly recommend trying out mutton and is available in the UK too.

In keeping with common usage I have used boneless leg of lamb but if you prefer keeping the meat on the bone; shoulder of lamb would be ideal because it is interlaced with layers of fat keeping the meat moist while cooking. Marinated and cooked in all its juices; the meat is succulent and tastes even better the following day. Served with chapattis and some kachumbar raita to accompany. I honestly can’t think of a better combination than having soft Indian bread to go with a spiced dry lamb dish.

I did mention desserts! Merely for my love of sweets in all forms. I have actually made this at home a few times and it’s turned out so well I thought it would be worth sharing on the blog for you to try out. Kulfi or Indian Ice cream. Go on give them both a go!

Meat Masala

There are certain spices (fresh as well as dry) that compliment individual cuts of meat perfectly. Ginger, black peppercorn, cinnamon and cardamom are a few that work so well with lamb. I have used green as well as black cardamom for the dish. Personally I find a small amount of black cardamom adds that intense smoky flavour running through the dish.

The prep might seem long but garam masala is something once made and stocked can be used for any other curries too. There are a lot of variations on what goes into the garam masala powder, but to simplify things I have gone with cloves, cardamoms, peppercorn & cinnamon. If you do have any mace in stock you could add that to the garam masala powder mix. I think it can be a bit annoying to buy all the required ingredients and not have much use for them on a regular basis after you have made that one curry (I’m guilty of that too!). With the masala powder made and the meat marinated, it’s just a case of cooking the lamb. I also enjoy it with some steamed rice and crunchy onions on the side too. Topped with lemon juice, coriander & ginger juliennes it’s a dish I never tire of.

Ingredients

700gms boneless leg of lamb

3 tbsp vegetable oil

1 medium onion finely sliced

1 medium tomato finely chopped

Salt to taste

Juice of half a lime or lemon

Roughly chopped coriander to garnish

Ginger julienne to garnish

Marinade

3 tbsp yoghurt

2in piece of ginger pounded to a paste

6-7 garlic cloves pounded to a pasted

1 tsp turmeric powder

Garam Masala Powder

5 cloves

1 black cardamom

8 green cardamom seeds removed

2 cm cinnamon stick

1 tsp black peppercorns

For the marinade whisk the yoghurt until smooth and mix in the ginger & garlic paste along with the turmeric powder. Add the lamb piece to the yoghurt mix and coat well to make sure all the pieces are covered in the marinade. Marinate for a couple of hour or overnight.

Use a spice or coffee grinder and pound all the spices together for the garam masala and set aside.

Heat the oil in a heavy based pan, add the sliced onions and stir cooking for 8-10minutes until they softened and are golden brown in colour. Tip in the chopped tomato and cook for about 5-7 minutes until have softened. Add in the garam masala powder and cook for 2-3 minutes.

You will see the oil start to leave the sides of the pan, at this stage add the lamb pieces and stirring well fry and seal them on all sides, now add the marinade. Stirring continuously cook until the lamb is half done for about 10minutes. You won’t really need any water at this stage as the lamb will cook in its juices and the marinade. If you do feel it’s too dry add about 50mls water. Add salt to taste. Simmer on a low heat for a further 30mins or until the lamb is tender and cooked all the way through. Stir half way through to avoid from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Serve sprinkled with lemon juice, chopped coriander and ginger juliennes.