Easy, mild lamb curry with fragrant basmati rice

 It has been a long winter, I have found that people hibernate in New Zealand, so you don't entertain or see friends very much. Kiwis are very 'outdoor' people and I don't just mean that in the sporting sense, but also entertaining and eating outside. Its so easy to fire up the barbie and throw a salad together, and enjoy dinner al fresco. However, in the colder months everyone stays indoors  and I think this recipe is perfect for the cold weather, comforting and wholesome, with a little spice to warm you up!

 An easy, mild Lamb curry, this is a superb dish for those in the family that don't or cant eat hot and spicy food. My children don't really like the hot stuff! So this is ideal, they are not great meat eaters either, so this curry is lovely as the meat is quite tender (depending on which method you use to cook it).  I cooked this in a slow cooker but you can use the oven or on the stove top.

700g boneless lamb shoulder (fat removed) roughly diced into bite size pieces
2-3 tbl Oil (your preference)
1.5 Tsp Ground cumin
1.5  Tsp Ground coriander
1 Tsp Tumeric powder
3-4 Cloves garlic peeled and finely chopped
1 tsp finely chopped ginger
Tip -:  If you have an Indian food suppliers that you can get to , they have ready made , fresh garlic paste and garlic & ginger paste that is kept in the fridge, fantastic if you use these ingredients all the time.  If you are using this, add 2 heaped teaspoons.
2-3 medium sized onions, finely sliced
150-200 mls of Chicken or beef stock (depending on how much sauce you want.
1/2 -1tsp chilli flakes (optional)
200mls of fresh cream
Salt & pepper to taste
Fresh coriander to garnish

1. Add oil to a large lidded casserole dish or a heavy based saucepan (if using the stove top) add onions and cook until pale and slightly golden, add the lamb and cook until browned.
2. Add the spices and chilli, and the ginger and garlic.  Add the cream and stock, bring it to the boil and then immediately  on a very low heat, simmer for about 1 hour.
3. If using the oven (preheated to around 150) cook the steps 1 & 2 in a large frying pan or wok and then transfer to a casserole dish, cooking for an hour or until the lamb is tender.
4. My favourite way is using the slow cooker, then you know you are getting beautiful, tender meat that melts in your mouth, again, steps 1 & 2 on the stove top in a large frying pan (hold the cream) which you can add  10-15 min before serving.

For the Basmati rice -; See an earlier blog entry for recipe, add 1/2 tsp of whole cumin when you add the water, and then  chopped coriander to garnish.

 

Enjoy!

 

Till next time

 

Ashia