About this recipe
This is a gentle, aromatic braise rather than a fiery one. Ground fennel and dried ginger do the heavy lifting, whole spices perfume the oil at the start, and whisked yoghurt goes in slowly so the sauce stays silky instead of splitting. Serve with plain basmati and let the lamb do the talking.
Ingredients
- 1000 g lamb shouldertrimmed and cut into 4cm chunks
- 20 g fresh corianderchopped, to finish
- 2 tsp fine sea salt
- 1 tsp garam masalacheck it is gluten free
- 250 g natural yoghurtfull fat, whisked smooth
- 400 g tinned chopped tomatoes
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 2 tsp ground fennel
- 2 tbsp kashmiri chilli powdermild, for colour
- 30 g fresh gingergrated
- 6 clove garlic clovescrushed
- 2 whole onionsfinely sliced
- 2 whole bay leaves
- 1 whole cinnamon stick
- 6 whole green cardamom podslightly crushed
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
Method
- 1
Pat the lamb chunks dry with kitchen paper. Heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a large heavy casserole over a high heat and brown the lamb in three batches, roughly 4 minutes per batch, until each piece has real colour. Lift onto a plate as you go.
Crowding the pan is the single most common mistake here. If the lamb steams instead of browning you lose most of the depth in the finished gravy.
- 2
Turn the heat down to medium and add the remaining 2 tbsp oil. Drop in the cardamom pods, cinnamon stick and bay leaves and let them sizzle for about 45 seconds until fragrant.
- 3
Add the sliced onions with a pinch of the salt and cook for 12 to 15 minutes, stirring often, until deep golden and collapsed. Scrape up any browned bits from the lamb as the onions release their moisture.
- 4
Stir in the garlic and grated ginger and cook for 2 minutes. Add the Kashmiri chilli powder, ground fennel, ground ginger and ground coriander and stir for 30 seconds only, so the spices toast without catching.
Ground spices burn fast. Have the tomatoes open and ready to go in before you add them.
- 5
Tip in the chopped tomatoes and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, mashing them down, until the mixture darkens and the oil starts to separate at the edges.