Ingredients (serves 4)
(Please read the full recipe before starting)
I absolutely love this curry, its really flavorsome and you can spice it as high or low as you wish with adding chopped fresh green chillis for a hotter curry. Ive also made this with king prawn which is also really good.
The flat breads are incredibly easy to make, taste amazing so make plenty!
Lamb
● 500g diced lamb
● 1 teaspoon sea salt
● 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
● 1 teaspoon garam masala
● 1 tablespoon full fat Greek yoghurt
● Rapeseed oil for frying
Flat breads
● 325g full fat Greek yoghurt
● 325g self raising flour
● 1 teaspoon baking powder
● 1 pinch sea salt
● 2/3 cloves garlic
● Fresh coriander
● 40g salted butter
Rice:
● Use any white or brown rice you wish
● Fresh chopped coriander
● Lemon zest (optional but yummy with this dish)
Curry:
● 4 Large ripe tomatoes (IOW tomatoes if possible)
● 3 red onions
● 1 tablespoon tomato paste
● 3 cinnamon sticks
● 5 cardamom pods
● 6 cloves
● 2 teaspoons ginger paste
● 2 teaspoons garlic paste
● 1 teaspoon turmeric
● 1 teaspoon fenugreek
● 1 teaspoon cumin
● 1 teaspoon ground coriander
● 2 shallots
● 2 green / red chillies
● 1 teaspoon dried chillis
● Chopped Fresh mint
● 2 pints water
● 4 tablespoons full fat Greek yoghurt
● Oil for frying
Method
Lamb:
It’s important to make sure the lamb is at room temperature before cooking, so remove from the fridge approx 3 hours before cooking.
So for the marinade / coating, put the diced lamb in a bowl, add the salt, pepper and garam masala and stir, before adding the yoghurt and coating the lamb with the mixture. Leave to marinade for 3 hours, or overnight in the fridge if you have time (don’t forget to take it out 3 hours before cooking though).
The Curry sauce:
You will need a thick bottomed pan with a lid for this. Ideally a deep frying/sauté pan with a lid.
Peel and finely slice the onions. Heat the pan, add a few tablespoons of oil and fry the onions until softened.
Add the cinnamon sticks, cloves and cardamom pods and keep stirring on a high heat for a few minutes, then add the dried spices – turmeric, fenugreek, cumin, and ground coriander, stirring into the onions. Add approx. 100ml of cold water and stir in – this stops the spices from burning.
Add the garlic and ginger paste and stir. The mixture will be fairly thick at this stage.
Chop the tomatoes into small pieces and add to the mixture along with chilli flakes, again constantly stirring until the tomatoes begin to soften. Add approx. 1 pint cold water and stir until the pan is bubbling, then reduce to a simmer for 20-30 minutes to let the flavours of the spices get to work properly. This is a good time to seal off the lamb in a hot pan for 1-2 minutes each side, ready to add to the sauce.
At this stage you need to go hunting for those “hard spices – so remove the cinnamon sticks, cardamoms and the cloves – if you can – but don’t worry if you can’t.
Now it’s time to add the seared lamb and yogurt. Stir through the yoghurt and let it simmer with the lid on for another 20-30 minutes as the curry reduces and gets thicker. Stir regularly.
The longer you can keep the pan simmering, the softer the lamb. If the curry is too thin – up the heat and let it reduce more, if its too thick, just simply add some water to get it how you want it to be (there is no right or wrong!).
Meanwhile, whilst simmering, Peel and finely slice the shallots whole to make little rings. Get a frying pan with sunflower oil and heat to a high temperature, place the shallots in and quickly fry until crisp and brown – be careful not to burn them, they only need a few seconds. Remove and drain on kitchen paper – set aside.
Finely chop some green or red chillis (to your heat taste) and a bunch of fresh mint and again set aside for later.
Flat breads:
These are so simple and so yummy you will be amazed! Make these while your curry is simmering away.
Take a mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, salt and stir.
Crush a clove of garlic and rough chop a handful of fresh coriander, put in the bowl and mix.
Add the yoghurt and stir with a wooden spoon until it gets thick. At this point you need to get your hands in and knead the mixture together to form a dough which should only take 60 seconds (or less). Once in a ball, wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for 30 mins.
In a small pan, melt the butter, crush 2 cloves of garlic in and stir. Set aside.
When ready to serve, turn your grill on hot. Roll the dough out on a floured surface with a rolling pin – any shape it doesn’t matter, until its about ¾ cm thick. Place on a greased baking tray and put under the hot grill for 2-3 minutes or until it turns brown, turn over and do the same with the other side.
As soon as you take these out, brush one side with the garlic butter, sprinkle with sea salt and some fresh chopped coriander – these are then hot yummy and ready to devour!
Rice:
Simply follow the instructions on what ever rice you choose. I always like to use basmati rice, stirring in fresh chopped coriander and lemon zest – that’s just my preference and lifts the rice a bit!
To serve:
To finish the curry, simply place the portion in a bowl or on the plate, along with the rice. Sprinkle the crispy shallots, chopped fresh chillis and the chopped fresh mint over the curry (mint with the lamb really works) and serve.
