Indian Lamb Curry

Yesterday's Easter lamb roast got lush treatment today! An intense curry powder preparation made its way through the grinder and waited to be melded with onions, garlic, and ginger. The lamb roast was cut into chunks and braised slowly in a broth of oil, chicken stock, tomatoes, and all those onions and aromatics! The house smells divine! We'll have to air it out for two days to get the curry aroma to dissipate! Right now, though, it's heavenly!

Later on, there were steaming bowls of rice with Indian Lamb Curry spooned over top, big glasses of cold water to cool the heat, and a side glass of Malbec to sip. Leftovers never tasted so darn good! This recipe came from a new cook book that I just added to the shelves. It's called relaxed cooking with curtis stone . While this recipe has a long list of ingredients, it goes together easily and has a fantastic result ... Both SB and I declared it a 'keeper'. One thing I will say is that we used far less lamb than the recipe calls for and we felt that it was perfect. We couldn't imagine another pound of lamb in the broth. Just sayin' ... we don't need that large a serving of meat. We would far prefer more vegetables, so I kept the full measure of veg in the recipe, as well as the full amount of broth. I added some chicken stock instead of plain water. That made a more robust curry sauce. I also added a tablespoon of tomato paste to the tomatoes, as these are winter tomatoes and don't have the full 'bang' that summer tomatoes would give the curry stew.

So, here's the recipe ... enjoy!

Indian Lamb Curry

a Curtis Stone recipe

this recipe has been slightly adapted from the original

Spice Blend:

1 tbsp. cumin seeds

1 tsp. fennel seeds

10 cardamom pods

1 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 tsp. curry powder

1 tsp. turmeric

Curry Stew:

4 tbsp. vegetable oil

1 large onion, peeled and thinly sliced

3 large garlic cloves, peeled and minced

1 generous tbsp. ginger root, peeled and minced

1 lb. roasted lamb, cut into 1 inch chunks

kosher salt

2 tomatoes, finely chopped

1 tsp. tomato paste

1 large russet potato, peeled and cut into 1 inch dice

2 large carrots, peeled and sliced on the diagonal

2 stalks celery, sliced on the diagonal

3/4 c. frozen peas, thawed

2 c. fresh spinach leaves, rinsed and spun dry

3/4 c. unsweetened coconut milk

Making the Curry:

1. Place the fennel, cardamom pods, and cumin seeds into a spice grinder and blitz to a fine powder.

2. Place the spice powder in a small dish and add the cayenne pepper, turmeric, and curry powder. Use a fork to mix thoroughly. Set aside.

3. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven. Add the sliced onions and sweat to a soft gleaming mass. Add the garlic and ginger and sauté for a minute. Add the spice blend and stir to coat the onions well. Cook the spices for a minute.

4. Add the chunks of lamb and stir to coat with the spices. Add the chicken broth, tomatoes, tomato paste and a good pinch of Kosher salt. reduce the heat and simmer the pot uncovered for about an hour or so ( or longer!). Stir now and then and add a bit of water if the level drops below the top of the meat and vegetables.

5. When the curry has simmered for a good hour or so, add the potatoes, carrots, and celery and continue simmering until they soften.

6. Add the coconut milk, the thawed peas, and the spinach and cook long enough to wilt the spinach and cook the peas to a brilliant green.

7. While the curry finishes, steam a pot of basmati rice.

8. Serve the curry spooned over the hot rice.